Kuwait: Banks Lift Minimum Salary Limit for Opening an Account
Arab Times, 30 January 2025: The Central Bank of Kuwait has issued a directive to banks to open accounts for all customer categories, including those with limited or low incomes, job holders, workers in simple service and craft jobs, and domestic workers.
This move aims to simplify procedures and ensure that banks do not refuse account openings based on salary or income level.
By lifting the minimum salary requirement, middle- and low-income individuals can now access bank accounts in all local banks.
This initiative aligns with the regulatory authority’s focus on financial inclusion, ensuring that banking services are accessible to all segments of society.
It allows individuals to open accounts through official channels at an appropriate quality and cost, protecting their rights and enabling proper money management.
These accounts are crucial for storing funds and facilitating payment transfers.
The removal of barriers aligns with the goal of enhancing financial inclusion, as restricting access to banking services prevents many individuals from accessing useful and affordable financial products.
The effort to make low-value and low-cost bank accounts available also supports the promotion of digital payments.
Recent data indicates that domestic workers make up a significant portion of Kuwait’s workforce, highlighting the importance of this initiative.
The Central Bank stresses the need to make it easier for all societal segments to open bank accounts, urging banks to remove obstacles that prevent certain groups from accessing these services.
The directive also extends to facilitating lending and small deposits, broadening the range of financial services available to all individuals.
This effort aims to provide better opportunities for managing money and securing financial services.
Opening a bank account is seen as a crucial first step in accessing broader financial services, encouraging the use of other financial products like money transfers and limited credit, which can improve quality of life.
Banks are required to comply with the Central Bank’s directive to open accounts for individuals with low salaries, including “worker account holders.
However, these accounts are not actively marketed due to the pressure they place on banking systems, as they typically do not generate significant benefits for banks.
The Central Bank’s initiatives also extend to businesses, including small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), with efforts to facilitate access to financial services for these businesses.
The regulatory system is developing strategies and policies to promote financial inclusion, encouraging the use of official financing channels and modern financial technology to reduce operational costs and ease pressures on banks serving low-income customers.
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