Kuwait: Expats with expired visas face daily fine

Dubai: Expats in Kuwait whose residency permits expired on September 1 2020 will have to pay the usual fine of KD 2 per day to renew their visas, as the extension deadline granted until November 30 2020 is not applicable to them as per instructions from the concerned authority, Al Anba daily reported.

Earlier, the Ministry of Interior allowed a grace extension period for visa renewals to be extended until November 30 2020.

The daily said, quoting sources, expats with residency permit that expired from March until end of August 2020 can benefit from the November 30 deadline.

If an expat’s residency permit has expired from the beginning of September, they will have to pay a two dinar fine for each day they are staying in the country illegally, unless they renew their visas at the Residence Affairs Department.

There is no valid reason for those with expired residency permit after September 1 2020 to fail to renew their visa especially as the Residence Affairs Departments began processing applications from the end of June 2020.

The daily reported that expats whose residency permits and visit visas expired before the end of August received an automatic extension until the end of November 2020. The daily said, quoting sources, these new instructions indicate no possibility for giving visitors and residency visa law violators a new deadline after the current deadline expires at the end of November 30.

Meanwhile, expats stranded in countries on the 34 country ban list will be allowed to remain outside Kuwait for an additional period of 6 months given the circumstances, provided they hold a valid residence permit or their residence permit has been renewed online by their sponsor.