Manama: Bahrain on Sunday has temporarily halted the issuance of new work permit for expats from ‘red list countries’ that include India, the Bahrain news agency reported.
Bahrain’s labour market regulatory authority announced the suspension of the entry of travelers coming from the countries on the red list: India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal and Vietnam.
Towards the end of May, Bahrain suspended entry for travelers from countries on its red list in response to the high number of COVID-19 infections and deaths.
The Kingdom confirmed the addition or deletion of the countries included in the red list according to the assessment of the national medical team to address the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the media reports.
The authority said on its website that the directive applies only to those outside the kingdom, adding that it aims to enhance its efforts to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic.
“If individuals with nationalities from the red list countries are inside Bahrain, they can apply or renew their work permits,” a representative told the national news.
Bahraini nationals and residence visa holders coming from red list countries are allowed entry but must submit a negative PCR test that took no more than 48 hours before travelling.
Last week, the Bahrain government announced the extension of the measures that it had put in place to limit the spread of the pandemic.
“In order to achieve the goals set and based on positive results, we have decided to extend the national lockdown for a period of two weeks starting from Friday, June 11, to Friday, June 25,” the medical committee said.
Bahrain’s health ministry on Sunday confirmed a total of 931 new COVID-19 cases were detected on June 12, as well as 2,149 recoveries were also reported.