Kuwaitization to replace 62 expatriate judicial support workers in second phase

Kuwait’s Ministry of Justice has begun the second phase of its plan to Kuwaitize judicial support roles, with 62 non-Kuwaiti employees set to have their services terminated once trained Kuwaiti replacements are ready to take over.

The second phase focuses particularly on the investigation clerk role at the Public Prosecution and covers employees across several departments, including Criminal Execution, External Communications, Public Prosecution, Criminal Registries, Notarization, Real Estate Registration, Sharia Notarization, and Administrative Development and Planning.

Awatif Al-Sanad, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Justice, said the ministry is implementing the Kuwaitization programme gradually to maintain operational continuity and ensure an orderly transfer of responsibilities to national employees.

The second phase follows the completion of the first stage, which resulted in the termination of services of 54 non-Kuwaiti employees working as hearing clerks, legal researchers and administrative coordinators across the Court of First Instance, Court of Appeals, Court of Cassation and Constitutional Court.

The ministry aims to complete the second phase and fully Kuwaitize the judicial support positions covered by the programme by the end of December 2026.

According to Al-Sanad, the initiative is being implemented in line with a directive from Kuwait’s Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah to Kuwaitize jobs in the judicial sector. Justice Minister Nasser Al-Sumait is overseeing the programme.

The ministry began preparing for the nationalisation programme around a year and a half ago by identifying positions targeted for Kuwaitization, assessing staffing requirements across judicial support departments and training Kuwaiti employees to take over the roles.

The ministry said the approach is intended to ensure that national employees are ready to assume the responsibilities before expatriate positions are phased out, rather than replacing workers without trained successors in place.

The latest phase is part of Kuwait’s broader efforts to increase the participation of Kuwaiti nationals in the public sector and strengthen the role of national talent across the judicial system.