KUWAIT CITY, May 26: The Civil Service Commission (CSC) has informed government agencies that the permitted late arrival period for female employees during the morning shift is 45 minutes, while for male employees it is 30 minutes.
According to informed sources, all employees, both male and female, are entitled to a 30-minute grace period, which may be used either upon arrival in the morning or upon departure after completing official working hours. Female employees are granted an additional 15-minute grace period upon departure. Employees will continue to benefit from these grace periods during the reduction of official working hours to six hours in June, July, and August.
In this regard, Basma Al-Yaqoub, Director of the Fatwa and Opinion Department at CSC, explained in an interview with Kuwait TV that the reduction in working hours applies to employees working both morning and evening shifts. There are two types of work schedules for the morning shift:
- Fixed hours, set by the employer (either starting at 7:00 am or 8:00 am), with a 30-minute grace period
- Flexible hours, which run from 7:00 am to 8:00 am, also with a 30-minute grace period.
Employees on the flexible schedule whose work starts at 7:00 am and who do not use the morning grace period may still benefit from it, along with the additional 15 minutes, upon leaving at 12:15 pm for female employees and 12:30 pm for male employees.
Employees on the flexible schedule whose work starts at 8:00 am and who do not use the morning grace period may still benefit from it upon departure, along with the additional 15 minutes. In this case, female employees would finish at 1:15 pm, and male employees at 1:30 pm.
For employees who choose to use the 30-minute grace period in the morning and whose workday runs from 8:01 am to 8:30 am, female employees would finish at 1:45 pm, and male employees at 2:00 pm. As for shift workers, their work is considered special in nature and they are subject to the regulations governing their respective shifts.
The evening shift begins at 5:00 pm. Male employees are granted a 30-minute grace period only at the start of the shift, not at the end, while female employees are granted a 15-minute grace period at the end of the shift.
Also, Minister of Justice Nasser Al-Sumait issued Ministerial Decree No. 312/2026 on the official working hours during summer. The decree states that the number of working hours in all sectors of the Justice Ministry is reduced to six hours per day from June 1 to Aug 31. It stipulates a flexible work schedule from Sunday to Thursday, indicating employees are allowed to start work any time between 7:00 am and 8:00 am, provided they complete six hours according to their arrival time, without prejudice to the legally mandated grace period. It clarifies that the grace period begins after 8:00 am, while tardiness will be calculated after 8:30 AM. It added that time out requested by the employees at the beginning of the workday -- between 7:00 am and 8:00 am -- will be considered.
