Labour Law and Social Security
The Iraqi parliament has issued a new labor law no 37 of 2015, The law in force did not change radically in relation to the old canceled law No. 71 of 1987, where most of the provisions of the new law came in imitation of the provisions of the old law with some modern trends, which was quoted from the international conventions.
With regard to the issue of separation committees, the new law is a metaphor of the previous law, adding to the issue of giving the worker the right to appeal without recourse to the judiciary, as quoted from Egyptian law and was successful in such status, especially with regard to the idea of multiple irregularities. The law discusses various labor issues such as: Placement and Vocational Training, Foreign Workers Employment, Individual Employment Contract, Wages, working Hours, Leave Protection of the Female Workers, Protection of Minors, protection of Workers in quarries, mines and minerals extraction, Occupational Safety and Health and labor inspection , Disciplinary Measures, Collective agreements and bargaining. Individual or Collective Labor Disputes, and Labor Jurisdiction.
Article 30 -36 stipulates important regulations regarding foreign workers. as article 30 states that “No foreign worker may be engaged in any capacity whatsoever by the departments and employers before obtaining a work permit issued by the Ministry against the payment of a fee determined by instructions issued by the Minister.
Article 31 stipulates that No foreign worker may be engaged in any occupation whatsoever before obtaining a work permit.
While Article 32 stipulates various duties towards the Employers and as follows:
- The employer shall give to the foreign worker he recruited to work in Iraq, at his own expense, a ticket to the country from where he recruited him unless the worker stops working before the expiry of the contract due to illegal reasons.
- The employer shall, upon the death of the foreign worker, bear the costs of preparing the corpse of the deceased worker and his transportation to his home country or place of residence upon the request of his heirs.
Article 33 has granted power to the Minister of Labor as “The Minister may issue special instructions governing the recruitment and employment of foreign workers in Iraq.
In article 34 the “foreign worker, legally residing in Iraq for work purposes is not considered in an illegal or irregular situation just because he lost his job, and the job loss in itself does not lead to the withdrawal of the residence permit or work permit unless the worker has violated the Iraqi laws.
Any party or person who violates the provisions of the labor law provisions shall be punished by a fine of three (3) times the worker minimum daily wage to (3) three times his minimum monthly wage.
Obstacles facing Companies Regarding Foreign Workers:
First: Social Security: The aim of this law is to ensure the health, safety and the future of all working class members in the Republic of Iraq. It aims to create conditions and provide services that help to develop the working class socially and professionally to a better level. The law achieves its stated objectives through the following branches of social security:
First Branch: Health Insurance
B - Section II: guarantee work injuries
C. Section III: Retirement Insurance
D. Section IV: Guarantee of Service.
One of the most important problems issued facing foreign companies is related to the process of solving social security payments regarding their employees. The Workers Pensions and Social Security law in Article 27: (as amended by Law 155 of 1971) Stipulated the workers’ rights, and the amount to be deducted from their wages in term of social security.
The rate of 5% shall be deducted of the insured workers against his membership in the institute. This rate shall be included in full in the account of the pension security section, and the workers shall be exempted from paying any subscription for other social sections. The rate of contribution of the management and the employers in respect of theirinsured workers shall be specified in the following manner:
1) A rate of 12% of the wages is payable by employers and all administrative, except employers whose have exceptions by provisions article 1 and 2 of law no 101 of 1964 as amended and the rate shall be distributed as follows:
1% to the Health Security Section.
2% to the Work Injuries Security Section.
9% to Pension Security Section.
2) A rate of 25 % of the wages is payable by employers in Mixed and special sectors, this rate shall be distributed as follow:
3% to the Health Security Section.
3% to the Work Injuries Security Section.
15% to Pension Security Section. And,
4% to the Service Security section.
OUR SERVICES IN LABOUR & SOCIAL SECURITY.
Many foreign companies’ problems are regarding the process of implementing payments with the Ministry of Labor (MOL). Delays in payments have caused companies to be fined heavily and financial penalties to be imposed according to legal provisions. Court decisions can be issued to attach precautionary any assets owned by the company preventing the ongoing of its business activities until such fines are paid dully. The process of preparing employees deduction payments is complicated if not organized when the company starts any business activities in Iraq. The MOL has suppressive powers in order to collect any debts related to social security employee deductions.
Therefore, Alsaif has managed to organize and build a team of elite accountants and staff specialized in dealing with labor issues and social security deductions, organized to solve the most complicated issues. We have witnessed many companies struggling with the MOL because of the unorganized and irresponsible policy adopted by accountants to sort this kind of problems, especially most accountant do not possess the legal knowledge. Therefore mixing the legal and accounting knowledge we have managed to solve the most diverse problems.
Second: Visa Requirements.
Various types of visa are available According to the Iraqi laws and regulations, these types are:
- An ordinary visa which entitles its bearer to enter Iraq only once within three months from the date of its granting and to reside therein for a period not exceeding three months.
- A transit visa, entitling the bearer to enter Iraq only once within three months from the date of its granting and to reside therein for a period not exceeding seven days.
- A transit visa without stop, entitling its bearer to pass through the Iraqi territory under the supervision of the competent authorities only once, without stop, within three months from the date of its granting.
- A diplomatic visa, which shall be granted pursuant to instructions issued by the Minister of Foreign Affairs in accordance with the principle of reciprocity.
- A service visa, which shall be granted to persons who are bearing service passports pursuant to instructions issued by the Minister of Foreign Affairs after taking the opinion of the Ministry of Interior, in accordance with the principle of reciprocity.
- A visit or tourist visa, which shall entitle its bearer to enter Iraq one time within three months from the date of its granting and to reside therein for a period of one month.
- An emergency visa, which shall be granted by the Residence Officer to the foreigner who reaches Iraq with the intention of entering thereto and has not obtained an entry visa already, if he is convinced with the reasons that prevented him from obtaining the said visa provided that he must report to the director forthwith thereabout.
How to apply for a business visa
Applications for business visas should be made at the Iraqi Consulate prior to departure. Consular officials at the Iraqi Embassy have indicated that visa approval can take two to six weeks from the date of submission. Visas are issued to business people, provided that they have official invitations from Iraqi authorities or are introduced as such by their respective Ministries of Foreign Affairs and are supplied with letters from the Chamber of Commerce.Applicants should also submit a letter of request from their own company stating the reason for their travel.Investors can also submit their visa applications to the NIC – PR department exclusively and through the email address shown below with filling the following format providing not to mix Arab and foreign names together.
For investors who wish to obtain visa through the provincial Investment Commissions, the following steps shall be taken:The provincial Investment commission shall have to send a letter to the NIC signed by the PIC chairman or Vice Chairman "the letter must be original" Names and numbers of persons must be written clearly in the letter and in the closed list attached with the PIC Chairman signature on the letter and on the list (in English for foreigners and in Arabic and English for Indians and Bengals with writing first name first and surname last in the format shown below).The company undertaking letter must be stamped with the company and the PIC stamps with mentioning that the workers shall not be seeped during the work time or after finishing the project.Passports copies must be colored, clear and same as the original size with taking into consideration the passport must be 6 months ahead valid.
We provide visa services for investors or company directors and business partners willing to visit Iraq.