Kuwait Announces Plan To Allow Expat Real Estate Investment
A Kuwaiti ministerial committee has submitted a proposal to the Cabinet to allow non-Kuwaitis to own investment residential properties, according to a report by the Kuwait Times. The proposal aims to revitalise the economy and attract money to Kuwait by creating liquidity to free mortgages and “inject these amounts into the national economy.”
According to the report which cited official data, the investment property market in Kuwait is estimated at 13,000 buildings containing 320,000 apartments, and many of these buildings are mortgaged to banks. Allowing expats to own apartments would create economic growth and an active real estate sector that helps diversify the national economy.
The proposal for expat ownership of real estate in Kuwait says that non-Kuwaitis may be granted the right to own one residential apartment in an investment building by a decision of the justice minister, provided they are a permanent and legal resident of Kuwait and that no judgments have been issued against them that violate honour or trust during their stay in Kuwait.
The apartment should be allocated for the residence of the applicant or their family, and the area of this apartment should not exceed 350 square meters. The applicant should not own another apartment in Kuwait.
The proposal will be discussed following the formation of the new government which will be formed two weeks after the National Assembly elections on June 6, the report said, alongside the mortgage bill, which the government hopes will be approved by the National Assembly to address the housing crisis.
