Thousands of illegal workers whose work permits have expired have been given a reprieve by authorities.

Even those whose permits have been out of date for up to a year, will now be given until December 31 to renew them, following an outcry by employers.

Hundreds of employers appealed to the Labour Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA) board to ease tough new restrictions.

The LMRA had earlier said anyone whose work permit had been expired for more than a month would be ordered out of the country. It said it would not process their applications for renewal.

That decision has now been revised, said LMRA chief executive Ali Radhi.

'We have received appeals from hundreds of employers whose employees have overstayed for several months after their work permits expired,' he told our sister publication, the Gulf Daily News.

'They said they found it difficult to renew the permits during this limited time, for various reasons.

'Our study revealed that there are thousands of expatriates and their families who overstay in the country.'

The board has, therefore, decided to renew the work visas of people who have overstayed for up to one year, said Radhi.

'This facility will be available only up to the end of December, after which we shall apply the rules in full force,' he added.

'From January, those who overstay for more than 30 days after the expiry of their permits must leave the country.

'The LMRA will not renew the work visas of such people after this period.'

Radhi said some employers had given the excuse that they did know that some of their employees' work permits had expired.

'For many years, it has been a practice to pay fines and get the permits renewed after they expire,' he added.

'Such practice will not be allowed from January 1.

'Employers must also realise that they can apply for renewal of work visas even six months before their expiry. Earlier it was possible only three months before expiry.'

Radhi said another study by LMRA has revealed that about 12,000 dependents of expatriates were not sponsored by their primary employers.

'The employee and his dependents are sponsored by different people,' he added.

'According to LMRA rules, it is not possible to renew the work visas of such people, unless their spouses are officially working for other employers.

'Such people can produce a no objection certificate from their sponsors, and we can transfer them to the original sponsor free of charge.'

The LMRA announced that it would receive applications between 8am and noon during Ramadan.

For more details, contact its Sanabis-based headquarters, check website www.lmra.bh or dial 17506055. - TradeArabia News Service