Labour Ministry calls on Syrian workers to renew work permits

AMMAN — The Ministry of Labour called on non-Jordanian workers of Syrian nationality who do not hold work permits or who have not renewed them to follow the procedures for obtaining their work permits, in order to avoid any legal procedures or consequences in this regard, according to Labour Ministry Spokesperson Mohammad Zyoud.

Zyoud confirmed that this call for Syrian workers in Jordan comes in the context of the ministry's efforts to organise the labour market and to complement the ministry's procedures to regulate the conditions of non-Jordanian workers in the Kingdom.

Emphasising the importance of work permits, Zyoud told The Jordan Times over the phone on Thursday that “the work permit is a protection for both the worker and the employer, as working in violation exposes both the employer and the worker to legal accountability”.

He indicated that Syrian workers have been exempted from work permit and health certificate fees since 2016, according to the Prime Minister’s decisions; the last decision issued in this regard was in early 2021.

Zyoud noted that Syrian workers have a reference list of the occupations, as well as a description of the professions allowed for non-Jordanians, to make it easier for them to work.

He highlighted that the Ministry of Labour has issued 265,837 work permits for Syrian workers in Jordan as of January 2016 until the end of October 2021.

“We encourage Jordanian employers to have their Syrian workers renew or get a work permit, so that their presence in the labour market is legal and does not violate the provisions of the Labour Law,” he concluded.