New Kuwait rules limit domestic worker hiring to 10 approved countries
- Kuwait has introduced updated regulations governing domestic worker recruitment, identifying 10 approved source countries while restricting recruitment from 27 others as part of efforts to strengthen oversight and streamline labor market procedures.
The Ministry of Interior issued a circular to regulate domestic worker recruitment, specifying the countries from which recruitment is permitted, as well as a list of countries from which recruitment is prohibited. This is part of updating the procedures and regulations related to domestic worker recruitment.
According to a source, the circular specifies 10 countries from which domestic workers (male and female) can be recruited:
The countries are South Africa, Benin, Senegal (males only), Eritrea, Ethiopia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, India, Vietnam, and Nepal.
Recruitment procedures will be completed within the governorates.
The circular includes a list of 27 countries from which recruitment is prohibited. This measure was taken based on observations and recommendations from several official bodies, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Health, and the Public Authority for Manpower.
In some of these countries, the ban applies only to females.
The source indicated that some of the countries on the lists have diplomatic representation in the country, while others do not have embassies in Kuwait, Al-Anba daily reports.
The source confirmed that the relevant authorities circulated the decision to the residency affairs departments and service centers to operate accordingly starting from the date of the update the day before yesterday.
