Kuwait Granted 35,000 Expat Offenders Amnesty

The Ministry of Interior said in a statement that about 35,000 residence law violators out of the 120,000 have benefited from the grace period granted by the Ministry of Interior, reports Al-Anba daily. The amnesty which was issued in March ends on June 17. It has been reported that many have left the country while others have adjusted their status or have started the process.

The source added that those benefiting from the grace period until yesterday are either expatriates who left the country through the exits without paying the due fines, or expatriates who applied to residency affairs departments and transferred their residencies and paid the fines due on them, or expatriates who submitted travel documents allowing them to leave the country due to the expiration of their travel documents or not having these documents. In a related context, the Ministry of Interior called on residency law violators to comply with the ministerial decision that allows them to leave the country without being questioned about the late fine from any of the country’s exits, or to adjust their status and benefit from the specified grace period, which ends on the 17th of this month.

It pointed out that those wishing to amend their residency status and are listed under security surveillance (arrested for residency expiration, visa expiration, or absconding) must visit the various residency affairs departments in all governorates during the morning period after meeting the necessary conditions.

The following are accepted:

— Violators whose residency or visa has expired and wish to renew or issue a residency permit must go with their sponsor to the residency affairs department and pay the due fine, then complete the procedures.

— In case of domestic workers, those wishing to transfer their residency to another sponsor must have both the old and new sponsors present along with the domestic worker and complete the transfer and waiver procedures after paying the due fine.

— A violator holding Article 18 residency (companies) must visit the Labor Department and complete the procedures, then visit the Residency Affairs Department.

— Residents holding Article 22 (joining family) and wishing to renew their children’s residency must pay the fine and then complete the procedures.

It clarified that a violator holding a valid passport can leave the country through the exits without the need to visit the residency affairs departments or pay the fine or lift the absconding status. It mentioned that a violator wishing to leave the country and does not hold a valid passport or has lost a passport or has an expired passport, must visit the embassy of his/her country to obtain an emergency travel document, then visit one of the Farwaniya or Mubarak Al-Kabeer departments under the residency affairs administration during the evening period from 3 pm to 8 pm to register the document data in the system and then leave through one of the exits.

The ministry affirmed that the violator who left the country during the specified period can return to the country according to the regulations and conditions, and in case of arrest after the end of the specified grace period, all legal measures will be taken against the person, and will be deported and will not be able to return again.

The source emphasized that the Ministry of Interior, represented by the General Administration of Residency Affairs Investigations, has started planning to control violators who have not benefited from the adjustment period to solve this chronic problem. In a related context, Major General Mishal Al-Shanfa, the director-general of the General Administration of Residency Affairs Investigations, called on all residency law violators to amend their status or leave, with the possibility of returning, or all legal measures will be taken against them after the end of the grace period. Al-Shanfa stressed, in several awareness messages broadcasted by the Ministry of Interior yesterday, that after the end of the grace period, security campaigns will be launched in all regions against residency and labor law violators.

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