Bahrain -  A proposed legislation that prohibits expatriates from turning tourist/visit visas into work permits has been unanimously approved by Parliament.

The addition to the 1965 Foreigners (Migration and Residency) Law will now be reviewed, debated and voted on by the Shura Council.

It will be only effective if approved by the upper chamber of the National Assembly and ratified by His Majesty King Hamad.

The government-drafted legislation is based on a proposal by five MPs led by foreign affairs, defence and national security committee chairman Hassan Bukhammas in January last year.

During its weekly session yesterday, Parliament’s foreign affairs, defence and national security committee vice-chairman and rapporteur Hassan Ibrahim pointed out that the situation with visit visa transfers had gone out of control and was unmanageable even under new regulations.

He urged his colleagues to introduce the ban, saying that conditions for a person’s entry into the country should be clear even before a visa is issued.

Meanwhile, Labour Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA) chief executive Nibras Talib said since the introduction of tough new rules, the incidence of tourist or visit visas being converted into work permits had dropped by more than 87 per cent.

Under the rules, which came into effect 11 months ago, a visit visa can no longer be converted into a work or dependant visa without a sponsor.

However, visit visas with a sponsor can be transferred to a work or dependent visa for a revised fee of BD250, instead of the previous BD60, only if it is for the same sponsor.

This was announced at the time by Nationality, Passports and Residence Affairs (NPRA) Under-Secretary Shaikh Hisham bin Abdulrahman Al Khalifa following directives by Interior Minister General Shaikh Rashid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, who issued edict 16/2024.

“These measures, carried out in co-operation with the LMRA, are based on government moves to tighten visa transfer rules,” Shaikh Hisham had said.“It also comes within the framework of efforts to provide job opportunities for citizens and reduce unemployment.

“The move seeks to tackle the exploitation of visit visas.”The Cabinet has called for a rethink, asserting that new rules issued in February last year were aimed at cracking down on the misuse of tourist visas.

The Cabinet pointed out that tough measures were already in place with local hosts signing declarations that the tourist visas would not be turned into work permits.

“Work permit requests are assessed on a case-by-case basis and the proposed rule will hinder immigration officials as it seeks to impose a blanket ban,” it added.

“It also contradicts articles within the law that give Bahrainis the right to hire expats to fill vacancies within their establishments in line with employment legislations.”

The Interior Ministry backed the government’s stance pointing out that the proposal was ‘unrealistic’ since it meant the employer would have to send a foreign worker back home and then fly him back, incurring a financial burden.

The Tourism Ministry had told MPs that the plan, if implemented, would harm the tourism sector since it was based on assumption that visitors will misuse tourist visas, reflecting a degree of mistrust in them.“Misuse of visas can be tackled through administrative rules and not by law, leaving approvals or rejections to officials concerned to determine according to their own assessment of each and every situation,” the ministry said.

The ministries of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments and Labour have also backed the government’s stance.The National Institution for Human Rights, however, said the proposed legislation did not contradict any international conventions or treaties and was purely organisational.

“The tourist visa is a clear loophole that is being misused to get expats into the country and prioritise them for vacancies over Bahrainis, and legislators have every right to intervene out of concern for citizens’ welfare,” the NIHR had said.

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