I joined my company on 01-1- 1995. I resigned on 20-3-2016 and my last working day was 11-5- 2016. You are kindly requested to calculate my end of service benefits (monthly salary KD 300). Leave with pay I got until June 2013. I asked for a release also but employer is not agreeing to the same … in fact he told me to go back to India and then come back on a new visa/work permit. I can arrange a sponsor from a new company. So, you are kindly requested to give your advice what to do next.

Name withheld

Answer: Well, your sponsor is totally wrong. Nowadays, if you have even been hired from abroad and worked for a company for over three years, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor sanctions your transfer. Otherwise, if you join a company on a local transfer you can leave that firm after one year unless you sign a time-bound contract.

As things stand, you have worked for this company for over 21 years and you can’t be stopped from transferring to another company, regardless of any reason. The law is on your side. If your sponsor insists on not giving you a release, you should approach the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor or the Public Authority for Manpower through the Labor Office in your area.

Seeing the years of service that you have put in this company, your transfer will quickly be sanctioned — without the permission of the current sponsor — to any other company which is willing to sponsor you. So, don’t worry about anything and file a complaint with the Labor Office if your sponsor doesn’t budge from his stand.

Here is the calculation of your benefits:

Indemnity Salary:
KD 300 Service: 21 years 5 months

For the first five years = 15 days pay for each year = 75 days pay

But these 75 days have first to be divided by 26 (working days in a month = 2.88 months pay)

For the remaining 16 years 5 months you get one month for each year = 16.42 months salary

Total = 19.3 months pay

But according to the Kuwait Labor you are entitled to a maximum of 18 months pay as indemnity unless the sponsor himself wishes to pay you more, so you will get 18 x KD 300 = KD 5,400 as indemnity

You will get KD 5,400 (the full amount) and nothing can be deducted from this amount even if you have resigned because you have over 10 years service.

Leave balance payment
You last availed leave in June, 2013 which means you have balance of annual leave for two years 11 months.

You are entitled to full leave for the last 11 months because you are entitled to 30 days every year, which means 11 months of work and 30 days paid leave every year.

Therefore, you have 90 days leave balance But these 90 days have also to be divided first by 26 (working days in a month) and then multiplied by your salary = 3.46 x KD 300 = KD 1,038

Please remember that the annual leave balance payment has to be calculated separately from the indemnity

So, your total dues = KD 5,400 + KD 1,038 = KD 6,438

Please remember one important fact. Your sponsor might say that you can accumulate only a maximum of two years leave and might try to cheat you out of one year’s leave payment.

If the sponsor attempts to not pay the full amount, please draw his attention to the last para of Article 72 and Article 73 of the Kuwait Labor Law enacted on Feb 20, 2010.

The last para of Article 72 says “The annual leave can be accumulated for more than two years with the consent of both the parties”.

Article 73 says “Without prejudice to the provisions of Articles 70 & 71 (which talk about the entitlement and payment for annual leave), the worker shall be entitled to a cash consideration of “all his accumulated leaves” upon the expiry of his contract.

This clearly means that if a worker has accumulated annual leave for any number of years e.g. 4, 10 or even 20 years, he must be paid for all the accumulated leave with all the calculations based on the last remuneration (according to Article 62 of the Kuwait Labor Law).

Source - Arab Times

Note - All the answers were provided by Arab Times Legal Clinic.

I would like to ask you about my driving license.I got my driving license in January 2015 and I came Read More... to the country on a driver’s visa. After some time I got a job in a multinational company. They changed my job status on my residence to “distributor”. My license will expire in 2 months.My question is this: Can I renew my license?Name withheldAnswer: No, you will not be able to renew your driving license. The reason is simple. About two years ago, the Ministry of Interior issued a decision that expatriates who obtained driving licenses when their job status on their work permits was “driver” would have their licenses cancelled or would not be able to renew them if their status on the work permits changed. “Drivers” was one of the four categories which came under the hammer.The others being students, housewives and mandoubs (company representatives).So, if expatriates from any of these four categories has obtained a driving license because these categories were mentioned on their work permits, they stand to lose their licenses once these categories are changed.Source - Arab TimesNote - All the answers were provided by Arab Times Legal Clinic .

I just want to get some legal advice because my absconding case is at a dead end… it can&rsqu Read More... o;t be cancelled and I have found out that there is no other way for me to solve the problem, other than to wait for amnesty or surrender to the police and be deported.Okay I accept that now, and I am looking for an opportunity in Dubai, so if I surrender and am deported, will I be allowed to travel directly to Dubai or must I go back to my country of origin?Name withheld Answer: Unfortunately, the laws on absconding cases totally favor the sponsor, even if the employee is right…he will be punished because the sponsor has filed an absconding case against him. The only way out of this situation is an amnesty, although there are no signs of it so far on the horizon. If you are deported it will be to your country of origin and not to any other place.Please remember that once you surrender yourself the law will be lenient on you and “could” allow you to return after a year but if you are arrested and deported you will never be allowed to come back to Kuwait.Source - Arab TimesNote - All the answers were provided by Arab Times Legal Clinic.

I have been working in a private construction company for last 12 years, came directly from India on Read More... a project visa. Now I got a good opportunity and the company has already given me the transfer letter.But the new company is unable to transfer the visa, as the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor has rejected the transfer letter which was submitted about 2 weeks ago.This was my first transfer from project to project visa under another contractor. I am very much worried and… is it possible to transfer my residence locally.Name withheld Answer: Because of the current very strict restrictions — imposed in January this year — on the transfer of government project visas you can currently only transfer to another government project and not to the private sector.As the government is not, at the moment, keen on relaxing the rules, the only option you have is to cancel your current residence, leave the country and return on a new visa. So try to find another company which has a government project and transfer to that firm.Source - Arab TimesNote - All the answers were provided by Arab Times Legal Clinic.

I have been working for a company since 7-1/2 years and now I have resigned. I had given a 3- month Read More... notice and company accepted the resignation and relieved me in month’s time. Am I eligible to get the remaining 2 months notice period salary in this case from the employer? I am awaiting your advice in this aspect.Name withheldAnswer: According to the Kuwait Labor Law, the 3-month notice period must not only be added to your service, but you must get all the salary for this period even if the company allows you to go earlier. In this case please refer to Article 44(d) of the Kuwait Labor Law which states as follows: “The employer may exempt the employee from work during the period of notification but shall count such period within the worker’s period of service. The employer shall pay the worker all his entitlements and remuneration for the period of notification”. So, you must be given the salary for the two months and if the company refuses to do so, you should file a complaint with the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor, through the Labor Office in your area.Source : Arab TimesNote - All the answers were provided by Arab Times Legal Clinic.

I am a US citizen currently visiting my parents in Kuwait. I have come here on a visit visa. I have Read More... repeatedly inquired whether I can drive on my American driver’s license in Kuwait, to which I have been told that I am legally allowed to drive on the same as long as I am on a visit visa.However, with the new laws/rules, I would like to be sure if a valid US Driver’s License is considered as an International License? And if I am legally allowed to drive on the same. Your informed advice in this regard will be greatly appreciated.Name withheld Answer: No, you can’t drive in Kuwait unless you have an International Driving License because the ordinary American Driver’s License is not considered as one. So, you have to get an international license to drive in Kuwait. Please remember that you can use that license only as long as you are on a visit visa.Although the American Driver’s License allows you to drive in many countries (even though you still have to get an International Drivers Document, which is just a translation of your American license into 16 different languages), the same is not the case in Kuwait. So you have to get an international driver’s license.You can only apply for your international driving permit through the American Automobile Association (AAA) or the National Automobile Club (NAC). You will need: A completed IDP application: AAA application. NAC application. Avalid driver’s license issued by your state DMV (Division of Motor Vehicles). 2 photos (must be passport-sized). The backs of the photos must show your signature. Payment for the applicable fee. You must be at least 18 years old to apply for an international driving permit. You can apply for the above by mail in most cases, and you may even be able to apply while traveling abroad. Contact the AAA or NAC in your area for more details.Source - Arab TimesNote - All the answers were provided by Arab Times Legal Clinic.