New Saudi rules for helpers, vehicles, cattle coming from Kuwait

New Saudi rules for helpers, vehicles, cattle coming from Kuwait

November 15, 2016
Kuwaitis attend an election campaign meeting for the upcoming parliamentary elections in Kuwait City on Sunday. — Reuters
Kuwaitis attend an election campaign meeting for the upcoming parliamentary elections in Kuwait City on Sunday. — Reuters


KUWAIT — Vehicles with Kuwaiti license plates can only remain in Saudi Arabia for a maximum period of three months, local media reported on Monday quoting the Kuwait Interior Ministry’s relations and security media department.

The department also announced that Saudi Arabia has started implementing new measures concerning the entry of domestic helpers accompanying Kuwaiti families into the Kingdom.

The new visa fees for helpers would be SR2,000 per visit instead of the earlier fee of SR200.

The department noted that the Hamteyyat land border exit has been closed and cattle owners who want to take their herd to graze in Saudi Arabia can only go through the Khafji and Reqee land border exits, Kuwait Times reported.

Accordingly, the department urged all citizens to respect the new rules in order to avoid delays at these exits.

Separately, the department said the manager of the domestic helpers department Mohammed Al-Ajmi announced the cancellation of 42 domestic help offices that failed to legalize their status as per Article 50 of the Domestic Labor Act no. 68/2015 and clause no. 7 of article 17 of the ministerial decision number 2194/2016, that went into effect Saturday.

Accordingly, no visas would be issued for these offices. He also noted that the department has received applications to establish 41 new offices and four companies.

Ajmi explained that Article 50 of law 68/2015 states that licensed domestic help recruitment offices operating at the time the law was passed had to adjust and legalize their statuses within a maximum of three months of the issuance of the law’s executive charter. — SG


November 15, 2016
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