Top Reasons why you could be banned in GCC
The Gulf cooperation council (GCC) is an intergovernmental economic and political union of gulf countries, also known as Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf. Its member states are the Islamic States of Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates (UAE).
This council is a union of the above mentioned states made for protecting the interests of these states and to provide a single platform for the discussion and solution of various issues that these countries may encounter, and to empower them. Among the many things that the GCC overlooks and regulates, one such policy is the banning and deporting of expatriates living and working in any of the Gulf States when they are found to be involved in any unlawful act. Gulf News has reported today that a plan to ban the deported expatriates from one GCC country from entering on work visas in any other GCC country has been finalized.
If any expatriate is blacklisted for their involvement in any criminal activity then as per rules, they cannot enter any of the above mentioned Gulf States. According a news report from Arab Times, The GCC countries have started applying a law that bans any expatriate booked for any criminal offense from entering any other GCC state.
This law is a part of the GCC security act. Moreover, the country which deports such expats would have the right to take their fingerprints and circulate and share them with the other GCC countries so as to protect the Gulf countries from any hazard. The offenses that can lead to the expats being deported can be summarized as follows;
- Criminal Cases
- Civil Cases
- Moral Cases
- Labor Cases
But the most common cause of deporting the expats is Labor Cases, which is any doubt that the employer may have on the employee regarding dishonesty, fraud or theft is then reported to the authorities and the employee is thus deported. This information is not only important for selective people only but for everyone as they can result in getting banned from the GCC countries. We will now look into the rules set by the GCC that are applicable to all expats.
- Any bank or company loan, debts or unpaid credit card bills.
- Any criminal offence such as robbery, theft, embezzlement etc.
- Any contagious, infectious disease such as HIV, AIDS, HEPA etc.
- Any false documents or incorrect information such as Marriage certificate, diploma, employment certificates or PRC cards.
- Any illegal activities such as gambling, lotto and lottery.
- Immoral activities such as prostitution, adultery, soliciting sex, prostitution and other immoral behaviors that are against the law. Possession of pornographic content, even being caught with a boyfriend or girlfriend can lead to deportation.
- Manufacturing and selling alcohol or selling liquor and other alcoholic beverages.
- Bribery, corruption, having a fake driver’s license.
The above mentioned rules have been laid by the GCC to protect the Gulf countries from any such infestation of criminals in their societies. Strict measures are undertaken to keep in check the activities of the expats during their stay in the Gulf States. The expats are expected to abide by these laws and to not abuse them. The Gulf States adhere strictly to Islamic principles and make sure that the people residing there follow all the laws and do not indulge in anything un-Islamic or unlawful.
Keeping in view these rules, the expats have to take extra care in their activities as not only does this lead to deportation from one country, but also involves having one’s name blacklisted and denied entry in all the GCC countries. Hence your chance at working in most of the Middle Eastern countries is over.
GCC Wide Ban on Deported Expatriates of GCC Countries
General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs Dubai (GDRFA) has just made a statement which is published by Gulf News today that the expatriates who are deported from one of the GCC countries would not be able to enter any of the GCC member countries upon work visa. Gulf News reported that the GDRFA, in its magazine Manafez Dubai that all six GCC countries (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman) have agreed upon this law and soon it will be implemented in all GCC countries. The country which will deport the expatriate will take his or her finger prints and share it with all GCC member countries. The system to share this kind of information is already in place.
Ban in cases of Criminal Offences
It is important to mention here that GCC countries already have an agreement to not get through the expatriates who are involved in some criminal offences in any other GCC country. As a result of this, all countries share the information regarding passport details, finger prints and other related information with other countries. If an expatriates is ran away from Qatar after stealing money and it is reported to the police after his departure. He will not be able to enter to any other GCC countries. They have created a sound system to arrest such expatriate. If expatriate who is alleged to have criminal case in any of the GCC country applies for the visa of any other GCC country, they don’t stop or reject the visa. In fact they approve it and make arrangements to arrest him on the airport of GCC country. After that, that particular expatriate is handed over to the police of the country where he is alleged to commit the crime. His name from the banned list of GCC countries is only removed when he clears the allegation against him in that country.
Question: If I Am Blacklisted in Qatar, Is There a Problem Entering Other GCC Countries?
Answer:
There are two reasons why you will be banned from entering the Qatar.
First, you are blacklisted due a contract or visa terms violations. For example, you overstayed or not finishing your contract and you abscond ( you return to your home country for a vacation and did not come back). In this case, you are only banned in the Qatar.
Second, you are blacklisted because of a criminal record. It’s either, you have a pending criminal case filed against you or you have run away before the case has been filed. In this case, you are probably banned in all GCC countries. Should you decide to try entering other countries, you might be sent back to Qatar for a trial. If the second scenario is your case, you better stay in your home country.
