Dependent visa

I have the following important question: My wife has a Hepatitis C minor, can she get a dependent visa?

Name withheld

Answer: According to Kuwait’s Health and Interior ministries, if any person has Hepatitis C he is not allowed to get Kuwait residence. This is true for almost every infectious disease.

So, we are sorry you will not be allowed to get dependent residence for your wife. Please remember that even if you manage to get a visa for her, she will face a battery of health tests for the residence formalities when she lands in Kuwait and once she is found to have Hepatitis C, she will be deported.

For some diseases (like HIV and leprosy), the expatriates are immediately deported but for diseases like TB or Hepatitis the expatriates are given six to 12 months before they are deported. This is done on humanitarian grounds.

During the period in Kuwait they are given proper treatment before they are sent back. But this is only for expatriates already in the country. New arrivals are deported immediately once their disease is diagnosed.