Kuwait to require employer okay for foreign staff to leave

Kuwait is to require foreigners working in the private sector to obtain their employer's permission before leaving the country, authorities said yesterday, adding further restrictions on workers bound by the kafala sponsorship system.

Human rights groups have long criticised the kafala system, which is widely prevalent in the oil-rich Gulf states and ties migrant workers' visas to their employers, often preventing them from changing jobs or sometimes leaving the country.

First Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Fahad Yousef issued a ministerial circular "requiring expatriate workers in the private sector to obtain an 'exit permit' from their registered employer before leaving the country," the Public Authority of Manpower said in a statement on its X account.

The procedure, which can be done online, aims to "strengthen oversight of the movement of expatriate workers and ensure a balance between the workers' and employers' rights", the statement added.

The new requirement will take effect from July 1.

Saudi Arabia has similar restrictions on expatriate workers, who are required to obtain exit and re-entry permits from their sponsor to leave and re-enter the country.

Starting in 2017, Qatar made a series of reforms to its employment regulations after being selected to host the 2022 World Cup.