I’ve been here in Kuwait for the past 12 years. My question is on the new law regarding resignation. It says that if an employee resigns he must give a 3-month notice. Is it true? And do they think if I apply and am hired by a new company, it will wait for me? By law I’m already locally hired and every year I can transfer to another company. Is the new law applicable to me or will it be the same as before — just 15 days notice? It will be 1 year in my company soon and I’m planning to transfer to a new company.

Name withheld

Answer: According to the new law, the 3-month notice period is applicable to all the companies and individuals in the private sector. It doesn’t matter if you are locally hired or not, the law applies to all. But your company, if it so desires, can waive the notice period.
This is done in a lot of companies. A lot of companies don’t even care for the notice period and allow the staff who resign to go whenever they want to go. So, it depends on your company — if it wants to implement the new law or not.

The Arab Times invites questions on all aspects of Kuwaiti law. If you face a problem, or need specific advice on any legal matter, from commercial and investment law to divorce and labour, send questions to the Managing Editor, Arab Times, P.O. Box 2270, 13023  Safat, Kuwait, or Fax to 24818267.