If you are building a house on a loan from the Kuwait Credit Bank, the rule for issuing subsidised building materials has changed. The new ministerial decision was published in the official gazette “Kuwait Al-Youm”, and it applies from its issue date of 17 August.
It is not a decision from scratch but an amendment to two clauses of ministerial decision 222 of 2024, and the repeal of a third. The amendment goes to the substance.
The first change: once only
Clause one of article four now reads that the applicant must have obtained a loan from the Kuwait Credit Bank — whether a building loan, a renovation and extension loan, a purchase loan, or a demolish-and-rebuild loan — with the materials issued to the beneficiary once only.
And more important is how entitlement is calculated: by civil ID number, with issuance tied to that number.
In practice that means entitlement is now attached to the person rather than to the transaction. Anyone who has drawn subsidised materials on an earlier loan does not start again with another one. The civil ID carries the record.
The second change: demolish and rebuild
Clause six was rewritten entirely for the case of someone who owns a house and wants to demolish and rebuild it. Here the provision of clause one of article two applies, on three conditions:
- Having obtained a demolish-and-rebuild loan from the Kuwait Credit Bank specifically. An ordinary building loan does not stand in for it.
- Submitting the demolition permit and the new building permit through the electronic system. Paper is no longer sufficient, and both permits are required rather than one.
- Providing a letter from the Kuwait Credit Bank stating the amount reserved for the demolition and rebuild.
The quantity is then set according to the schedule in clause one of article two, with the quantities previously issued to the beneficiary deducted.
That last sentence is the one people miss. Anyone who drew a quantity earlier on the old house has it deducted from the new one. Demolition does not wipe the record.
The third change: a repealed clause
Article two of the new decision repeals clause 7 of article four of the 2024 decision, and repeals any provision conflicting with the new decision.
What to do about it
Before counting on a quantity, check what has already been issued against your civil ID, since that is now the basis of the calculation. And if the case is a demolition and rebuild, make sure the loan is the right type, that both permits go through the electronic system, and that the bank’s letter stating the reserved amount is in hand — those three are stated conditions rather than formalities.
Sources: the ministerial decision as published in “Kuwait Al-Youm” · the Kuwait Credit Bank
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