Kuwait halts issuance of visas for Filipinos

Department of Foreign Affairs. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Kuwait has suspended the issuance of visas for Filipinos, a Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) official said on Thursday.

DFA Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega confirmed this to INQUIRER.net after several foreign media outlets reported the halt in the issuance of visas supposedly as a consequence of the Philippines’ failure to comply with its labor agreement with Kuwait.

“Confirmed…All visas daw (They said all visas). We are checking if this includes tourists,” de Vega said in a text message.

But, he noted, those with residence permits will still be allowed to return to Kuwait.

Asked about the reason behind the Middle Eastern country’s move to suspend visa issuance, de Vega said Kuwait’s Ministry of Interior cited the Philippines’ violations of the bilateral labor agreement.

“It could be the suspension of deployment for first-time workers or the fact that we are sheltering runaway workers,” he pointed out.

De Vega, however, remained hopeful that this could still be “discussed and resolved diplomatically.”

In February, the Philippines imposed a deployment ban for first-time Filipino domestic helpers bound for the Gulf state following the gruesome murder of overseas Filipino worker Jullebee Ranara, allegedly at the hands of her Kuwaiti employer.

The deployment suspension, according to the DMW, will hold “until after significant reforms have been made resulting from upcoming bilateral talks with the said country.”

READ: DMW stops deployment of first-time domestic helpers to Kuwait

JPV