Kuwait: Residency permit cancelled if expats stay abroad for over 6 months‏

Kuwait: Kuwaiti Ministry of Interior on Friday announced that the Residency Affairs Sector will start the cancellation of the residency of expatriate workers who have been outside the country for a period of six months or more, the Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) reported.

The new terms will come into effect from November 1.

The Kuwaiti Ministry of Interior stated in a statement, that the period of presence of these workers outside the country will be calculated from the date of May 1, 2022 until the date of October 31, 2022.

Those who have left Kuwait before May 1 must return before November 1 back to Kuwait if they don’t wish their residence to be cancelled.

According to Kuwaiti law, the maximum length of stay for expatriates outside the country is six months. Although this was in effect earlier, based on humanitarian considerations, since the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, the cabinet had given special permission to non-residents to stay outside the country for more than six months and to renew their residence documents online.

Expatriates make up approximately 3.4 million of Kuwait’s total population of 4.6 million.