Employers have until June 30 to update biometrics, or face suspension of Xpat services

Employers have been given until the end of June to update the biometrics of the foreign nationals they employ in worksites across the Maldives, with the Home Ministry warning that those who fail to meet the deadline will face penalties, including the suspension of services provided through the Xpat system, the expatriate management system managed by the ministry.

In an announcement published on Thursday on the Government Gazette, the Home Ministry said it has noticed some employers registered with the Xpat system have failed to update the biometrics of the expatriate workers they employ.

The ministry instructed employers to update the information by June 30, warning that a number of measures will be taken starting July 1.

The measures for failure to update biometrics by the deadline are:

• Employers who employ expatriates who are in the Maldives on active work permits will face suspension of all services provided via the Xpat system.
• The permit for expatriates with active work permits who are out of the Maldives for over four months will be cancelled based on Xpat system records.
• Expatriates who are in the Maldives on non-active work permits but have a legal employer will be given the opportunity get regularized following update of biometrics.
• Expatriates who are in the Maldives on non-active work permits and working illegally will have their permits cancelled and get deported.
• Expatriates with non-active work permits who have left the Maldives will have their work permits cancelled based on Xpat system records.

The ministry has warned that action will also be taken against certain groups of expatriates who have updated their biometrics. As such:

• Expatriates with active work permits and with updated biometrics who have been out of Maldives for over a year will have their work permits cancelled based on Xpat system records.
• Expatriates with non-active work permits but with updated biometrics and an employer will be given the opportunity for regularization.
• The permit for expatriates with updated biometrics but with non-active work permits who are out of the Maldives for over four months will be cancelled based on Xpat system records.

The ministry can be contacted via phone at 7690228 or email at [email protected] for additional information.

The latest census shows there are 132,371 expatriates living in the Maldives. A large percentage of the country’s migrant population is undocumented.

The Home Ministry launched ‘Operation Kurangi’ - an initiative to collect the biometric data of migrant workers in the Maldives – on May 2, 2024.

‘Operation Kurangi’ has seen the collection of the biometric data of over 100,000 expatriates, including over 65,000 from the greater Male’ area alone.