- Bahrain allows eligible foreign workers to take temporary assignments for 90 days with another employer.
- The receiving employer must secure LMRA approval and registration before the worker begins the assignment.
- Both employers share employment responsibilities; domestic workers are excluded from the arrangement.
Bahrain has opened a temporary route for eligible foreign workers to take assignments with another employer for up to 90 days, without permanently transferring their existing work permit. The option applies to people already living and legally employed in the country.
The government established the arrangement through Resolution No. (2) of 2026. Yousif Khalaf, Minister of Legal Affairs and Labour and chairman of the Labour Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA) Board, issued the resolution on September 22, 2026.
The LMRA announced the rules on September 28 and put them into effect immediately. The temporary placement does not give a worker an unrestricted right to change jobs.
The assignment has a defined period and requires approvals before it begins. The existing authorization stays in place.
Assignments require consent, approval and registration before work starts
A worker must be physically present in Bahrain and hold valid authorization for the full assignment. The worker must also give written consent to the arrangement.
Both the original employer and the prospective employer must agree. The receiving employer, not the worker, files the application through the LMRA’s Expat Management System (EMS).
The LMRA must approve and register the placement before the worker starts at the second workplace. Registration is a condition of the arrangement, not a later administrative step.
Approval also limits the work the employee may perform. The worker can carry out only duties covered by the registered assignment and applicable authorization.
The placement cannot run longer than three months, or 90 days. It does not automatically move the worker to a new sponsor, and it cannot be used to work indefinitely for several employers.
That makes the arrangement temporary by design. Workers must wait for the agency’s approval and registration before beginning the new duties.
Both employers share responsibilities, and Bahrainisation rules can add a fee
The receiving employer’s business activity generally must carry the same or a higher Bahrainisation requirement than the worker’s original establishment. Bahrainisation requirements vary with the activity involved.
If the receiving establishment has a lower required Bahrainisation percentage, it must pay the applicable LMRA fee under Resolution No. (27) of 2016. The receiving employer also pays an administrative application fee of BHD 5; additional charges may depend on the applicable Bahrainisation requirement.
The two employers remain jointly responsible for employment rights and obligations arising during the temporary placement. Once the LMRA registers the arrangement, it notifies the worker and both employers.
The rules also cover some internal deployments but exclude domestic workers
The resolution also permits an employer to assign an authorized foreign employee to another establishment owned by that same employer. The establishments may have different Commercial Registration numbers.
The rules may also cover transfers between establishments in the same corporate group. Those placements remain subject to registration, Bahrainisation and activity requirements.
Domestic workers are outside the amendment. The measure covers people already authorized to work in Bahrain, not recruitment from overseas into a new job.
Companies can use the route to meet short-term staffing needs, including temporary increases in workload. Each assignment remains limited to its approved period and the conditions attached to its registration.
