Kuwait announces expat real estate investment 2023

The Kuwait Times reports that a Kuwaiti ministerial committee has submitted a proposal to the Cabinet to allow non-Kuwaitis to own residential investment properties.

The proposition intends to revitalize the economy and attract investment to Kuwait by creating liquidity to release mortgages and “injecting these amounts into the national economy.”

According to the report, which cited official data, the investment property market in Kuwait is estimated to consist of 13,000 buildings containing 320,000 apartments, the majority of which are mortgaged to financial institutions.

Expats will shortly own residences in Kuwait

Permitting expatriates to own apartments would generate economic growth and an active real estate sector, thereby contributing to the economic diversification of the nation.

The proposal for expat ownership of real estate in Kuwait stipulates that non-Kuwaitis may be granted the right to own one residential apartment in an investment building by a decision of the justice minister, provided they are permanent and legal residents of Kuwait and no judgments have been issued against them during their stay that violate honor or trust.

The apartment must be designated as the applicant’s or their family’s primary residence, its size must not exceed 350 square meters, and the applicant may not own another apartment in Kuwait.

The proposal will be discussed following the formation of the new government, which will occur two weeks after the National Assembly elections on June 6, according to the report, along with the mortgage bill, which the government hopes the National Assembly will approve to address the housing crisis.