Kuwait

Residence procedures for practicing a commercial or industrial activity, profession, or specific trade under Article 19. KGO covers renewal and cancellation and requires a work permit, memorandum of association, passport, health insurance, and signature authorization.

• Renewable
• Limited work rights

Residence route for people who provide proof of a source of income under Article 24. The KGO page covers first-time, renewal, and cancellation procedures and lists health insurance, passport, photos, and good-conduct evidence, but does not publish a minimum income threshold in the fetched page.

• Renewable
• No work rights

Business visit route documented by the Kuwait Visa instruction API. Both single-entry and multiple-entry variants list a stay of no more than 30 days from entry and state that the visa holder is prohibited from working.

• 30 days
• No work rights

Entry visa route for civil-sector work. The KGO page title is Business Visit Visa, but the service description states that it issues visas to work in the civil sector and requires a passport copy and company signature authorization.

• Employer-sponsored only

First-time Article 18 residence permit for civil-sector employees. KGO requires a sponsor-signed residence application, work permit, health insurance certificate, disease-free certificate, police record, passport, and the used entry visa.

• Employer-sponsored only

Government-sector residence route under Article 17. KGO covers first-time, renewal, cancellation, and transfer procedures, and requires a government entity approval/letter, the work entry visa, passport, medical and criminal record certificates, and health insurance.

• Employer-sponsored only

Dependent entry visa for family joining for government and private-sector employees. KGO lists a KWD 450 sponsor salary minimum unless an exemption applies, plus proof of kinship and work-permit or salary evidence.

• No work rights

Visit route for relatives. Kuwait Government Online requires a visitor passport valid for at least six months, proof of kinship, and sponsor evidence; the Kuwait Visa instruction API lists a 90-day single-entry stay and a 30-day multiple-entry stay.

• 90 days
• No work rights

Government-entity visit route. KGO requires a passport copy and a letter from the government entity requesting the visit; the Kuwait Visa instruction API lists a 90-day single-entry stay and a 30-day multiple-entry stay.

• 90 days
• No work rights

Study entry visa route. KGO requires an acceptance letter from Kuwait University, a private university, or an applied institute, plus the entry visa form and a passport valid for at least two years.

• No work rights

Tourist visit route for eligible nationalities, available through the official Kuwait Visa portal as an eVisa or visa on arrival depending on eligibility. The MOI API lists a maximum stay of 90 days, one-year eVisa validity, nationality-dependent fees, and a KWD 10 per-day overstay fine.

• 90 days
• No work rights