KUWAIT CITY, Sep 24: The Ministry of Interior has reiterated its announcement that biometric fingerprint centers in shopping malls will end their operations starting October 1st, as the deadline for Kuwaiti citizens approaches. Lieutenant Colonel Hamad Jassim Al-Shammari from the Personal Investigation and Automated Search Department reported a significant increase in attendance at fingerprint centers due to the impending deadline, which is at the end of this month for Kuwaiti citizens and the end of the year for expats. He noted that around 6,000 visitors are being served daily.
In a statement to Al-Akhbar Channel, Al-Shammari mentioned that approximately 100,000 Kuwaiti citizens, out of around 900,000, have yet to complete the biometric fingerprinting process. Similarly, about 790,000 expatriates, out of 2.6 million, have not yet completed their biometric registration.
He also warned that individuals who fail to complete the fingerprinting process will have all their government and banking transactions suspended until they comply, at which point the suspension will be lifted.
Banks have begun issuing warning messages to customers, advising them to complete the biometric fingerprint procedure before the given deadline to update their civil ID cards and maintain the smooth processing of bank transactions and related services. Those who fail to comply will face suspension of their civil ID cards, which will subsequently result in the suspension of their bank accounts, following the Ministry of Interior's directive.