Hello everyone, its holiday season and since I know a lot of people are going to be consuming alcoholic beverages over the holidays, I thought I would just post a reminder about alcohol in Kuwait.
Alcohol in Kuwait can be very confusing to foreigners as there are alcohol related restrictions and crimes, yet the act of drinking in itself is not illegal. The middle east as a region in general has many alcohol restrictions compared to other regions around the world. Even a place like Dubai which is known to have a big party and drinking scene has restrictions on alcohol consumption and international lawyers have written about UAE laws claiming them to be “strict”.
In Kuwait drinking alcohol privately is not illegal, but buying and/or selling, bringing alcohol to a public place, or being intoxicated in public areas are all crimes. What happens when you are caught in public with alcohol? If you are a first time offender then most likely you will be kept at the police station until you sober up. I am assuming you weren’t driving and you did not hurt anyone. If you aren’t a first time offender and other people have been hurt then you could face a fine or jail time.
Please be very careful this holiday season and do not do anything illegal. I’ve seen many expats that have been accused of alcohol related crimes because they weren’t aware of the specifics of the local laws and instead were comparing the law in Kuwait to their countries law. One person that was pulled out of a taxi by police because he was intoxicated was really confused, his claim was that “I was not driving”. Although in developed countries being intoxicated is a crime while driving only, in Kuwait being intoxicated is a crime in public or even in private if you could be seen by someone in public. So being intoxicated in a car is a crime even if they weren’t driving. For more details on the different laws related to alcohol in Kuwait, check out my previous post.
Stay safe everyone and respect other cultures and religions, I wish you and your family a great holiday.
For any legal inquiries, please email me on [email protected] and we will get back to you within 24 hours.
Post by Fajer Ahmed – Legal Counsel
The legal opinions expressed in this post are those of the author Fajer. Opinions expressed by Mark or any other writer on mark248am1.wpenginepowered.com are those of the individual’s and in no way reflect Fajer’s opinion.
29 replies on “Kuwait Law: Alcohol in Kuwait”
Im sure nobody will be consuming alcohol in Kuwait.
Did you read Fajer’s post?? The act of drinking itself is not illegal.
I’ll get a sarcasm sign
I’ve been here my whole life and never knew consuming alcohol in private was not illegal. Cheers for the post, Mark!
It is actually irrelevant if it is legal or not since noone would know….so it might as well be labeled as legal. 🙂
its not me, its fajer
“Although in developed countries being intoxicated is a crime while driving only, in Kuwait being intoxicated is a crime in public or even in private if you could be seen by someone in public.”
Is there a clause in the Kuwaiti law that states what you just mentioned above? Particularly the bit about being intoxicated in private is against the law.
Nobody can enter your home without a warrant. Now if that is eligible for a warrant? That’s the question you should ask.
Cc: mark
https://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21711044-elections-allow-citizens-complain-about-welfare-cuts-little-else-kuwait?fsrc=scn/tw/te/bl/ed/kuwaitfailstokeepupwithitsneighbours
thanks, its a good article
You should also mention the laws regarding transporting alcohol in your vehicle and if the police have the right to search your car or open your trunk.
The pic above is highly misleading since what’s available on the black market is nothing of this calibre and quality
It was smuggled by a diplomat.
hahahaha yeah that was in my hotel room in Dubai. It was either that shot or pictures from the bourbon trail i took last year when I was in Kentucky.
Scotch is the way forward!
I can do Scotch as well https://248am.com//images/2016/12/monkey.jpg
Try Glenmorangie 18 years, Lagavulin, and Highland Park. Add a bit of water..no ice or coke or any of that nonesense.
If you’re adding water you might as well add ice and coke while you’re at it. Who drinks whisky with water? That’s gross.
Don’t ever say that if you’re in Scotland!!!
https://www.whiskyforeveryone.com/whisky_basics/adding_water_or_ice.html
Let me pull up the only girls add water to their whisky link
I meant a few drops to bring out the flavour, not dilute it like vimto! That’s what is recommended when you visit the distilleries in Scotland.
High quality scotch in Scotland is typically sold ‘cask strength’, around 40%. Typically you would dilute it slightly to bring out the flavour (and not overwhelm your senses with the smell of ethanol).
So there you go!
try Yamasaki sometimes 🙂
Just don’t drink. It’s not good for your health.
but good for your spirit!
if its not illegal to consume in private, what about producing in private.
Can you also touch on production of alcohol and how legal that is?
In Qatar they have official store to sell alcohol and pork meat to licensed people.
Banning alcohol is so last century! 🙂
Having scotch whisky, gin, vodka and bud this Xmas. Quiet drinking time…