UPDATE: Kuwait Gazettes Decree-Law 88/2026 Establishing the Economic Circuits

Kuwait has gazetted Decree-Law No. 88 of 2026 issuing the Law Establishing the Economic Circuits, published in Kuwait Al-Youm Issue 1808 on Sunday 13 September 2026. This follows the draft the Cabinet approved on 18 August 2026, which WEFAQ covered at the time, and the final text tracks that draft closely.

The law creates dedicated economic circuits at the Court of First Instance, the Court of Appeal and the Court of Cassation to hear economic, commercial and investment disputes. The list of legislation the annexed law ties itself to spans patents and trademarks, banking and currency, capital markets and securities, companies, competition, public tenders, public-private partnerships, commercial licensing, direct investment, industrial zones and the new multinational top-up tax, so most disputes a business operating in Kuwait could face will eventually move to this track.

The mandatory settlement step highlighted when the draft was approved survives into the final text, alongside an enforcement judge who can freeze bank accounts and securities, seize assets and impose travel bans on debtors suspected of hiding money, subject to a fast, final appeal to the Economic Appellate Circuit. Judicial fees for settlement and enforcement steps will be set in the executive regulation.

The law takes effect on 1 October 2027, unchanged from the draft, and the Minister of Justice must issue the executive regulation before that date. Cases already pending before the Capital Markets Court and today's ordinary circuits stay where they are; only new cases will go to the Economic Circuits.

WEFAQ's view: the substance did not move much between draft and decree-law, so our 20 August analysis of what businesses should do before October 2027 still holds. Treat the gazettal as confirmation to start acting on it, not as new guidance.

Read more: for the full analysis, read our companion blog article: “Kuwait's New Economic Courts: What the Draft Law Means for Your Business.”

Source: Decree-Law No. 88 of 2026 Issuing the Law Establishing the Economic Circuits, Kuwait Al-Youm Official Gazette, Issue 1808, 13 September 2026.

This article is provided for general information only and does not constitute legal advice. For advice specific to your circumstances, please contact WEFAQ Law Firm.