Bahrain - Employers recruiting expatriates in violation of labour laws have been granted a reprieve with the government scrapping the jail term for offenders.

They will now be asked to pay a fine of BD500, which will be doubled if the violation is repeated.

Earlier, employers could be jailed for three months to a year or fined between BD1,000 and BD2,000, or both for violating labour regulations.

The reduction in punishments follows amendments to the 2006 Labour Market Regulatory Law, issued by His Majesty King Hamad through Decree 12/2024, and published in the latest edition of the Official Gazette.

Also under the amendments, failure to renew an expatriate’s work permit upon expiration will result in a fine of BD100 for the first 10 days, BD200 for the period between 10 and 20 days, and BD300 for 20 to 30 days.

Should the 30-day deadline elapse, an employer will have to pay a fine of BD1,000.

Earlier, failure to renew work permits resulted in a fine of BD1,000 from day one.

If an expatriate worker is caught working without a permit for the first time, the employer would be fined BD500.

Labour inspectors will confirm violations and issue the fines, which should be paid within 14 working days.

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