Foreigners holding a family visit visa to Kuwait will have to use specific airlines to fly to and leave the country under rules set by the Kuwaiti civil aviation authorities, according to media reports.
The Kuwaiti Directorate General for Civil Aviation (DGCA) has made it obligatory for holders of family visas to board the Kuwaiti carriers Kuwait Airways and Al Jazeera Airways for arrival and departure from Kuwait, the Alseyassah newspaper reported, citing “well-informed” sources.
Earlier this month, Kuwait said it would resume the issuance of visit visas for family, commercial, and tourism purposes under new regulations.
DGA has stressed that a family visit visa holder who uses other airlines than the two designated carriers will be sent back to the departure destination, the sources added.
“These instructions have come upon correspondence from the Interior Ministry specifying the arrival and departure mechanism for the holders of family visit visas to the country,” the sources said.
Under Kuwait’s new regulations pertaining to family visa issuance, the applicant must earn a minimum of KD400 (Dh4,775) for sponsoring first-degree relatives such as parents, spouses, and children, and KD800 for other relatives.
Moreover, the duration of stay for a family visit visa holder is set at a maximum of one month issued after a written pledge that the visa will not be converted into residence permits.
Medical treatment will be provided at private and government health facilities for visitors adhering to their visa stay duration.
In 2022, Kuwait, a country of around 4.6 million people, mostly foreigners, halted family visit visas pending strict rules to ensure visitors would leave upon the expiry of their visas. The system was partially revived later, allowing the reissuance of dependency visas for children aged five and below.
