The concerned authorities continue to mull over the decision to not renew work permits and residency permits for expatriates aged 60 with no college degree, Al-Rai reported.
A committee is to be formed of specialists to provide comprehensive recommendations to the Public Authority of Manpower (PAM) regarding amending or canceling the decision, with justifications of each recommendation. It is expected that the committee will complete its report within a period of two weeks.
The sources pointed out that the decision affects 56,000 expats while the official figures indicated that the number was up to 86,000.
The vast majority of these expatriate workers are registered with companies whose licenses are active in general trade and contracting, and some of them are skilled workers that are needed by some sectors, and cannot be easily replaced.
The sources indicated that the majority of the meetings that took place with the relevant authorities regarding the fees supposed to be approved within the expected amendments to the decision suggested imposing a fee of KD 1,000 annually to renew the work permit and mandatory health insurance; a decision is yet not finalized.