Recruiting Workers You Don't Need in Kuwait: The Crime, the Penalties and the Defences

By Stephane Boghossian · 2026-10-29 · 7 min read · Mena

Kuwait's Labour Law punishes an employer who recruits workers and leaves them without work, at up to KD 10,000 per worker. Since 2024 the Residence Law adds 3 to 5 years where money changes hands. What each law covers, and what a defence lawyer checks first.

General legal information, not legal advice. The texts below come from unofficial consolidated copies of the laws, read on 29 October 2026; check the article against the Official Gazette before you rely on it in court.

Key facts

The prohibition: Labour Law No. 6 of 2010, Article 10, second paragraph (it was the third paragraph in the 2010 original).
The penalty: Article 138 as replaced by Law No. 32 of 2016. Up to 3 years' imprisonment and a fine of KD 2,000 to 10,000 per worker, or either one. The 2010 text set a fine of KD 1,000 to 5,000 with no per-worker multiplier.
A second employer who takes on the worker in breach of Article 10 faces the same penalty (Art. 138, second paragraph).
Residence trafficking for money or a benefit: Decree-Law No. 114 of 2024 on the Residence of Foreigners, Article 18, punished under Article 28 with 3 to 5 years and a fine of KD 5,000 to 10,000, multiplied by the number of foreigners.
Employing a sponsored worker outside the purpose they were recruited for, or letting them work for others without a licence: Article 19 of the same decree-law, up to 2 years and KD 5,000 to 10,000 (Art. 27). It can be settled at KD 3,000 per foreigner (Art. 31); residence trafficking cannot.
The PAM English translation of the 2010 law gives the Article 138 fine as "not more than KD 1,000". The Arabic original says KD 1,000 to 5,000, and the current text is higher. Don't quote the English figure.

What does Article 10 prohibit?

The second paragraph of Article 10 covers two kinds of conduct. The employer may not bring workers in from abroad, or take on workers already in Kuwait, and then fail to give them work. And it may not recruit workers when it turns out it has no actual need for them. The Arabic text reads "ثم يعمد إلى عدم تسليمهم العمل لديه أو يثبت عدم حاجته الفعلية لهم".

The same paragraph puts the cost of sending the worker home on the employer. If the worker stops coming to work and joins another employer, that other employer pays the return costs, once the original employer has filed an absconding report.

What are the penalties?

Conduct	Law and article	Prison	Fine
Recruiting workers then giving them no work, or with no real need	Labour Law 6/2010, Art. 10(2) and Art. 138 (Law 32/2016)	Up to 3 years	KD 2,000 to 10,000 per worker
Taking on a worker recruited in breach of Art. 10(2)	Art. 138, second paragraph	Up to 3 years	KD 2,000 to 10,000 per worker
Recruiting or renewing residence for money or a benefit, for real, fictitious or alleged work	Decree-Law 114/2024, Art. 18 and Art. 28	3 to 5 years	KD 5,000 to 10,000, multiplied per foreigner
Employing a worker outside the purpose of recruitment, or letting them work for others without a licence	Decree-Law 114/2024, Art. 19 and Art. 27	Up to 2 years	KD 5,000 to 10,000

In each case the court can impose prison, the fine, or both. Under Article 28 the penalty doubles for a public official acting within their job and for a repeat offence. Where residence trafficking is committed through a company, in its name or for its account, the company is fined per foreigner, its licence is cancelled, and the person in charge of it faces the prison term in the first paragraph.

Which law applies: the Labour Law or the Residence Law?

Both can. Article 138 opens with "without prejudice to any harsher penalty in any other law", so the Labour Law offence sits alongside the Residence Law rather than giving way to it. The practical difference is money. Article 18 of the Residence Law needs the recruitment or renewal to be in return for money, a benefit or a promise of one. Article 10 of the Labour Law does not; it is enough that the workers were brought in and left without work, or were never needed.

Two procedural points follow. The Public Prosecution alone investigates and brings charges for residence trafficking offences (Art. 29). And settlement is open for an Article 19 offence, at KD 3,000 per foreigner, with the Minister of Interior able to refuse it, but Article 31 does not list Article 18, so residence trafficking cannot be settled.

What a defence lawyer checks first

These are questions to work through on the file, not a list of defences that will succeed. Each one maps to an element of the offence.

Was there a real need when the workers were recruited? Contracts, tenders, project schedules and the work-permit approvals from the Public Authority for Manpower show what the business expected at the time. A need that later disappeared is a different fact from a need that never existed.
Were the workers given work? Payroll through a local bank, attendance records and site logs answer this. A worker who left the job is a different case from one who was never put to work, and the absconding report matters for who pays the return costs.
Did anyone take money or a benefit? This is the line between Article 10 of the Labour Law and Article 18 of the Residence Law, and between up to 3 years and a minimum of 3.
How many workers are covered? Both fines are counted per worker or per foreigner, so the number in the charge sheet drives the exposure.
Is the client the original employer or the second one? Article 138 reaches the employer who takes the worker on in breach of Article 10, and Article 19 of the Residence Law reaches anyone who houses or employs the worker.
Was the conduct intentional? As with any offence carrying prison, look at what the employer knew and meant. Answers that explain how criminal intent is shown, or negated, should cite the Penal Code and the case law, and you should check each citation.

Where HAQQ fits

Disclosure: we build HAQQ. A Kuwaiti lawyer we spoke to had tested HAQQ Legal AI Chat on exactly this offence. The lawyer said it set out the two applicable articles, the elements of the crime and how intent can be negated, and raised three or four points that had not been on the lawyer's radar. That is the useful part: a structured first pass you then check. Before you rely on any answer, open the article it cites and confirm the version in force. Our guide on checking an AI legal citation shows how.

Sources

FAQ

What is the penalty for recruiting workers you don't need in Kuwait?

Under Article 138 of Labour Law No. 6 of 2010, as replaced by Law No. 32 of 2016: up to 3 years' imprisonment and a fine of KD 2,000 to 10,000 per worker, or either one. The employer who takes such a worker on faces the same penalty.

Is visa trading a separate crime in Kuwait?

Yes. Article 18 of Decree-Law No. 114 of 2024 on the Residence of Foreigners bans recruiting or renewing residence for money or a benefit, for real, fictitious or alleged work. Article 28 punishes it with 3 to 5 years and KD 5,000 to 10,000 per foreigner.

Can these offences be settled?

Employing a worker outside the purpose of recruitment (Article 19 of the Residence Law) can be settled at KD 3,000 per foreigner, and the Minister of Interior may refuse. Residence trafficking under Article 18 is not on the settlement list in Article 31.