RIYADH – The government of Saudi Arabia has lifted a ban on the re-entry of foreign workers who violated visa conditions.
In a fresh directive issued on Tuesday, the General Directorate of Passports (Jawazat) has allowed the entry of expatriates, who failed to return before the expiry of their exit and reentry visa.
Instructions have been issued to the relevant departments and land, sea and air ports to implement the decision, which is seen as a major relief to the foreigners.
The Jawazat lifted the existing three-year ban on foreign workers who departed the Kingdom on exit and reentry visa and failed to return before the expiry of the visa; the ban was initially imposed on the demands made by the business community.
Those who proposed the ban argued that workers who fail to come back harm the business interests and inflict financial losses as the employers have to pay for the renewal of foreigners’ residency permits (iqama), work permits and return tickets of the workers.
The ban was enforced as some argued that workers’ failure to return on time prompts employers to terminate their contracts which harms the overall employment market.
The Jawazat has reiterated the conditions for obtaining an exit and re-entry visa, emphasizing that the workers need to clear all outstanding traffic violation fines besides ensuring no violations exist that led to the non-cancellation of a previously issued and unused visa.
Another condition is that the worker should not currently hold a valid visa and their verification to be present within the territories of the kingdom.
Besides, the kingdom has also announced that the worker’s passport should have a validity of 90 days or more, and the individual’s fingerprint to whom the visa is intended should also be taken.
In recent months, the kingdom has been easing visa restrictions and has also introduced new types of visas. As part of the ambitious Vision 2030, Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman is also focusing on travel and tourism to pivot the economy away from oil and natural resources and to diversify the revenue stream of the country.
