02/02/2026
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02/02/2026
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KUWAIT CITY, Feb 2: The Residency Affairs General Department at the Interior Ministry stated regulations for transferring and canceling residency permits in several cases, including the death of a sponsor holding a residency permit under Article 17 or 18, deportation of a sponsor, death of a Kuwaiti citizen with non-Kuwaiti children, issuance of court rulings against expatriates, and expiration of a sponsor’s residency permit while he is outside the country.
The source told the daily that in case the sponsor dies, the sponsored individual should contact his respective governorate. The status of the wife and children will then be reviewed, and their residency permits will be transferred to the wife if she obtains employment or if she is already employed. If the husband is deported, the residency permits of the wife and children are canceled if the wife is unemployed. If the children are students, they are given a notice to leave the country until their studies are completed.
The source added that if the residency permit of the husband expires while he is abroad, the dependents’ affairs are processed in the respective governorate according to the regulations. If the mother is employed, the case is reviewed, and the children are transferred to her sponsorship, provided they are enrolled in school. The same applies to an imprisoned husband.
Regarding the children of a female citizen married to a non-Kuwaiti, those under sponsorship are given the opportunity to look for work or transfer to Article 24 (self-sponsorship), provided that the mother’s nationality is established. The widow and divorcee of a deceased citizen, who has no children, are allowed to transfer their residency in the respective governorate after studying the case.
A widow who has no children, but has pension, is allowed to transfer her residency. If the expatriate husband is in the Central Prison and the wife does not work, her residency is not renewed. If she works, the case is studied with the possibility of transferring the children to her sponsorship.
For sponsors with mental disabilities, the cases of those under sponsorship are studied by the residency departments, each according to their governorate, with the possibility of transferring the children’s residency to the mother if she is aware of it.
