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Working
In Kuwait
The initial for many foreigners
who come to work in Kuwait is the prospect of earning salaries that are
much higher than what they can earn in their own countries.
Remuneration
(TOP)
Salaries range from KD 25
a month for cleaners from the Far East to more than KD 3.000 a month for
western business professionals. At both extremes accommodation is usually
provided by the employer. But on average expatriate earn about KD 105 a
month with few benefits.
Some aspects of living in
Kuwait are relatively expensive so terms of service besides basic salary
are important. The common benefits offered to expatriate include:
· Accommodation :
An employer may provide a villa or flat, or give a rent allowance which
may or may not be adequate
· Car: A company
car may be provided. But often a car allowance is given instead and care
needs to be taken to ensure that it is adequate to cover the running costs.
Some companies provide employees with a loan to buy a car or will act as
guarantor to a finance company.
· School fees: Fees
for local schools which follow foreign curricula vary and should be taken
to ensure that school fees paid by an employer are adequate.
· Annual Holidays:
Annual leave varies from 28 days every two years to 42 days or more a year.
· Return Air Fares:
Care needs to be taken to ensure that annual return air fares included
in an empliyment contract cover family members.
Unless contractual benefits
are adequate, actual savings may not reach expectations.
Income
Tax (TOP)
Personal income is not current
taxed in Kuwait. However there are proposed before the National Assembly
to tax the monthly income of both nationals and expatriate.
Labour
Laws
There are three main legal
codes, oft amended, governing labour conditions in Kuwait:
· The Labour Law
for Government Employees regulates the working conditions of civil servants.
· The Labour Law
of the Oil Sector protects those who work in the oil industry.
· The Labour Law
of the Private Sector governs employment conditions in private businesses.
Persons in domestic service,
such as maids and chauffeurs, however are not covered by any particular
code and must rely for protection on general principles of law.
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