Sponsorship transfer rule tightened

The Labor Ministry has barred private sector companies from transferring expat employees at a short notice. This sponsorship transfer is known in local jargon as naql kafala.

A private sector company can apply for a request to transfer sponsorship or naql kafala only once within a period of three months, according to the ministry’s new regulations reported in the local media on Saturday.
The ministry said that such requests will require three months to be processed during which no new requests will be accepted from the same company.
The new regulations specify that private firms cannot file request for sponsorship transfer if that leads to degrading their Nitaqat category. For example, if a firm is in “green” zone and if the sponsorship transfer of its employee/s would lead to its demotion to a lower Nitaqat category, then the request will not be entertained.
Any employee who is seeking sponsorship transfer has to have valid work permit and iqama. The ministry will not accept requests from those who lack valid work permits and have been working without papers for three months. 
In the past, employees of companies that failed to implement the Labor Ministry’s wage protection law were allowed to transfer their services to other firms, without the previous employer’s permission.