Kuwait today increased the minimum salary to get a dependent visa for expatriates to 450 KD. The Minister of Interior signed the official memo today to increase the salary.

Earlier an expatriate with a salary of 250 KD can apply dependent visa for his wife and kids. As per the new rule, an expatriate can apply for dependence visa only if he have a minimum of 450 KD salary according to his work permit.

As per the new decision, the cases of expatriates already living in the country or those who were born here and draw salaries below KD 450 will be studied by the director general of the residence affairs department to decide whether they can be exempted from the salary condition.

The new decision however exempts 14 groups of expatriates from the salary requirement to sponsor their families. These include Chancellors, judges, prosecution staff and legal experts working in the public sector; doctors and pharmacists; university and professors at higher institutes; public school directors and deputies, educational supervisors, teachers, social workers and lab assistants; academic, financial and economic consultants; engineers; imams, preachers, muezzins and Quran teachers; librarians at government bodies and private universities; health ministry staff including nursing staff, paramedics, technicians and social workers; social workers and psychologists in the public sector; journalists, media staff and reporters; coaches and players at sports unions and clubs; pilots and flight attendants; and washers and buriers of dead bodies.