Dubai: The expatriate labour force is expected to increase by 30 per cent this year, thus establishing an unprecedented trend in the country, announced a senior Ministry of Labour official.

Humaid Bin Deemas, Assistant Undersecretary at the ministry, said that there is a monthly increase of 30 per cent in the issuance of work permits and the process is expected to continue at the same rate till the end of this year.

There are 2.7 million workers registered under the Ministry of Labour, but the total number of the expatriate labour force is much bigger as there are people that do not come under the Ministry of Labour, namely domestic helpers, drivers as well as those working in free zones.

Since the start of the construction boom in 2001-2002, the country has registered an annual increase of 10-15 per cent in the expatriate labour force, according to ministry statistics.

"This is the first time the labour market has registered such a large increase in its expatriate labour force," said Bin Deemas.

While the ministry issued some 835,000 work permits in 2006, this year the number has reached 900,000 only in the first nine months of this year, according to ministry reports. "If the monthly increase continues in the same pattern, and most probably it will, the ministry will issue some 1.2 million by the end of this year," said Bin Deemas attributing the increase to the economic growth of the country and the grace period given to illegal workers to adjust their situation.

"Thousands of people adjusted their legal status in the country during the amnesty, the main bulk we suspect were people working on visit visa but we cannot provide statistics as nobody would admit that he was violating the rule," said Bin Deemas.

KEY STATS

900,000 work permits issued till September

--Work permits issued in 2006 835,000

--Work permits issued from January-September 2007 900,000 (200,000 were issued online as collective work permits)

- Work permits issued in Dubai from January-September 2007 450,000 (50 per cent of the total number)

- Work permits expected to be issued by end of 2007 1,2000,000

- Total number of expatriate labourers registered under the Ministry of Labour 2.7 million