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The UAE’s amended labour litigation regulations came into force last month. The Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation is now empowered to issue final executive decisions concerning individual labour disputes valued at AED 50,000 (US$ 13,613) or less.

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Bahrain recently announced that only sponsored visit visas can be converted to work permits, and they must maintain the same sponsor who initially issued the visit visas. The fees for converting visit visas to work permits, visit visas to dependent visas, and dependent visas to work permits have also increased from BD 60 (159 US$) to BD 250 (663 US$).

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Several recent reports of Indian domestic workers trapped in Oman indicate that the Sultanate still has not addressed its rife trafficking issues.

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Kuwait recently resumed family visa applications for migrant residents. However, residents seeking to sponsor their family members must now earn a monthly salary of KD 800 (US$ 2,600) and possess a university certificate relevant to their job sector.

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Bahrain has recently expanded its “Labour Registration Program” to include all irregular workers. Previously, only workers who became irregular before the program’s introduction on 27 October 2022 were eligible to apply.

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The UAE’s registration deadline for its private mandatory unemployment insurance scheme officially closed on 1 October 2023. Workers who did not register by this date will face a fine of AED 400 (US$ 109). New workers who join the UAE’s labour force have four months to subscribe to the unemployment insurance scheme before incurring fines.

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Bahrain has officially lifted its midday summer work ban. Starting today, workers labouring outdoors are no longer required to stop work during the hottest hours of the day, even as extreme temperatures and high humidity persist.

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In a recent case, an Indian worker in Bahrain was arrested for damaging vehicles of the construction company that employed him, in protest against 10 months of unpaid wages. The worker’s desperate actions highlight the difficulty migrants face accessing justice in Bahrain and the shortcomings of recent reforms aimed at tackling wage theft.

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The UAE’s Ministry of Human Resources & Emiratisation recently announced new Emiratisation targets that require private sector companies with 20 to 49 employees to hire at least one UAE citizen in 2024 and a second citizen in 2025. 

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Bahrain’s Capital Trustees Board recently approved recommendations to develop a unified system for collecting outstanding municipal fees and debts from migrants in Bahrain. Under the new system, migrants with unsettled municipality debts will not be allowed to leave the country or use government services.

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According to media reports, Oman has reduced the minimum salary required for family visas OMR150. The ROP has yet to issue an official statement.

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A recent Reuters report draws attention to human trafficking for sex work in the UAE, while cases of sex trafficking are also on the rise in Oman.

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Another wave of detention and deportation campaigns have taken place across the GCC in recent months, particularly in Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia. Weekly, officials report hundreds of migrant workers detained in searches and raids.

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