Legal Clinic

I’m worried that my wife is now pregnant but she is almost 2 years in her company now and she was directly hired from Philippines. We got married 3 years ago and now we are very happy she is pregnant but the problem is the company of my wife doesn’t allow all lady workers to be pregnant because that is their company policy and they said they will send my wife back to Philippines. My question now is … Doesn’t my wife have right to be pregnant? Is it possible that her company will terminate her because of pregnancy? Please sir, enlighten me on this issue.

Name withheld

Answer: The Kuwait Labour Law is generous towards pregnant women giving them 70 days maternity leave with pay. Nowhere in the labor law, are companies given the option of firing women who became pregnant. Such a law if it exists will be a gross violation of the rights of such women and an act that can be described as gender discrimination. Should the company terminate the services of your wife because of her pregnancy, we advise that your wife file a case with the Public Authority for Manpower through the labor office in your area and seek redress.

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I worked in the ministry for the last 12 years and hold a driving licence issued in 2016, recently I joined a private company and my salary is KD 1,400. I hold a diploma and a university degree, the issue is they have put my educational qualification in work permit as diploma as they said the title they have put in my work permit doesn’t match with my university degree, sir will this affect my driving licence. Please do maintain my anonymity.

Name withheld

Answer: We do not think this should affect your driving licence since the eligibility rule for a licence talks about university degree holder and nothing about the degree’s relationship to the type of work you do. We advise that you should get your degree attested if you have not yet done so, in order that if the issue of your qualification crops up as regard your driving licence, you can prove to them that you also hold a degree in addition to your diploma. Having said all that we have said we must caution that the prerogative of granting or revoking a licence is the exclusive preserve of the Traffic Department and they can decide on the issue regardless of what we have said here.

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I had been working in Kuwait for 2 years, but when my residence expired I wasn’t able to renew it, after that I went back to my home country and my previous employer give me visa. I want to know whether I can change my current employer. On new visa I have served 9 months. I am university graduate also and I am working a accounts assistant.

Name withheld

Answer: If the current employer was the same that gave you a visa to return to Kuwait, then the law obliges you to work three years for him\her before you can ask for a release. On the other hand if you are working for a different employer (which the law frowns upon), then you may change a new employer after serving one year with the current employer who in any case is not your sponsor so the one year service will be tied to the sponsor who brought you back to Kuwait from your home country. In that case the change of sponsor will be deemed to have been approved by the original sponsor.

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Dear sir, I am working in Kuwait with Visa 18 and my wife is on dependent visa sponsorship by me. My wife delivery is next year August, can I sponsor my new born baby as my basic salary KD 250 only please reply.

Name withheld

Answer: Sponsoring your expected new-born baby with a KD 250 monthly salary will be a tall order. All the same, we maintain our stand that there is no harm in trying as sometimes some sponsorships can be effected on compassionate grounds. Having said the proceeding we must also advise that you should prepare a plan B to send the newly-born baby out of Kuwait within sixty days of his/her birth in the event that the request for sponsorship is denied.

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I try to get answers from your articles. But unfortunately I couldn’t. Because there are 123 pages. I read first 10 pages and I am tired. My question is can a domestic worker change his visa to a company visa within Kuwait? After I finish the two years contract and go back to my home country from there can I come back on company visa as a driver with same licence which I got from domestic worker visa?

Name withheld

Answer: Under the labour law, you cannot transfer your domestic visa to company visa. What is permitted is transfer to a different sponsor but under same domestic vias category. After serving your two-year contract and returning to your country, nothing prevents you from returning to Kuwait on company visa as a driver. Having said the preceding however, we must point out that when after seeing out your contract, your residence permit will be cancelled before you return to your country. With the cancellation of your residence permit, your drivig licence will also stand cancelled. This means that upon returning to Kuwait on company visa, your pervious driving licence will no longer be valid and you can only get a new licence by applying for it affresh as a driver in your new company.

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I would like to inquire on the issue below on behalf of one of my friends. At the time she came to Kuwait her date of birth on old passport was 30-10-1978. Then, when the old passport got expired, she renewed it. The Nepal embassy put new date of birth on her passport as their local Nepali ID card showed her birth date is 31-10- 1979. On new passport her date of birth is 31-10-1979. But, when her company renewed her visa, she got old date of birth on Civil ID card that 30- 10-1978. Attached is her old Civil ID, new Civil ID, passport front page and paper from ministry. Now we want to change the date of birth and year on her Civil ID. Can you kindly please guide on above.

Name withheld

Answer: It is intriguing to know why on earth two official documents of your friend’s have two different dates of birth and hence leading to the situation in which your friend now finds herself. We advise that your friend goes back to her embassy, show them the different dates of birth on her passport and the Kuwait Civil ID card and ask for their input on how to rectify the anomaly. If the embassy proves unhelpful, then your next port of call should be the Public Authority for Civil Information (PACI) for directives on the issue.

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I am working here in Kuwait in a private company. My wife has recently come to Kuwait working as a nurse and recruited by the hospital. My basic salary is below KD 500/- (as per new law) to sponsor wife or child. Is there any chance that I can apply to sponsor my child in India or get an official appointment with the director general to talk about our issues.

Name withheld

Answer: As you have agreed yourself that your salary is below the minimum required to sponsor your family on dependent visa, the only option left for you is to turn to your wife as a nurse to see if she would be lucky to be allowed to sponsor your child. We make this recommendation on the back of information that nurses, especially those working in the public sector, are sometimes allowed to sponsor their families on dependent visa.

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I came to Kuwait in April 2019 from India. I am working in private company. The company has provided me the working visa. I have completed 7 months work in Kuwait. I have not been paid 4 months salary till now. So I plan to cancel the visa and I have informed them to cancel my residence as I am leaving Kuwait. If so, will they pay my pending salary before returning to India? Suppose they say that they will transfer my salary in future after returning to India, what do I need to do for that legally. Please guide me. Note: HR manager told me they will credit my pending salary after going back to my home country. I don’t have belief.

Name withheld

Answer: As the company has no objection to your return to India, it is a tacit admission that they are in breach of the labor law for the non-payment of your salary for four months. It is our gut feeling that the company is itching to see you leave Kuwait so that they may not have to pay you for the four months you have worked for them. In order not to help the company achieve their diabolic intentions, we advise that you do everything humanly possible to make them pay you what is due to you before you leave the shores of Kuwait. If your attempts fail to move the company, then we suggest that you take the issue to the Public Authority for Manpower and we believe they can compell the company to pay what is due to you. We share your view of not trusting the company on the issue of you leaving Kuwait and they transferring the money into your account after that. On this score, we will add that you leave Kuwait without your four-month salary at your peril.

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I entered Kuwait with factory visa (in Kuwait pipe industry and oil services) and I am working here from 15 years. Now I want to transfer to a general trading company. Please advice me how I can transfer my visa without exit from Kuwait because I am living with my family. Please answer in detail it’s big help for me.

Name withheld

Answer: Unfortunately, the law want permit you to transfer your factory visa to a general trading company visa. The only option you have is to exit Kuwait and come back with a new visa. In this scenario however you will have to exit with your family and upon your re-entry, work for their return as well.

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I want to apply for visit visa for my first cousin brother. He is not my direct brother. Is there any options available?

Name withheld

Answer: Except for the duration of stay which differs for the different degrees of relatives, all other rules that bind visit visas are the same. We must point out however that the closer the relative (in degree terms) is to you, the brighter the chances of the application being approved.