Kuwait bans 16,000, including citizens, from travel in two months

Kuwait

In January and February of this year, Kuwaiti authorities revealed that approximately 16,000 citizens and expatriates were prohibited from leaving the country due to legal issues. The Ministry of Justice's Travel Ban Department disclosed these figures, citing official orders issued against the individuals involved.

During the same period, 8,033 travel ban orders were lifted. In January, 6,642 travel ban orders were issued, compared to 9,006 in February. Likewise, 6,642 travel ban orders were lifted in January, with 3,811 lifted in February.

Al Ahmadi Governorate had the highest number of travel ban orders issued during these two months, with 4,321, followed by Farwaniya with 3,641, Hawalli with 2,452, Jahra with 2,381, and the Capital with 1,757, while Mubarak Al Kabeer had the lowest with 1,096.

These travel ban orders were primarily related to cases involving unpaid bank checks, outstanding installments, rent, utility bills, and family disputes, as reported by Kuwaiti newspaper Al Qabas, citing an anonymous source.

The Family Court issued a total of 1,211 travel ban orders during the two months, including 620 injunctions in January.

Kuwait's population stands at around 4.8 million, with approximately 3.2 million being foreigners. Since September of the previous year, Kuwait has enforced a government decree mandating that all expatriates settle their electricity and water bills before departing the country. Additionally, the Interior Ministry has advised foreigners to clear any outstanding traffic fines before leaving Kuwait.