Bahrain aims for competitive edge with new visa rules

Bahrain's move to scrap the need for employer sponsorship for foreign workers should, in theory, give it something of a competitive advantage in securing expat talent. However, it's unlikely to make a great deal of difference to the Gulf state's attractiveness to bankers, reckon headhunters.

Work visas in Bahrain, as in all other Gulf States, prevent expats from leaving their jobs without the permission of their employers. Within three months, however, this will be abolished under the new Decree 79 law.

"The purpose of the new law is to liberalise the labour market, eliminate the black market in visas and prevent the exploitation of workers," said Majeed al-Alawi, Bahrain's labour minister.

It will also help secure the right talent.

"The more easily people can move between posts, the more likely it is you'll have the right person in the right job," says Simon Williams, an economist at HSBC.

In places like Qatar and Saudi, it's very difficult for expat bankers to switch jobs due to this restrictive visa policy. Within Dubai's DIFC, however, this rule is often wavered in order to attract top talent and encourage competitiveness.

This has been the case within Bahrain's banking sector as well, says Rory Adamson, director of Bahrain-based executive search firm Azrek.

"People have always moved freely between banking roles in Bahrain," he says. "For other industries in the private sector, this move should make a difference, but banks have always operated this policy."

It's unclear whether other Gulf states will follow Bahrain's lead over this, but the more restrictive visa policies often create some difficult practical barriers for expat bankers moving jobs, says Adamson.

"For example, I recently recruited an expat worker who was already in Saudi into another bank in the kingdom. In order to side-step the visa policy, he's been forced to live in Bahrain for a year and commute to Saudi," he says.