Kuwait Code of Civil and Commercial Procedure (Decree-Law No. 38 of 1980), as amended to 2026 — jurisdiction over foreigners, enforcement of foreign judgments, arbitration, appeals and the 2025 enforcement reforms

The Code was issued on 4 June 1980, published in Kuwait Al-Youm No. 1307 on 25 June 1980, and has applied since 1 November 1980. It replaced Decree-Law No. 6 of 1960. More than twenty amending instruments are listed, five of them in 2025–2026.

INTERNATIONAL JURISDICTION. Kuwaiti courts hear claims against Kuwaitis, and against foreigners domiciled or resident in Kuwait, except real actions concerning immovable property abroad (Art. 23). Against foreigners with no domicile or residence in Kuwait, they have jurisdiction in listed cases (Art. 24). These include an elected domicile in Kuwait; property in Kuwait; an obligation that arose, was performed or was to be performed in Kuwait; and a bankruptcy declared there. Several personal-status cases are also listed, such as maintenance for a mother, wife or child in Kuwait, and parentage or guardianship of a child residing in Kuwait. Succession is covered by Art. 25.

FOREIGN JUDGMENTS. A foreign judgment or order may be enforced in Kuwait on the conditions that the issuing country applies to Kuwaiti judgments (reciprocity). The reciprocity condition does not apply to a judgment in favour of a Kuwaiti person to be enforced against assets of a Kuwaiti person. Enforcement is sought from the Court of First Instance by ordinary action. The court must be satisfied that (a) the issuing court had jurisdiction under its own law; (b) the parties were duly summoned and properly represented; (c) the judgment is res judicata under the law of the issuing court; and (d) it does not conflict with a prior Kuwaiti judgment or order and contains nothing contrary to morals or public order in Kuwait (Art. 199).

ARBITRATION. Parties may agree to arbitrate a particular dispute or all disputes arising from a contract. The agreement must be proved in writing, and arbitration is not allowed in matters that cannot be settled. The subject of the dispute must be defined, or the arbitration is void. Courts may not hear a dispute subject to an arbitration agreement, although the objection can be waived. Urgent matters are excluded unless expressly agreed (Art. 173).

APPEALS. Appeal lies within thirty days, or fifteen in urgent matters (Art. 141). Cassation appeals lie against Court of Appeal judgments where the value exceeds KD 30,000 or is unassessed, for error of law or nullity. Any final judgment that contradicts an earlier res judicata between the same parties may also be appealed to the Court of Cassation (Art. 152). The time limit is sixty days, and the petition must be signed by a lawyer, with a deposit of KD 250, or KD 500 against an appellate judgment (Art. 153). These thresholds were set by Decree-Law No. 6 of 2025 (issued 10 February 2025). According to its explanatory memorandum, it also allowed a direct cassation appeal against a judgment declining jurisdiction and referring the case elsewhere.

THE 2025 ENFORCEMENT REFORM. Decree-Law No. 59 of 2025 (Kuwait Al-Youm No. 1732, 30 March 2025) rebuilt enforcement against debtors. On the creditor's application, the enforcement judge may:
- order disclosure of the debtor's real and movable property and financial rights held by government bodies (Art. 204 bis (a));
- order disclosure of funds held by banks, investment companies and clearing agencies, including transfers made since the debt arose (Art. 204 bis (b));
- ban the debtor from travel, imprison him, or both.

The judge may also, without a request, report the default to the credit-information company for the debtor's credit record. Where the debtor has disposed of property gratuitously or at a marked undervalue after the debt arose, the judge may freeze dealings with it in the transferee's hands. The creditor must then sue within a week to have the transfer declared ineffective against him (Art. 204 bis (a)). A debtor who refuses to satisfy a final judgment or payment order despite proven ability to pay may be arrested and imprisoned for up to six months, in one term or in instalments (Art. 292). Such a debtor is held apart from criminal prisoners (Art. 293 bis). A debtor who has hidden or disposed of assets to defeat the creditor cannot plead inability to pay. The judge may give up to a month's grace, or order payment by instalments with the creditor's consent (Art. 293). Garnishees must declare within ten days what they hold for the debtor, including later deposits (Arts. 230, 234).

OTHER 2025–2026 CHANGES.
- Decree-Law No. 71 of 2025 (No. 1742, 8 June 2025) revised the payment-order procedure. It allows the demand for payment, and the procedure itself, to proceed by approved electronic means (Arts. 166–170).
- Decree-Law No. 133 of 2025 (No. 1755, 7 September 2025) created an electronic litigation system: filing, fees, pleadings, service, remote hearings and judgments (Art. 45 bis). It also raised the deposit for challenging a judge to KD 200, with a fine of KD 500–1,000 if the challenge fails (Art. 106).
- Decree-Law No. 68 of 2026 (No. 1798, 5 July 2026) amended Art. 297. Pre-emptive travel bans against debtors, available where there are serious grounds to fear flight despite ability to pay, are now issued by the vice-presidents of the Court of First Instance.

USE IN A REPORT: Art. 199 is the provision to cite on whether a foreign money judgment would be enforced in Kuwait. It contains a reciprocity requirement and a public-policy exception, which should be analysed for the issuing country specifically. On the 2025 reform: whether a debtor in Kuwait risks travel bans or civil imprisonment for debt is now a statutory question under Arts. 204 bis, 292–293 bis and 297, not a matter of practice alone. The CAUTION in the Penal Code entry applies here too: check the amending decree-law before relying on the consolidated text of any amended article.

SOURCE: the Arabic text was read in full on lawskw.com (Kuwait Laws Portal), a private publisher of consolidated Kuwaiti legislation. The authoritative text is the Official Gazette (Kuwait Al-Youm); gazette numbers and dates above are as shown by the source.

For foreign lawyers the provisions most often in issue are Art. 199 on enforcement and Arts. 292–297 on debtors' liberty. The 2025 reform gives creditors stronger tools than before: asset discovery across government and banks, clawback of undervalue transfers, and credit-record reporting. It also retains civil imprisonment of up to six months and travel bans, conditioned on proof of ability to pay. Reports on the situation of a debtor who fears returning to Kuwait should address both: the statutory preconditions, and evidence of how they are applied. The source's consolidated text can lag behind amendments, as shown in the Penal Code entry, so each amended article should be checked against its decree-law.