Kuwait: Major Hike In Residency And Visa Fees & New Conditions For Dependents Announced

The interior ministry in Kuwait recently announced a major increase in residency and visa fees. As a result, several categories saw a significant hike due to the revised charges, as mentioned in a report of Gulf News, which quoted Kuwait Times. According to the same report, it was mentioned that these revised charges are expected to take effect one month from now.

Residency And Visa Fees Hiked

As a part of the executive by-laws, the revised charges have been introduced under the updated Residency Law, which was issued the previous year. And so, several changes have been made to the residency and visa fees. The report mentioned that the ministry confirms the minimum monthly salary for a sponsor must be KWD800 if they wish to sponsor a spouse and children. Additionally, sponsoring dependents who are outside the immediate family, like parents or siblings, have also listened to KWD300 a year.

What Do The New Regulations Say?

Going by the new regulations, this includes revised fees, expanded options for visit fee extension, new conditions for dependents, and even conversions. As a result, the visit visa fee now carries a fee of KWD10. So, basically under the new structure, all visit visa fees, which are either for tourism, family visits, residency, entry or even for work entry, carry a fee of KWD10. As it happens, visit visas can be renewed once for the same period according to the by-laws, and they can be converted to residency under certain conditions. In fact, parents of newborns will get up to four months to process the residency stamping, which is an increase from the previously allowed time limit.

Residency Renewal Fees Have Also Seen A Hike

Residency renewal fees have also increased. Whether it’s standard residencies, private sector workers, foreign students, or other similar categories, it has now increased to KWD20 per year. Similarly, residency fees for foreign investors and property owners have also been set at KWD50 (Articles 19 and 21) annually. However, it’s worth mentioning that the newly introduced self-sponsored residency category is now priced at a steep KWD500 annual fee (Article 24).

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Dependent Visa Fees Have Also Risen

The annual fee for a dependent visa has also seen a rise across several categories, and they are as follows:

• Dependents of residents who are working in the government, private sector or students is KWD20.
• Dependents of foreign investors, property owners, and clergyman is KWD40.
• Dependents of self-sponsored residents is KWD100 (Article 24).
• Dependents other than spouses and children, like parents, is at KWD300. This is a rise of KWD100 from the previous fees of KWD200.

Not only this, but temporary residency (Article 14) now carries a charge of KWD10 per month. With domestic helpers paying KWD5. It should be noted that the temporary residence is given to those who are exiting Kuwait permanently, visitors, needing more time, or for individuals and urgent circumstances. In fact, it is valued for three months and is renewable up to a year.

With fees seeing a major adjustment across categories, it is truly a major overhaul to the residency system in Kuwait.

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