By SOMAN BABY

ALL business owners and government organisations have been urged to verify and complete their expatriate labour records before March 31.

The call came from the Labour Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA) and the General Directorate of Nationality, Passport and Residence (GDNPR).

They urged the employers to obtain the residence permit (RP) quickly for all expatriates who have already entered Bahrain through the old system via the Labour Ministry and GDNPR.

“All business owners should renew the expired passports of their expatriate staff to enable obtaining the remaining balance period of the RP from the GDNPR before March 31,” said the LMRA in a statement yesterday.

“Employers must also ensure that all expatriate family members who are residing in Bahrain are registered under the same Commercial Register (CR).

“If not, they should visit the GDNPR and correct their status by transferring all family members to the same CR (and branch) that the expatriate is working for.”

A Family Relationship Form, declaring their relationship to the expatriate, needs to be filled and sent to the LMRA.

This form is available on the LMRA website.

If a business owner wants to apply for a new work visa for an expatriate who has already entered Bahrain on a tourist visa, the visa should be valid for more than two weeks before submitting the application.

In this case, the expatriate should not have been in Bahrain for more than one month.

“For those who fail to update their expatriate records before March 31, the LMRA and GDNPR will not be responsible for any delays in processing their transactions,” the statement said.