Following the government’s discomfort over the fact of the ever-growing expat communities in the country to date, lawmakers are hard at work in coming up with measures and legislation to enforce some kind of control over this phenomenon, which they claim is robbing the citizens the opportunity to work.
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And whether or not this is truly the case, the government may be overstepping its boundaries by curtailing opportunities for expats to enter the country, as well as their lawful rights to stay in consideration of their contributions to Kuwait’s society at large for many years to some.
Panel Proposes Setting a 5-Year Limit on New Expat Residencies
The higher committee handling the demographic structure has reportedly floated a recommendation for the government to impose a five-year cap on the stay of expatriates in the country, as shared in a report by the Kuwait Times.
The committee raised a proposal to the council of ministers to issue a decision which mandates expatriates who arrive in the country after the decision takes effect will be forced to leave the country after five years.
According to the proposed moves, expats will no longer be allowed to stay in the country after the completion of the five years under any circumstances.
The new decision, if approved and put into effect, will be the harshest measure against expats, who have been on the receiving end of strict government procedures during the last few years.
To date, MPs have repeatedly submitted proposals to limit the stay of foreign nationals in the country as an important means to restructure the demographic balance in society, which has seen a massive tilt towards expatriates, who are currently at over three million against 1.4 million Kuwaitis.
In this regard, a number of MPs have called on to the government for the dismissal of expats in the public sector to give way to more jobs for nationals.
With the direction taken by lawmakers in the country, outsiders may have second thoughts about deciding to work in the country, even if a good opportunity comes along because of the laws being considered and implemented by the government.
It can be recalled that in as early as 2017, the national government has already floated its plans of “Kuwaitization” which will progressively be put into effect in a span of five years until it reaches its immigration and manpower goals by 2023.