KUWAIT: The interior ministry and the Public Authority of Manpower have emphasized certain measures that expatriates must adhere to before being allowed to transfer their residency and change sponsorship. These measures include fulfilling the specified conditions for sponsorship transfer as outlined in administrative decision no. 842 of 2015 in case of a change of sponsor. The expat’s residence in Kuwait should not be less than one consecutive year when transferring from family residency to work residency in the private sector.

The interior ministry and PAM highlighted that the administrative decision concerning the conditions for transferring workers from one employer to another in Kuwait states that workers brought in under a work permit can be transferred to work in the private sector after one year from the date of the work permit issuance and with the approval of the current employer for the sponsorship transfer.

They specified that workers brought in with permits for employment in the private sector can be transferred to government contracts and projects after the completion of the government contract under which the worker was originally brought in. The transfer, whether to another government contract with the same employer or to a government contract with a different employer, is limited to highly skilled technical workers as defined by the government entity overseeing the project.

The ministry and PAM emphasized the need for the employer to cancel work permits of employees registered under the government contract that cannot be transferred for departure at the end of the contract.

Regarding residency transfer conditions in Kuwait without the sponsor’s approval, the ministry and PAM stipulated that at least three years should have passed since the issuance of the work permit. The sponsor must be notified of the worker’s intention to transfer sponsorship within the specified duration according to the labor law. Verification of the worker’s notification to the sponsor, submitted to the labor department upon the transfer request, is essential.

The transfer of sponsorship to another sponsor must meet the sponsorship conditions. Both the ministry and PAM urged the preparation of all required documents for residency transfer without sponsor’s approval, along with the payment of all associated fees.

Online services, provided by the ministry of interior, cover various residency transfer scenarios, including transferring sponsorship from government residency (article 17) to private sector residency (article 18), transferring government residency (article 17) to family residency (article 22), transferring residency from one government entity (article 17) to another government entity (article 17), transferring sponsorship from the private sector (article 18) to the government sector (article 17), transferring sponsorship from the private sector (article 18) to family residency (article 22), and transferring the residency of domestic workers (article 20) to another sponsor.