Kuwait expatriate residents stranded overseas need new visas to return

Kuwait’s Residency Affairs Director Hamad Rashed Al-Tawala said around 40,000 residency permits were not renewed. (File/AFP)

• Al-Tawala said the interior ministry had extended absence permits for expats stranded overseas because of the coronavirus

DUBAI: Residency permit holders outside of Kuwait who were not able to renew their documents amid the pandemic will not be allowed to return unless they obtain a new visa, an official said as reported by Kuwait Times.
Kuwait’s Residency Affairs Director Hamad Rashed Al-Tawala said around 40,000 residency permits were not renewed.
Al-Tawala said the interior ministry had extended absence permits for expats stranded overseas because of the coronavirus but had valid residency permits.
He said the country is preparing a law that would amend fees related to residency and other types of visas.
Meanwhile, more than 23,000 Filipino expats in the country have been displaced because of the pandemic, Philippine diplomat Charles Hermosura said in interview.
Hermosura said the figure was based on the number of financial aid applications the Philippine mission received.
The government agency has also distributed relief goods to thousands of the Filipinos affected by the fallout. Repatriation likewise continues via chartered flights operated by Kuwait Airways, according to Hermosura.