SHARJAH, 29 January 2005 — A senior government official has denied that the United Arab Emirates plans to introduce mandatory exit visas for foreigners employed in the country before they could travel abroad. Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Dr. Ali ibn Abdullah Al-Ka’abi affirmed that it was an option under consideration as a reason for not allowing employers to hold back the passports of their employees.
Several other Gulf Cooperation Council member countries, including Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, have such a system under which the employee’s sponsor has to apply through the authorities to obtain an exit permit.
A report appearing in the Khaleej Times quoted Ka’abi as saying that the UAE plans to introduce the system and that the proposed process would involve the Ministry of Labor as well as the Ministry of Interior. Subsequently, the mass-circulation Al-Khaleej and the Gulf News as well as Gulf Today newspapers quoted him as denying the report.
“We have no intention of imposing a travel-permit system on expatriate workers,” he stated. “No changes in the labor or residency rules have yet been proposed. We did not submit any such suggestions to the Ministry of Interior,” he said.
He said in comments carried by the Khaleej Times yesterday: “We are actually discussing this proposal with the Ministry of Interior as one of the alternatives to develop mechanisms to maintain national security and safeguard the rights of both employers and employees.
“One of the mechanisms that will be discussed by the two ministries is issuing a temporary travel permit for expats working in the country instead of holding back their passports. The idea behind this proposed measure is not to bar people from traveling outside the country, but to ensure that they keep their passports with them.”
“Retaining a personal document is a problem that has prompted the ministry to come up with such a mechanism in coordination with other agencies concerned,” said Ka’abi.
“It is a problem that needs to be resolved through legal channels,” he added.
The UAE is committed to protecting and improving the rights of workers, he affirmed.
Other officials also said the idea of introducing “exit permits” for foreign workers was a “backward procedure” for a country like the UAE, which is known for adopting and practicing liberal ideas.
The initial report had said that exit permits for foreigners was aimed at preventing violators of the law from escaping from the country. Legal experts said only the judiciary had the right to order a ban against anyone from leaving the country in cases where the concerned person is involved in a criminal case or is suspected of planning to flee the country without paying debts.
Under current procedures, such people are included in a “black list” maintained in the centralized immigration computer network and they would be detained at the country’s exit points if they try to leave.
