Just a quick update on yesterdays post. After watching all the snapchat videos of people stuck at the Saudi Kuwait borders for hours, I spent the whole drive from Riyadh to Kuwait anxious about how long I’d be stuck there for. I figured if I arrived to the border around 3:30, I would probably leave around 6 because of the long queues. Well that didn’t happen.
I ended up arriving to the Saudi – Kuwait border around 2:30pm. The Saudi side of the border was pretty much empty, I didn’t have to wait at any of the passport control windows and just drove through basically. When I arrived to the Kuwait borders thats where I saw the long queue. Two lines of cars stretching maybe 15-20 cars long. Not as bad I was expecting it to be based on the videos I had watched. As I was getting ready to settle in for the long wait, a border control officer sees my car plates and waves to me to skip the queue and head straight down to the passport control window. Turns out cars with Kuwaiti plates didn’t have to wait in this line.
I moved out of the long queue and drove up to one of the free passport control windows, gave the guy my passport, he stamped it and I was done. No biometric scanning or anything. I was worried I was going to spend hours at the border and it ended up taking me less than 15 minutes to cross over, the fastest it’s ever taken me. I’m not sure whats going on, maybe they were forcing everyone to get a biometric scan but the lines were crazy long so now they’re just doing it for non residents?
A reader who landed in Kuwait on Sunday wrote that when he arrived, only the Kuwait/GCC queue at passport control were getting biometric scanning while expats weren’t. I’m assuming this is a soft rollout and eventually everyone is going to get scanned.
16 replies on “Update: Biometric Scanning when Entering Kuwait”
At the Beginning Biometrics are required for Saudi Nationals & Foreigners without Kuwait residency.
Except at the airport it’s the exact opposite
It is better not to know why certain things happen for your piece of mind.
What i’d like to know is; Why do they always start a new system or implement new rules without preparing or piloting and end up creating loooong queues?
3 years ago, I went to the Traffic Dept. to renew my cars reg., found a HUGE queue! What is it? They said they stopped the stamps vending machines & now you have to buy from a guy sitting in one of the windows!
I mean it was much easier to just buy the stamp from a machine, not to mention super faster.
Until this day, whenever I go there, I find the same new queue, they created, people lining up just to buy a stamp.
For contrast, in KSA & Qatar & Dubai, you can transfer a car to someones else’s name at midnight or whenever only by using your (and his) mobile!
I arrived from Beirut yesterday and found the new biometric scanners in front of the usual immigration control counters. It didn’t take long but I was curious why the scanning process was done on a chair and desk SEPARATE from the immigration counters and not all in one place like they do at DXB and elsewhere.
The poor officer had to administer the scan then go back to his booth to enter my passport into the system, and repeat the same process again and again for each passenger! Imagine the backlog on busy days!
And again, why do they always do things without prior notice?!
🤦🏼♂️
there is 4 places you can register biometric scans before leaving kuwait. farwaniya, aljahra, hawalli, um alhaiman.
most people dunno or dont even care, they leave it for when they comeback to kuwait and are stunned why the queue to register is long.
i just came back to kuwait by car all kuwaiti cars never stopped for biometric scans.
When you arrive at the airport, what do they ask you while you’re doing the scans? My Arabic is poor and I struggle to understand what is normally asked.
Also, might be related. An anyone confirm if they stamp the passports on departure at immigration.
I just happened to check my passport for the immigration stamp at departure didn’t see one. Check my daughters she also, the same.
I am traveling by car this week. So, I decided to go to the umm alhayman fingerprint office they opened to reduce the load the boarders I went for the same reason so I can get the prints done before and save time at the boarder.
After waiting 2hours the officer said it’s only for Kuwaiti and GCC citizens cause expats already have their fingerprints in the system.
@Mark, how do you know your biometrics are enrolled and next time you are entering Kuwait, you don’t have to go thru the same amount of time?
dont know
what did they ask you when you went through the biometric?
It is pretty sad that the announcements made in the papers a few weeks ago saying that you do not need an appointment to get the biometrics done within the assigned malls as stated in this article :https://www.arabtimesonline.com/news/ministry-of-interior-launches-biometric-fingerprinting-in-commercial-malls/
So fast forward to a month later , my old parents are traveling and to avoid them queuing up at the airport i asked them to visit the Avenues Biometric area, upon reaching there, they were told you need appointments via the Metta website (unfortunately my folks are not that tech savvy and had to return home), even though there was not a single soul other than them present there, not sure if this was discrimination or straight up ignorance, wish the Expats got treated a little better and the information was more clear cut rather than having to guess what to do next all the time.
P.S the Sahel app is still in Arabic only.
I make biometric 2019 feb.@kuwait airport..
Its also i take biometric this time?
2019 i have biometric in kuwait airport..so i need to do it again or no?