The Commercial Concealment Law applies not only to foreigners but also to citizens who conduct business through commercial licenses registered in the names of their family members (mothers, fathers and wives), relatives or even friends, while they are not actual partners in those licenses.
The sources said some citizens working in the public sector who also operate businesses have obtained commercial licenses in the names of relatives who are not actual partners. Such arrangements constitute a violation of the decree-law on combating commercial concealment, which has been published in the Official Gazette and is scheduled to take effect in February 2027.
The sources stressed that the law does not prevent a Kuwaiti government employee from becoming a partner in traditional local companies, provided the employee meets the requirements for obtaining the relevant commercial license and is listed as an actual beneficiary of the company.
The law clarifies that a Kuwaiti government employee may obtain a commercial license with 100% ownership in a partnership or a one-person company, provided that the employee does not serve as the company’s manager, in accordance with the regulations established by the Public Institution for Social Security.
The sources explained that the complete prohibition applies to government employees holding freelance business licenses and individual licenses, because these two types of licenses require the license holder to serve as the company manager.
