Kuwait draft expat quota bill may affect 800,000 Indians

Kuwait City:  A draft expat quota bill in Kuwait could result in 800,000 Indians forced to leave the Gulf state, a media report said

According to the bill, which has been deemed constitutional by Kuwait's National Assembly's legal and legislative committee, Indians should not exceed 15 per cent of the population, the Gulf News report said on Sunday.

Due to this, 800,000 Indians might have to leave Kuwait, as the Indian community is the largest totalling 1.45 million.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a spike in anti-expat rhetoric as lawmakers and governmental officials call for reducing the number of foreigners in Kuwait, the Gulf News report said.

Last month, Kuwait's Prime Minister, Sheikh Sabah Al Khalid Al Sabah, proposed decreasing the number of expats from 70 per cent to 30 per cent of the population.

The current population of Kuwait is 4.3 million, with Kuwaitis making up 1.3 million of the population, and expats accounting for 3 million.