Iraqi Kurdistan: New Requirements for Work Permit Issuance

Effective immediately, the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs has issued new guidelines for social security subscriptions and nationalization requirements that employers must follow in order to be issued initial or renewed work permits for their employees. The new guidelines require employers to submit a company stamped letter reflecting the names of all employees along with their salaries from 2022 and 2023, showing that their salaries increased year over year. Employers must also submit employment contracts signed by both the employer and employee by March 2023, which must be legalized by the legal department at the Social Security Directorate beforehand. Furthermore, employers must now ensure that the ratio of foreign workers in their company does not exceed 25% of their total employees. If all of these requirements are followed, a Social Security clearance letter will be issued to the employer, which must be included with each work permit application. As a result, employers are advised to register their employees with the Social Security Directorate as soon as possible and submit the employment agreements by the end of March 2023. Companies that do not meet the minimum nationalization ratio of 75% will need to start taking measures to reach it or sign a pledge letter stating the company will have the required ratio within two months. Otherwise, the Social Security Directorate will block services for the company.