Kuwait travel bans on the rise amid growing installment nonpayments

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KUWAIT CITY - The rise of mobile phone and gold cashing schemes, along with a lack of control over these activities, has led to an increase in travel bans for both Kuwaitis and expats in Kuwait.

The annual statistics issued by the Justice Ministry revealed that the total number of travel bans and arrests in the year 2023 reached 153,784 — about 13,779 higher than the previous year’s total of 140,005.

It showed that the number of travel ban decisions related to mobile phone installment plans issued in 2023 reached 73,612; while the number of travel ban lifting decisions totaled 45,959 in the same year.

This phenomenon, which worsened in recent years, is due to the desire of some people to obtain cash to settle their financial obligations; prompting them to buy certain items by installment and then sell the items to the stores to get cash, but at a much lower price than the purchase price. Therefore, they incur a burdensome bill due to the high interest rate and many of them face legal problems because of failure to pay.

Economic expert Mohammad Ramadan affirmed there have been many victims of such operations, whether in selling mobile phones or mortgaging gold.

He stressed the need for the Ministry of Commerce and Industry to conduct public awareness programs on the issue, so people do not fall victim to such unscrupulous practices.

He called for the amendment of the relevant laws, if these operations are not criminalized from a legal standpoint, especially since they may lead to an increase in the number of travel ban decisions.

Economist and media professional Faisal Al-Harbi disclosed there is chaos and randomness in the abovementioned operations, which destroy the economy and put some people to prison.

He warned against the spread of the practice of obtaining cash by selling mobile phones, as one could be forced by circumstances and deceived to obtain KD200, only to be surprised later that the total installment he needs to pay reached KD1,000. He wondered about the role of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry in this regard, stating the ministry left the citizens and expatriates to be preys to such operations.

He pointed out that the gold mortgage operations in some complexes are included in this aspect as there is manipulation in such operations. He said the owner of the gold shop gets 10 percent interest per month, which prevents many citizens and expatriates from traveling due to the accumulation of installments.

He emphasized the need for stricter control over small mobile phone companies that are widespread in complexes, as they deceive people; in addition to the employee in a telecommunications company who might add a router or a digital watch to the customer’s installment file without the latter’s knowledge – an act of commercial fraud. He called for holding accountable anyone who publishes an advertisement about such operations on social media and other platforms.

In a related development, Saad Ibrahim revealed that he dealt with a mobile phone shop that purchased a phone from him. He received KD250 cash from the shop on the condition that he pays KD35 every month for two years, thus, he had to pay a total of KD840. After five months, he was unable to pay because he lost his job and the company sought the services of a law office, such that he was forced to borrow money in order to settle the debt and avoid facing legal problems.

Hossam Mandour added a mobile phone company bought a phone from him, through which he receive KD300 cash provided he pays KD30 per month for one year. However, he was surprised to find out later that the installment period was two years; and when he stopped paying, he was banned from traveling.