The government has announced details of a decision to legalize and regularize the immigration status of non-Jordanian workers of all nationalities, effective June 15 to September 30, 2026. Employers are urged to take advantage of the exemption period to regularize the status of non-Jordanian workers and ensure their employment remains lawful.
The decision excludes non-Jordanian workers employed in the garment and knitwear manufacturing sector and complementary production-input industries operating in development zones, Qualified Industrial Zones (QIZs) and free zones, as well as workers holding permits in specialized-skills professions.
The Ministry of Labor, in cooperation with the Ministry of Interior and the Public Security Directorate, will carry out a comprehensive inspection campaign during the regularization period to identify labor violations across all sectors.
Following the end of the grace period, deportation measures will be taken against any non-Jordanian worker whose work permit has expired for three months or more and who fails to regularize their status.
During the regularization period, the following measures are in place:
- Employers and non-Jordanian workers across all economic sectors, including domestic workers, are exempted from 50 percent of accumulated work permit fees for previous periods.
- A full exemption is granted from late-payment penalties associated with renewing expired work permits or transferring workers between employers. In addition, non-Jordanian workers covered under the Residence and Foreigners Affairs Law No. 24 of 1973 and its amendments will receive a full exemption from overstay fines if they regularize their status during the specified period.
- Only the work permit fee for one year, or part of a year, related to the worker’s most recent valid permit will be collected.
- For workers wishing to permanently leave Jordan under a “departure without return” arrangement, all previous work permit fees and fines will be waived. They will also be exempted from residency overstay penalties, provided their files are settled before departure.
- Departing workers are allowed to receive their social security entitlements directly from the Social Security Corporation.
- Employers are permitted to hire non-Jordanian workers who previously benefited from exemption programs or who opted for permanent departure but remain in Jordan, enabling them to obtain work permits and benefit from the new exemptions.
- Non-Jordanian nationals who entered Jordan in previous years for non-work reasons are allowed to obtain work permits for the first time.
- The transfer of non-Jordanian workers between economic sectors and activities is permitted, subject to specific conditions. Workers holding permits in specialized-skills professions are not allowed to move to other occupations, while recruited workers who entered Jordan after February 25, 2025, are not eligible for transfers.
- Workers holding permits as specialized skills workers will not be allowed to transfer to other professions except under self-employment permits.
- Holders of self-employment permits may transfer to building services occupations, and workers in the garment and knitwear sector whose permits have expired or been canceled for two years or more may transfer to any employer and work in permitted, restricted, or specialized-skills occupations without obtaining clearance from a previous employer.
- Workers in all sectors may transfer to self-employment permits, while maintaining self-employment as a closed category from which transfers are not permitted.
- The decision eliminates the requirement for a clearance certificate from a previous employer when a worker transfers after a permit expires or is canceled.
- Workers reported as absconding by previous employers may also benefit from the decision without obtaining employer approval, provided they remain in Jordan and their work permit expired more than one year ago.
- Workers whose recruitment contracts have expired before completing work permit procedures may obtain permits, and workers already present in Jordan who were recruited as replacements for other workers may be employed.
- Domestic workers previously reported absent and subsequently replaced may transfer to a new employer without obtaining approval from the former employer, provided the absence report is withdrawn before submitting the application.
- Domestic workers reported absent but not replaced may also transfer to a new employer after two years have elapsed from the date of the report, subject to the withdrawal of the absence notification.
- Female domestic workers who married a Jordanian citizen and changed their residency status may obtain new work permits following divorce, widowhood or if they wish to return to employment.
- Individuals who entered Jordan for employment purposes may obtain domestic worker permits, subject to Ministry of Interior approval.
- Domestic workers whose permits have expired or been canceled may transfer to another economic sector if more than two years have passed since the expiration of their last permit, without requiring approval from a previous employer.
Erickson Insights and Analysis
Erickson Immigration Group will continue monitoring developments and sharing updates as more news is available. Please contact your employer or EIG attorney if you have questions about anything we’re reporting above or if you have case-specific questions.