How much does work permit cost in the GCC? 2026 fees

Not always, and we would rather say so. If your documents are valid and the transaction is available in an app, file it yourself. Paying a service fee makes sense when a submission has already been rejected without explanation, when several authorities are involved in sequence, or when a deadline fine would exceed the fee.

Comparing headline fees alone is misleading, because renewal cycles differ between states. A lower fee renewed annually can cost more over three years than a higher fee renewed every three. Compare the fee and the renewal cycle together, both of which are in the table on this page.

Because the government fee is only one line. Typing or service centre fees, urgent processing surcharges, delivery, medical tests, insurance and translation are charged separately, and providers bundle them differently. Ask for the government fee and the service fee split out before agreeing to anything.

They are indicative planning figures drawn from the issuing authorities and consistent public sources, and they are dated. Government fees change without much notice and free zone schedules are set independently. Always confirm the current amount with the issuing authority before you pay.

Yes in the UAE after probation ends and on giving 30 days' notice, and yes in Qatar since the 2020 reform on giving one month's notice in the first two years and two months thereafter. Saudi Arabia allows transfer through Qiwa if the worker has been with the current employer for at least one full year, or earlier if Qiwa contract authentication or wage protection breaches are documented. Bahrain still requires employer release for non-flexi permits and the flexi route is closed to new applicants. Oman requires a release or two-year wait. Kuwait requires a release after three years unless transferring within the same family of employers.

The sponsor pays. UAE Federal Decree-Law on Labour Relations, Saudi Labour Law, Qatar Law No. 21 of 2015, Bahrain LMRA Act, Oman Labour Law, and Kuwait Private Sector Labour Law all place the work-permit fee and the annual levy or monthly fee squarely on the employer. Saudi Arabia's SAR 9,600 expat levy and Bahrain's BHD 5 monthly LMRA fee in particular cannot be recovered from the worker through deductions, and a deduction shown on the payslip is grounds for a complaint at MOHRE, Qiwa, MADLSA, LMRA, MOL Oman, or PAM with restitution and a fine on the employer.

The work permit is the labour ministry's authorisation to work for a named sponsor in a named role; the residence visa is the interior ministry's authorisation to live in the country. The two are linked and usually move together, but they are issued by different authorities, refused for different reasons, and renewed under different rules. A work permit can be valid while the residence is in renewal limbo for an insurance gap, and a residence can be valid while the work permit is suspended for a Nitaqat or LMRA quota breach. End-of-service rights, gratuity, and absconding all attach to the work permit, not the residence.

Yes in the UAE under the part-time work permit and the freelance permit introduced under the Federal Decree-Law on Labour Relations, and yes in Saudi Arabia with employer consent under the multi-employer arrangement on Qiwa. Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, and Kuwait require single-sponsor work, although Qatar allows a secondary permit for specific seasonal categories and Bahrain previously allowed multi-employer flexi work before the 2023 closure. Working outside your registered sponsor without a second permit is a deportable offence in every country, even if the second job is unpaid or short-term.

Work Permit - known on the MOHRE labour card - is the UAE federal employment authorisation issued by the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation. A two-year permit on a Category A skilled establishment costs AED 250 (Category A pays the lowest fee tier; B and C pay multiples). New-joiner end-to-end is 2 to 4 weeks from signed offer to active labour card and residence visa; renewals where the worker is already in the system clear in 3 to 7 working days; same-day to two days for transfers between MOHRE-registered mainland employers. The labour card pairs with the residence visa from ICP or GDRFA Dubai. Common trap: joining a Category C employer where the higher MOHRE permit fees are passed through as salary deductions or reduced allowances - always check the establishment category before signing.

The Saudi Work Permit - Rukhsat Amal - is the labour authorisation issued by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development through Qiwa, paired with the work-Iqama printed on Muqeem. A first work permit takes 4-12 weeks from Qiwa block-visa request to active permit, with Saudi embassy stamping the longest leg; sponsor transfers with consent run 2-4 weeks, while employee-initiated transfers without consent run 4-8 weeks during the 14-day employer objection window. The unbalanced Nitaqat levy of SAR 800/month (SAR 9,600/year) applies per worker when non-Saudi headcount exceeds Saudi headcount and is paid through SADAD. Mudad evidences WPS salary payments and GOSI confirms social insurance registration before renewal. Two pitfalls: signing the Qiwa contract without checking the job title (wrong titles block licence conversion, family sponsorship, and Premium Residency conversion later), and trusting the paper contract HR hands over when courts and Muqeem read the Qiwa digital version.

Work Permit (Labour Card) is the work permit service in Qatar, handled through MOI Qatar (https://portal.moi.gov.qa) and administered by the Qatar Ministry of Interior. The headline government fee is 500 QAR for work permit (per worker, employer-paid), with the full fee table broken out below. Processing typically runs New permits: 3-6 weeks end to end (entry visa to QID in hand), assuming clean documentation. Transfers: 4-8 weeks including notice period. Absconding-report disputes…. Watch for one repeat pitfall: Working even one day before the work permit is issued: both the employer and the worker face fines and possible deportation. Another common trap is Skipping contract attestation through the MOL e-system and signing only a paper contract that MOI cannot read. Files can be submitted online or through approved typing centres; the Wathim desk handles the MOI Qatar session and the typing-centre handoff end-to-end if you would rather not queue.

In Bahrain, the work permit is issued by the Labour Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA) under the Ministry of Labour, with sponsor-side filing through LMRA's Expat Management System (EMS), public checks via bahrain.bh, and payments cleared through BenefitPay. A new or renewed two-year permit costs 390 BHD as of the April 2026 LMRA schedule. Renewal completes in 5 to 10 working days from EMS submission once arrears are clear, medical fitness is in place, and biometrics are captured. The downstream CPR card alignment then takes a few additional days through the iGA. Two pitfalls cost time and money: trusting only the CPR expiry date when the LMRA permit can lapse earlier (especially after a transfer or sponsor change), and switching jobs informally on a gentleman's agreement when an LMRA transfer must be filed first, because the original sponsor can file an absconding case if a worker walks.

Labour Clearance and Work Permit in Oman is the gating step that authorises an employer to hire and visa-sponsor an expat worker. The Ministry of Labour (MoMP) issues it, with the Oman eGov, ROP, and Invest Easy portals carrying the dependent registration steps. The base per-worker fee for a private-sector professional clearance runs 201 OMR; sector surcharges may apply. End-to-end timing is 4–8 weeks from the labour clearance request to a stamped employment residence visa and printed resident card. Restricted sectors and unusual nationalities can extend this to 10–12 weeks. The worker must not start performing duties until residence is stamped. Common pitfalls are letting the worker begin work on a visit visa before residence is finalised (which exposes the employer to fines and the worker to deportation), and missing sector quota - MoMP will reject the clearance if the employer is over its Omanisation threshold for the activity code.

Work Permit (PAM) in Kuwait is issued by the Public Authority for Manpower, with applications, renewals, and post-2025 transfers handled through Sahel, the unified MOI Kuwait and PACI digital platform. The new-issuance fee is KD 10 per year, paid via KNET on Sahel, with PACI Civil ID and Kuwait Mobile ID required for authentication. Typical end-to-end is 4 to 8 weeks from PAM submission to Civil ID in hand for clean cases, stretching to 8 to 12 weeks for nationalities requiring pre-arrival medical clearances or police-clearance attestations. Renewals are typically 1 to 2 weeks when the file is clean; transfers run 2 to 4 weeks under the post-2025 regime, dominated by the new employer's quota check and the original employer's release. Two common pitfalls: submitting the renewal before the employer pays the PAM fee (the renewal fails silently), and starting a transfer before the original employer issues the release.