Kuwait plans to impose harsh penalties on expatriates who overstay their visit visas under a new residence law set for parliament debate on Tuesday, December 19, local media reported.
The draft law recommends that those who violate the law and remain in the country will be sentenced to one year in prison and a fine of up to 2,000 Kuwaiti Dinars (Rs 5,38,226).
The draft law also outlines a daily fine of 2 Kuwaiti Dinars (Rs 538) for residency illegals in first month and 4 Kuwaiti Dinars (Rs 1,076) from the second month of the violation.
According to Arabic daily Al-Rai, the draft allows expatriates entering Kuwait on a visit visa to stay for up to three months, unless they obtain a residency permit from the Interior Ministry.
The draft article proposes imposing a fine of 3,000 Kuwaiti Dinars (Rs 807,340) on expatriates found working in violation of residency law.
Kuwait has stepped up its efforts to curb illegal residency. On Friday, December 15, the Kuwaiti Interior Ministry said 209 expatriates arrested in a security crackdown on residency and labor law violations.
Expatriates make up nearly 3.2 million of Kuwait’s overall population of 4.6 million.
