Kafala system

The kafala system (also spelled "kefala system"; Arabic: نظام الكفالة, romanized: niẓām al-kafāla; meaning "sponsorship system") is a system used to monitor migrant laborers, working primarily in the construction and domestic sectors in Gulf Cooperation Council member states and a few neighboring countries, namely Iraq, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

For kafala in the sense of children's adoption laws, see Islamic adoptional jurisprudence.

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The system requires all migrant workers to have an in-country sponsor, usually their employer, who is responsible for their visa and legal status. This practice has been criticized by human rights organizations for creating easy opportunities for the exploitation of workers, as many employers take away passports and abuse their workers with little chance of legal repercussions. The International Trade Union Confederation estimated 2.4 million enslaved domestic workers in the Gulf countries in its 2014 report, mainly from India, Sri Lanka, Philippines and Nepal.

According to The Economist, "The migrant workers' lot is unlikely to improve until the reform of the kafala system, whereby workers are beholden to the employers who sponsored their visas. The system blocks domestic competition for overseas workers in the Gulf countries."

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