Deported expats will face GCC-wide ban

Countries have already started to share information

Expats deported from one of the GCC countries will be banned from entering any of the other member countries, according to the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs Dubai (GDRFA).

Gulf News reported that the GDRFA, in its magazine Manafez Dubai, said all six GCC countries - Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE and Oman - will begin to apply the law, which it says is based on a security pact signed by the member states.

“Moreover, the country which deports an expatriate will be allowed to take the deportee’s fingerprints and share the information with the rest of the GCC countries,” it said.

The report said GCC countries have been sharing information in relation to drug offenders, including the names of smugglers, their modus operandi and data.

An automatic ban applies to those deported for drug offences, while other instances are considered on a case-by-case basis.