Kuwait arrests three passport officers over border record tampering scandal

Authorities in Kuwait have arrested three civil employees working in the passport control department for allegedly exploiting their positions to manipulate the country’s traveller entry and exit records at land border crossings, Al Qabas Arabic daily reported.

The Land Ports Investigations Department of the Criminal Investigation Department confirmed that the arrest of three employees, who were stationed at the General Department of Land Ports, was found to have tampered with the Ministry of Interior’s computer system that tracks travellers’ movements.

Authorities stated that the investigation began after receiving information that two employees at the Nuwaiseeb border crossing and one at the Salmi crossing had abused their official positions by entering false travel data into the system.

The accused allegedly generated fake entry and exit records for two Kuwaiti women who were, in reality, outside the country.

The Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour revealed that the women were illegally receiving financial assistance despite having left Kuwait months earlier.

Verification with Saudi authorities further exposed discrepancies between the actual border records and the data registered in Kuwait’s system, confirming the fraud.

Following the investigation, the Public Prosecution authorised the arrest of the suspects. The first two employees were arrested at their workplaces and confessed to the charges, also implicating a third employee from the Salmi Passports Department who helped in manipulating the automated system.

All three accused have been referred to the judicial authorities, and legal proceedings are underway in accordance with Kuwaiti law.

Kuwait approves 235,000 visit visas

Immigration departments across Kuwait’s six governorates have approved approximately 235,000 visit visas since the launch of the “Kuwait Visa” platform in July, according to a security source quoted by Al-Anba.

The source confirmed that visit visas are now open to all nationalities, marking a shift from the previous restrictions. Each residency department is processing around 1,000 applications daily, amounting to about 6,000 visit visas issued across the country every day.