The Government of the Philippines announced that it had not received an official notification from Kuwait regarding the suspension of visas for Filipino workers, while informed sources said the meeting of the Kuwaiti-Filipino joint committee on the issue of domestic workers will be held in Kuwait next week over a period of 3 days from May 16 to 18 May, indicating that the meeting will discuss a number of issues, foremost of which is the possibility of reaching a solution to the issue of domestic workers in accordance with the bilateral agreements between the two countries.
On a related level, the sources indicated that the directives to stop issuing all types of visas to Filipino workers include new and previously issued entry visas as well, and only those who have a valid residence permit are allowed to enter Kuwait, even if they have a previous visa, and the Filipino workers residing in Kuwait can renew their residence as usual, according to the procedures, reports Al-Rai daily.
It is noteworthy that the suspension of visas for Filipino workers came under the directives of the First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior and Acting Minister of Defense Sheikh Talal Al-Khaled, in his capacity as supervisor of the Public Authority for Manpower, due to Manila’s non-compliance with the bilateral agreement signed with Kuwait regarding employment.
