Banks ban online transactions for biometric noncompliance
Under the new directive, a “block” will be placed on the accounts of non-compliant citizens, along with their balances, starting November 1, rather than at the end of December as previously planned.
• The Ministry of Interior has called on citizens to expedite their biometric fingerprint registration before the September 30 deadline.
• All electronic channels and payments for customers who have not completed the biometric fingerprinting will be suspended starting October 1.
As the deadline for citizens to submit biometric fingerprints expired on Monday, banking sources informed Al-Rai newspaper that banks have decided to shorten the timeframe for freezing the accounts of Kuwaitis who have not completed the biometric process to 30 days.
Under the new directive, a “block” will be placed on the accounts of non-compliant citizens, along with their balances, starting November 1, rather than at the end of December as previously planned.
The Ministry of Interior has called on citizens to expedite their biometric fingerprint registration before the September 30 deadline. Civil ID and all government and banking transactions will be halted immediately for those who do not complete the biometric fingerprint procedures by this date.
Sources explained that, according to banking plans set in this regard, all electronic channels and payments for customers who have not completed the biometric fingerprinting will be suspended starting October 1. This includes preventing access to account balances, obtaining account statements, transferring funds, and processing financial links or “WAMD” service transfers, effectively stopping all electronic transactions for those who have not registered their biometric fingerprints.
Additionally, sources indicate that all bank cards, including ‘Knet,’ ‘Visa,’ and ‘MasterCard,’ for non-compliant customers are expected to be suspended on October 15. This means that these cards will no longer be effective for withdrawals or deposits, and during this period, customers will only be able to visit their banks to withdraw cash from their balances. After November, customers will be unable to withdraw any money, even by visiting the bank.
Sources expect that installments owed by customers whose accounts have been frozen will continue to be deducted during the restriction period in favor of creditors, including financiers and government benefits, if applicable.
The sources pointed out that, since last week, banks have begun sending reminders to customers based on the database of civil numbers related to the biometric fingerprint status of individual customers, provided by the Public Authority for Civil Information in coordination with the Ministry of Interior. This initiative aims to encourage customers to complete their biometric fingerprinting before the deadline.
