Domestic Worker Absconding Reports in Kuwait: When They Are Filed, Their Effect on Worker and Employer, and How to Cancel or Challenge Them

Few phrases cause as much anxiety in Kuwaiti households as "the housemaid has run away, we need to file an absconding report." And few situations frighten a domestic worker more than discovering that, after leaving a home where wages had gone unpaid for months, they are now listed as absconding and in breach of their residence status. The absence report (commonly called an "absconding" or "taghayyub" report) looks like a simple administrative form. In practice it changes the worker's legal position overnight, decides who answers for the worker's conduct after leaving, affects any future transfer of sponsorship or return to Kuwait, and can be turned into a pressure tool when it is misused.

This article deals with that specific question: the absence report for a domestic worker — when it may be filed, what it does to each side, and how it can be challenged or withdrawn. It does not repeat the general overview of domestic workers' rights, which we covered in Domestic Workers' Rights in Kuwait: A Guide to Law No. 68 of 2015 and Domestic Labour in Kuwait: Contracts, Rights and Disputes. Absence reports for private-sector employees (company staff) are a separate topic covered in Absence-from-Work Reports in Kuwait; domestic workers fall under their own statute and their own competent authority.

Below we set out the legal framework, the situations in which a report is legitimate and those in which it becomes abusive, what the worker can do to show that leaving was justified, which obligations stay with the employer even after a report is filed, and practical step-by-step guidance for both sides, followed by three hypothetical cases and a set of frequently asked questions. The aim is simple: a household should know how to protect itself without being unfair, and a worker should know how to defend their rights without sliding into a more serious violation.

The Short Answer

When is it filed? The employer (sponsor) files it when the domestic worker leaves the home without the employer's knowledge or consent and stays away for no known reason. It is lodged with the authority responsible for domestic labour — under the current arrangement, the Domestic Labour Department of the Public Authority for Manpower — with any notification to the security authorities that the circumstances require. Filing promptly protects the employer from responsibility for what the worker does after leaving.

What does it do to the worker? The worker is treated by the authorities as being in breach of residence rules. They can be detained when stopped, may face administrative deportation, and in practice cannot transfer sponsorship to a new employer while the report stands. Depending on how the matter ends, it may also affect any later return to Kuwait.

Does it cancel the worker's rights? No. A report does not wipe out unpaid wages or other entitlements, and it never authorises the employer to keep the worker's passport. The worker can object before the competent authority and prove that leaving was for a legitimate reason — unpaid wages or ill-treatment, for example. If that is established, the report may be cancelled, and an employer who knowingly filed a false report may face liability.

How is it removed? Either the employer withdraws it after a settlement (the worker returns, or the parties agree to end the relationship and settle dues), or the competent authority cancels it after examining the worker's complaint, or the court resolves the underlying labour dispute.

The Legal Framework

The rules governing a domestic worker's absence report are spread across several pieces of legislation, each playing a different role:

• The Domestic Labour Law (Law No. 68 of 2015): the special statute governing the relationship between the household and the domestic worker. It sets out the duties of both parties — wages, rest, treatment, safekeeping of documents — and gives the administrative authority responsible for domestic labour the role of examining complaints and disputes before they reach the courts. It is the first reference point for any dispute about why a worker left.
• The Aliens Residence Law and its implementing regulations and decisions: these govern the expatriate's residence, which is tied to the employer, and the consequences of breaching residence conditions, including detention and administrative deportation. We refer to it by name only, because what matters in practice is the regulatory decisions in force at the relevant time.
• The Penal Code (Law No. 16 of 1960): criminalises a false report made to the authorities in bad faith with intent to harm another person. It also covers assault, theft, breach of trust and the other offences that either side may raise in these disputes.
• The Criminal Procedure Code (Law No. 17 of 1960): governs criminal complaints and investigations — the framework within which any mutual accusations move, whether the employer alleges theft or the worker alleges assault.
• The Anti-Human Trafficking Law (Law No. 91 of 2013): engaged in the serious cases where the relationship involves exploitation, confinement or forced labour. These are exceptional but real, and in them the worker is treated as a victim rather than an offender.
• The Civil Code (Law No. 67 of 1980): governs tort liability and compensation, including claims for damage caused by a malicious report or by abuse of a right.

The common thread is that an absence report is an administrative measure designed to regularise residence status and allocate responsibility. It is not a finding of guilt against the worker, and it is not a mechanism for cancelling financial rights. That is why three tracks should always be kept apart: the administrative track (the report and any objection to it), the labour track (wages and entitlements), and the criminal track (if either side alleges an offence).

Substantive Rules

1. When may the household file an absence report?

A report is legitimate when the worker leaves the home and disappears without permission and without any reason known to the employer, and neither returns nor makes contact. The employer then has a genuine interest in reporting: they do not know where the worker is or what they are doing, the worker's residence is linked to the employer's name, and anything the worker does afterwards could create administrative problems for the employer's file. Filing at the right time is therefore not only a right but, in many cases, the sensible way for a household to protect itself.

Before filing, however, the employer should rule out an ordinary explanation. Has the worker been admitted to hospital? Detained by a security authority? Gone to their embassy or to the shelter? Are there unpaid wages that might explain the departure? These questions are not a formality: the answers will later decide whether the report was truthful and justified or open to challenge.

A report usually requires the worker's details, copies of their documents, and a statement of when and how they left. An employer who is holding the worker's passport is in a weak position, because keeping the passport is itself a violation — a point we covered in detail in My Employer Is Holding My Passport.

2. When does a report become unlawful or abusive?

A report loses its legitimacy when it is used for a purpose other than the one it exists for. Patterns seen repeatedly in practice include:

• Reporting after the worker asks for their wages: wages pile up, the worker asks or complains, and the employer responds with an absence report to make the worker an offender and weaken their position.
• Reporting a worker who never left, or who left with the employer's knowledge: for example, where the employer sent the worker away or handed them back to the recruitment office, then reported them as having run away.
• Reporting a worker who is at the shelter or at their embassy after a complaint: the worker's whereabouts are known to official bodies, and the departure was accompanied by a formal complaint.
• Reporting to avoid the return ticket or end-of-service benefit: the employer wants to end the relationship without meeting its obligations, and recasts the termination as "absconding."
• Reporting to block a sponsorship transfer: the worker has said they want to move to another employer, and the report is used to close that door.

In all of these situations the report runs into a general principle of Kuwaiti law: the prohibition on abuse of rights. The right to report exists to protect the employer, not to harm the worker or secure an unlawful advantage. If it is shown that the person filing knew the report was untrue, the matter moves from abuse of right into the criminal offence of false reporting, which we discuss in False Reports and Malicious Complaints in Kuwait.

3. Effect of the report on the domestic worker

Once the report is registered, the worker is, administratively, in breach of the residence conditions tied to the employer. The practical consequences include:

• Risk of detention: if the worker is stopped anywhere, the report appears on their record and they are usually held while procedures are completed.
• Possible administrative deportation: the authorities may deport an expatriate who breaches residence rules by administrative decision, a matter in which they enjoy discretion. We discuss deportation and grievances against it in Residence and Deportation Cases in Kuwait.
• No sponsorship transfer: while the report stands, the worker cannot in practice move their residence to a new employer — one of the main obstacles explained in Transferring Sponsorship and Residence in Kuwait.
• Effect on future return: deportation for a residence breach may carry a restriction that prevents or complicates a return to Kuwait, depending on the decision. Leaving through ordinary departure procedures is treated differently.
• Related accusations: if the report comes with an allegation of theft or another offence, the worker may face a separate criminal case and may be barred from travelling until it is resolved, as explained in Travel Bans on Expatriates.

It bears repeating that the report does not extinguish the worker's financial rights. Wages for the period actually worked remain a debt owed by the employer, as do any benefits or allowances due under the law and the contract. Whether leaving without permission affects certain entitlements — the end-of-service benefit or the return ticket, for instance — depends on why and how the worker left, and is assessed by the competent authority and then by the court if the matter is disputed.

4. Effect of the report on the employer

For the employer, a truthful report provides real protection. It officially records that the worker left the employer's control on a given date, it separates the employer from anything the worker does afterwards, and it opens the way to any claim the employer may have against the recruitment office under the recruitment contract — such as a guarantee period, where the contract provides one.

The report does not, however, release the employer from obligations that arose before it was filed. Wages owed for months actually worked remain payable. A passport held by the employer must be handed to the competent authority, not kept. If the worker is to be removed from the country, the question of who pays the ticket may arise, and its treatment varies with the case and with what the authorities decide.

Conversely, an employer who delays reporting without good reason may find themselves exposed if the worker commits a violation or offence while absent, or works irregularly for someone else; the employer may be questioned about the failure to report, or find their file held up. And an employer who files a malicious report risks having it cancelled, being ordered to pay the dues with compensation, possible criminal liability for false reporting, and administrative measures against their file under whatever rules the authority applies.

5. The worker's right to object and prove a legitimate reason

A worker facing an absence report is not without options. Leaving work is not a violation where it is driven by a legitimate reason attributable to the employer. The most common legitimate reasons are:

• Non-payment of wages or repeated delay — the most frequent reason, and the easiest to prove where wages are paid by bank transfer or there are messages asking for payment.
• Ill-treatment: physical or verbal abuse, denial of food, rest or adequate sleep, or being locked inside the house.
• Being made to do work outside the agreement, or to work for other people without consent, or to carry out dangerous tasks.
• Confiscation of the passport or personal documents against the worker's will.
• Harassment or sexual assault — serious cases in which the security authorities should be contacted immediately.

The worker proves this by going to the authority responsible for domestic labour and filing a complaint or objection against the report, with whatever evidence is available: bank statements, phone messages, medical reports of any injuries, a letter from the embassy or the shelter, or witnesses who saw what happened. The sooner the worker complains after leaving, the stronger their position, because an early complaint shows the departure was a protest against a violation rather than an escape.

After examining the complaint, the authority may cancel the report, broker a settlement, or refer the dispute to the competent court if no amicable solution is reached. In practice, cancellation may allow the worker to transfer sponsorship or leave the country normally, depending on the regulations in force.

6. Liability for a false report and compensation

If it is shown that the employer reported the worker as absent while knowing they had not run away, or deliberately concealed that the worker left because wages were unpaid, liability may arise on two fronts:

• Criminal liability: where the elements of false reporting are present — knowledge that the facts reported were untrue, and intent to harm. This is assessed by the investigating authorities and the criminal court on the evidence.
• Civil liability: a claim for compensation for the material and moral harm the worker suffered because of the report — detention, a lost job opportunity, or damage to reputation — under the tort rules of the Civil Code.

Cancellation of a report does not automatically mean it was false. An employer may have been entirely truthful that the worker left without their knowledge, and it may later emerge that the worker had a legitimate reason. In that case the report is cancelled without the employer being found guilty of anything. Where the line falls between a mistaken report made in good faith and a false report made in bad faith is a question of fact for the court in each case.

7. Employer obligations that the report does not remove

Even where the report is entirely truthful, core obligations remain with the employer:

• No passport retention: the passport is the worker's personal document, and keeping it against their will is a violation. On reporting or regularising the situation, the passport is handed over according to the procedure the authority requires.
• Settlement of dues: wages for time actually worked remain the worker's right and cannot be withheld on the ground of absconding or to "recover" recruitment costs, except as the law allows.
• Return ticket: as a rule the employer bears the worker's return ticket when the relationship ends. Where the worker left without a legitimate reason the position may differ, and this is a matter for the authority or the court on the facts.
• No harm beyond the report itself: no public shaming, threats, or baseless criminal accusations used as leverage.

8. The debate over end-of-service benefit

A recurring question in practice is whether leaving without permission deprives the worker of the end-of-service benefit in whole or in part. One view holds that leaving without a legitimate reason is an irregular termination by the worker that affects the benefit; another holds that the benefit is an acquired right earned through actual service and is lost only where a text clearly says so. We do not resolve that debate here: the answer depends on the wording of the applicable provisions and the facts of each case, and the final word belongs to the judge. What is settled is that leaving for a legitimate reason attributable to the employer cannot be used to deprive the worker of their rights.

Principles of the Court of Cassation

The Court of Cassation has settled on a number of general principles that apply to these disputes. We state them in substance:

• The burden of proving payment of wages lies on the employer as the debtor; an employer who claims to have paid must prove it.
• The offence of false reporting requires proof that the reported facts were untrue, that the person reporting knew they were untrue, and that they intended to harm the person reported; the mere fact that a report is not substantiated or is closed does not by itself establish the offence.
• The exercise of a right is unlawful where its only purpose is to harm another, where the interests it seeks are so slight as to be disproportionate to the harm caused, or where those interests are themselves unlawful.
• Assessing evidence, and whether a legitimate reason for leaving work existed, are questions of fact for the trial court, provided its reasoning is sound and grounded in the case file.
• An administrative decision must rest on a valid cause, and judicial review extends to verifying that the facts relied on actually exist, while recognising the administration's discretion in residence and deportation matters.

Methodological note: we have deliberately not cited appeal numbers or judgment dates in this article. Accurate citation of a judgment requires its full text and facts, and these principles are presented here in their settled general form. When preparing a statement of claim or a defence memorandum, the lawyer cites specific judgments from official sources.

Practical Steps and Documents

For the household: before and when filing

1. Check the reason for the absence: try to contact the worker, ask the recruitment office, and make sure the worker is not in hospital, in custody or at their embassy. Keep a record of your attempts.
2. Check your own position: are wages paid up to the last month? Can you prove it? Do you have the passport? If wages are outstanding, the report will not protect you from them and may backfire.
3. File with the domestic labour authority and state the facts honestly and precisely: when and how the worker left and what you did afterwards. Do not add accusations you cannot prove.
4. If property is missing, do not fold that into the administrative report; file a separate criminal complaint at the competent police station with the facts and evidence.
5. Hand over the passport as the authority requires. Do not keep it.
6. Review the recruitment contract to see whether you have a claim against the office within any agreed guarantee period.

Documents to prepare: the employer's civil ID, copies of the worker's passport and residence, the employment and recruitment contracts, proof of wage payment (bank transfers or signed receipts), and any messages or recordings showing how the worker left.

For the domestic worker who left for a legitimate reason

1. Do not stay hidden: disappearing supports the "absconding" narrative. Go promptly to the domestic labour authority, your embassy, or the shelter.
2. File a written complaint explaining why you left: unpaid wages, ill-treatment, a confiscated passport, or other reasons.
3. Gather your evidence: bank statements, phone messages, photos of injuries and medical reports, names of people who know the facts.
4. If you were assaulted, go first to the security authorities and a hospital; an early medical report is crucial evidence.
5. Do not work for anyone else irregularly while the dispute is pending; it weakens your case and exposes you to a separate violation.
6. Ask expressly for the report to be cancelled, for your dues to be settled, and for your passport to be returned.

Documents to prepare: copies of your passport and residence or civil ID, the employment contract, proof of the agreed wage and what was paid, any medical or police report, and any correspondence with the employer or recruitment office.

Withdrawing the report by settlement

Many absence disputes end in settlement, usually the fastest and cheapest outcome for both sides. Common forms are:

• The worker returns to work once the cause of the dispute is fixed (for example, back wages are paid), and the employer withdraws the report.
• Agreed termination and sponsorship transfer: the parties end the relationship, the employer withdraws the report and consents to a transfer to a new employer, and dues are settled.
• Agreed termination and departure: the report is withdrawn, dues are settled, and the worker leaves Kuwait in the ordinary way on a ticket whose cost the parties agree on.

The settlement should be written down in a signed record or agreement stating what was paid and what each side waived, and submitted to the authority to complete the withdrawal. Note that whether and how a report can be withdrawn depends on the rules the authority applies at the time, and may differ according to the stage reached — for example, once a deportation decision has been issued, the position changes.

If the dispute reaches court

If no settlement is reached before the authority, the labour dispute is referred to the competent court, where the worker claims their dues and argues that leaving was justified, and the employer answers. The court assesses the evidence and rules on the financial rights. Challenging an administrative decision on residence or deportation follows its own rules, and the administration has wide discretion there. Early legal advice helps identify the right track and avoid missing procedural time limits.

Hypothetical Cases

Case one: a worker leaves after months of unpaid wages

A domestic worker has not been paid for several months and has been asking for her wages by voice and text messages. One morning she leaves, goes to the shelter and files a complaint. Some days later the household files an absence report. She has strong evidence of a legitimate reason: the messages asking for payment, the absence of any bank transfer, and her direct approach to an official body. In practice the authority is likely to examine the complaint and ask the employer to prove payment; if the employer cannot, they will be required to pay, and the report may be cancelled. Whether the employer is liable for false reporting depends on whether they knew where she was, and about her complaint, when they filed.

Case two: a driver leaves for no reason to work elsewhere

A household driver is paid regularly by bank transfer and housed in decent conditions. He leaves suddenly without notice, and it later emerges that he is working irregularly for others. Here the absence report is fully legitimate, and filing it promptly protects the household. The driver remains entitled to wages for days worked before leaving, if unpaid. He may be detained and deported, and whoever employed him irregularly may be held responsible under the applicable rules. The household can review the recruitment contract to see what it can claim from the office.

Case three: settlement after the report

A worker leaves after a heated argument with a family member and the household files a report. She then contacts them through her embassy and asks for a settlement. The parties meet at the authority, agree to end the relationship, the employer pays the remaining wages and, after withdrawing the report, consents to her transfer to another family. The case shows that the report need not be the end of the road: a documented settlement protects both sides and avoids a long dispute — provided it happens before the matter reaches a stage at which withdrawal becomes difficult.

Quick Comparison

• Truthful report about a worker who left without reason: the report is legitimate and protects the employer; the worker faces a residence breach and possible deportation, but wages for time actually worked remain due.
• Good-faith report, then the worker shows a legitimate reason: the report may be cancelled and the employer ordered to pay dues, without necessarily incurring liability for false reporting.
• Malicious report to defeat the worker's rights: the report is cancelled once the facts are shown, the employer is ordered to pay, and may face criminal liability for false reporting and a civil claim for compensation.
• Report followed by settlement: the report is withdrawn under the authority's rules, dues are settled, and the worker returns, transfers sponsorship, or leaves normally.
• Report combined with a criminal accusation: the two tracks run independently; cancelling the administrative report does not end the criminal case, and closing the criminal case does not automatically cancel the report.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is a domestic worker's absence report filed?

With the authority responsible for domestic labour — under the current arrangement, the Domestic Labour Department of the Public Authority for Manpower. Procedures and electronic channels change from time to time, so check the current process when filing.

Can the employer file the report as soon as the worker leaves?

The employer may report once satisfied that the worker left without their knowledge and has stayed away for no known reason. Prudence requires a quick check that the absence is not due to something like a hospital admission or detention, so that the report is not hasty and easy to challenge.

Does an absence report cancel the worker's right to unpaid wages?

No. Wages for time actually worked are a debt owed by the employer and survive the report. The report concerns residence status, not the settlement of financial rights.

How can a worker object to an unfair absence report?

By filing a complaint with the domestic labour authority explaining that they left for a legitimate reason, with whatever evidence they have. They can seek help from their embassy or a lawyer. If the legitimate reason is established, the report may be cancelled.

What counts as a legitimate reason for a domestic worker to leave?

Chief among them are unpaid or delayed wages, physical or verbal abuse, denial of rest or food, passport confiscation, being made to work for others without consent, and harassment. Whether a legitimate reason existed is decided by the authority and then by the court on the evidence.

Can the report be withdrawn if the parties settle?

Usually, yes. The employer withdraws it with the authority after the agreement, whether the worker returns, transfers sponsorship or leaves the country. Withdrawal is subject to the authority's rules and may not be possible once a deportation decision has been issued or the procedure has reached an advanced stage.

Is the employer liable if the report turns out to be false?

They may face criminal liability for false reporting where they knew the facts were untrue and intended harm, and civil liability for the worker's losses. A report that was simply mistaken in good faith is cancelled without necessarily creating criminal liability.

Can a worker transfer sponsorship while an absence report stands?

In practice, no. Cancelling the report — by settlement or by the authority's decision after examining an objection — is a practical precondition for a transfer.

May the employer keep the worker's passport after reporting?

No. The passport is the worker's personal document and keeping it against their will is a violation. On reporting or regularising the situation, it is handed over in the way the authority directs.

Who pays the ticket of a worker with an absence report?

As a rule the employer pays the return ticket when the relationship ends, but leaving without a legitimate reason can change that. It depends on the facts and on what the authority or court decides, and is best settled expressly in any settlement agreement.

Will the report stop the worker from ever returning to Kuwait?

The report itself does not decide that, but if it ends in administrative deportation, a restriction on return may follow depending on the decision. Leaving after the report is cancelled and the position is regularised has lighter consequences. For more on residence issues while away, see My Residence Expired While I Was Outside Kuwait.

What happens if the employer also accuses the worker of theft?

There are then two independent tracks: the administrative report and the criminal complaint investigated by the prosecuting authorities. The worker may defend themselves in the criminal case and, if the accusation proves fabricated, pursue the person who made it. Ending one track does not end the other.

Is a domestic worker's absence report different from one filed by a company?

Yes, in the governing law and the competent authority. Domestic workers fall under the Domestic Labour Law, while private-sector employees fall under the Private Sector Labour Law (Law No. 6 of 2010) and its procedures. The idea is similar; the details differ.

What if the worker was injured in the home and then left?

An injury changes the nature of the dispute: questions of treatment, compensation and the household's responsibility arise, and the injury itself may be evidence that leaving was justified. See Injury or Death of a Domestic Worker in the Sponsor's Home.

Conclusion

The absence report is a legitimate legal tool designed to protect a household when a domestic worker leaves without permission and without cause; in that situation it is a necessary step that should not be delayed. But it is not a way to settle scores, to erase unpaid wages, or to avoid paying a return ticket. The more disciplined an employer is about paying wages by a traceable method and respecting the worker's rights, the stronger and less challengeable their report will be.

A worker who left for a legitimate reason can defend themselves, provided they act quickly: go to the competent authority, their embassy or the shelter; document why they left; and refrain from working irregularly for others. In the eyes of the authorities, the difference between an "absconder" and a "complainant" often lies in what the worker does in the first days after leaving.

Finally, a documented settlement is often the best outcome for both sides. It saves the household time and reputation, and secures the worker's dues and their chance to transfer sponsorship or return home with dignity. Involving a lawyer early helps choose the right track and draft an agreement that protects both parties and prevents the dispute from flaring up again.

Legal Notice

This article is general legal information about Kuwaiti law and is not legal advice; it does not create a lawyer-client relationship. Administrative procedures for domestic labour and residence are governed by regulatory decisions that may change, and the rules described here are applied by the courts to the facts of each case.

Whether you are a household that needs to file a proper absence report or defend one, or a domestic worker who wants to challenge an unfair report and recover your dues, the team at Yumnaak Law Firm can review the facts, represent you before the domestic labour authority, bring labour or criminal proceedings where needed, and draft settlement agreements. Reach us through the Contact Us page or book an appointment at our office to discuss your case.