30012011 YOU AND THE LAW (KUWAIT)

I am working in multinational company for the last 5 years, my contract is renewed every year (one year duration). I joined the company on Feb 15, 2006 and my last contract was renewed on Feb 15, 2010. The company is refusing to renew my contract for one more year and they are giving me a 15 days notice. My question is: As per new Labour Law am I entitled to a 3 month notice?

You must be given a 3-month notice regardless of what type of contract you have, especially since your contract has been constantly renewed every year. If you had been only on a one-year contract and the company had specified that your services would no longer be required after that then things would have been different. Once the contract is automatically renewed, then it no longer remains a limited-period contract and as such the 3-month notice is required

I have been working with a big group of companies for two years. I resigned in August 2010 and completed my three months stay as per resignation acceptance letter issued by authorized signatory of the company. After completing three months when I submitted my clearance form to my immediate boss (General Manager), he refused to sign it until I submitted certain reports which were never my responsibility and in reality I never had access to that information.
The legal department of the company is saying that only after my clearance form is signed by the GM will they sign the transfer/release of residence. My residence will expire on Dec 9, 2010.
What should I do? What options do I have?

If you are being asked to submit reports which were never a part of your duties and the GM refuses to sign your clearance, file a complaint with the Labor-Office in your area. If reports had been required from you, this information should have been passed to you when you resigned, not when the notice period is about to get over

My husband is in Kuwait on a visit these days, and I have become pregnant.
I have following questions:
1. Will there be any problem with the delivery of the baby and will there be any legal complication?
2. Can I keep the baby in Kuwait, if so what is the procedure?

You, however, will not be allowed to keep the baby in the country as only the father can sponsor his children.

You will not face any legal problems as long as you take the baby out of the country within 60 (sixty) days of its birth. You will during this time have to get its Birth Certificate from the authorities and Passport from your embassy for the child. Then, you have to go to the Immigration Department to take permission to take the child out of the country.
Remember, you have only 60 days to take the child out of Kuwait or you will run into legal complications which could take many weeks or even months to resolve

My brother is in Kuwait on a visit visa and he has found a job. Can he transfer to the sponsorship of a firm without having to leave the country?

If your brother is here on an ordinary visit visa he can’t transfer the visa to a work permit. He can, however, transfer to a work permit if he is in the country on a commercial visit visa and he is a university degree holder.

I am holding a valid residence permit under Article 22 and I had enquired from you about my transfer and you had answered me it was very easy. But I have heard that the government has stopped transferring visas of Article 22 to Article 18. So I am very much worried since this is my last year of my family visa (Article 22). I have been here since my birth. So could you guide me whether the government will allow me to transfer my visa or not.

Transfer of residence from dependent visa into work visa is allowed in your visa because you have been in Kuwait for more than three years. Just contact the Labour Department with your would-be sponsor and there will be no problem

I  have been working for eight years on the same sponsor’s govt project contracts. Now I have a good offer from another company but my company has refused to give me a release. So can I get a release from the Shoun if I file a complaint? My visa # is Article 18. My contract with the company has also expired. So I don’t need to renew it — so no need of three months notice, right?

Regardless of the fact that your contract has expired, you need to give a 3-month notice, unless there is something else mentioned in your contract.
After 5 years service you can transfer from a government project to another company with a release from your firm but in your case as the firm is not releasing you, it is better to file a complaint with Shoun (Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour). You should be able to get the release sanctioned by the ministry.

My son has been staying here on a tourist visa for over 3 months. Now the question is how much fine per day do I have to pay for him? My family lives in Kuwait with me.

If your son has been here for over three months it means he is on  a temporary residence, Article 14, which is given from the second month of the visit.
This means that you will have to pay KD2 per day. It doesn’t matter if your whole family is here with you, the fine is still the same.
The bigger problem you will face, because your son overstayed his visit, is that you and your son will be blacklisted. You won’t be able to get any visa for at least a year

~ KUWAIT  – Answered as per Kuwait Law

You should have no problem in delivering the baby in Kuwait as long as you have your Marriage Certificate and a copy of the Visit Visa to prove your husband was in Kuwait.