India is one of the major manpower-exporting countries in the world. About 10 million Indians are working in various parts of the globe.  Of this, an estimated 5 million Indian nationals are working on temporary contractual employment, more than 90% of whom are in the Gulf countries. As per the statistics of the Government of the State of Kuwait, the size of the Indian community in Kuwait was 578,170 in March, 2009.

The Embassy of India provides the following welfare services to Indian emigrant workers in Kuwait at its “Indian Workers Welfare Center” located at the Embassy:       

Labour Complaints Desk:
Registration of labour complaints and necessary action thereon.  Action on labour complaints – contacting of sponsors and recruitment agencies, liaison with local authorities, police stations, deportation centers, etc., for amicable resolution of grievances. (Open from 9 AM to 1 PM and 2 PM to 4.30 PM; Sunday to Thursday)

Shelter:
Separate shelters for Indian female and male domestic workers provide food and accommodation to domestic workers in distress.

24 X 7 Helpline:
Accessible by toll free telephone No. 25674163 from all over Kuwait, it provides information and advice exclusively to Indian domestic workers as regards their grievances, immigration and other matters.

Help Desk:
Provides guidance to Indian nationals on routine immigration, employment, legal and other issues, etc.  It also provides illiterate workers assistance in filling up labour complaint forms. (Open from 9 AM to 1 PM and 2 PM to 4.30 PM; Sunday to Thursday)

Legal Advice Clinic:
A qualified Kuwaiti lawyer provides free legal advice to Indian workers on matters such as labour disputes, terms of contracts with employers, withholding of dues by employers, etc.  (Open from 3 PM to 5 PM; Mondays and Thursdays).

Attestation of Work Contracts:
As per the Emigration Rules of India, it is mandatory for all work contracts for recruitment of manpower from India, to be attested by the Embassy of India Kuwait.  All sponsors in Kuwait who intend to recruit manpower from India are, therefore, required to follow the following procedures:

Private Sector Workers (Visa No. 18)

Work contracts, in prescribed format, are to be got attested by the Kuwait Chamber of Commerce & Industry and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the State of Kuwait.  Thereafter the contracts are to be submitted to the Embassy of India for attestation (Open from 9 AM to 1 PM; Sunday to Thursday).  A set of documents including the prescribed format of work contract and other documentation may be obtained from the Embassy of India or downloaded from the Embassy’s website:
http://www.indembkwt.org/forms/Visa_18_contract_forms_individual.pdf
http://www.indembkwt.org/forms/bulk_recruitment_workers(Visa%20No_%2018).pdf

Time required for attestation:  Three working days from the date of submission of documents complete in all respects.  In case documents submitted are incomplete, a communication regarding the shortcomings will be sent to the company concerned within three working days.

Domestic Sector Workers (Visa No. 20)

Work contracts, in prescribed format, are to be submitted to the Kuwait Union of Domestic Labour Offices (KUDLO) located at Hawally, Al-Othman Street, Kurd Roundabout, Al-Abraj Complex, Mezzanine Floor, Office No. 9; (Open from 9 AM to 1 PM and 5 PM to 9 PM from Saturday to Thursday; 5 PM to 9 PM on Friday) All contracts must be accompanied by an insurance policy purchased by the sponsor in favour of the worker from the designated insurance companies. A set of documents, including the prescribed format of the employment contract and other documentation, as also the contact details of KUDLO and insurance companies may be obtained from the Embassy of India or downloaded from the Embassy’s website:
http://www.indembkwt.org/forms/Visa_20_contract_domestic.pdf