Client Payment Portal

SAUDI ARABIA: Work Visit Visa No Longer Available

Nov 22, 2019 | Global

Visa officials at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have advised that work visit visas to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are no longer available. Those currently in the Kingdom under these visas are free to remain through the expiration date.  While they are free upon return to their home country apply for a new work visa (i.e. a visa that allows for conversion to an iqama upon entry into Saudi Arabia), work visit visas are not convertible directly.

 

The Ministry of Labor’s Assistant Deputy Minister for Labor Policies added the following comments:

 

  1. A new type of temporary visa is currently under review by the Council of Ministers, details expected in the coming days or week, allowing work for 6 months renewable for another 6 months. These visas will not be convertible, and the same rules will apply to all nationalities.

 

  1. A list of activities which may be performed under a business visit or tourist visa is being prepared (i.e. “exempt activities”). These activities will likely include sports and entertainment engagements, signing and negotiating agreements and presenting lectures.  While visitors holding such visas may receive financial honoraria, they may not be employed by the sponsor.  While some agencies favor convertibility of these non-work visit visas to iqamas, this is still under review and faces stiff opposition.

 

Wolfsdorf Rosenthal Global Immigration Services will continue to monitor closely and bring updates. Should you have any questions please contact a WR immigration attorney or email Global@wolfsdorf.com for case specific information.

Related Posts:

BElGIUM: Immigration Update – Minimum Salary Scale 2020

The Brussels region has released the 2020 minimum salary thresholds for foreign employees.

Within Single Permit applications the gross yearly minimum salary level for Highly Skilled workers has been raised to

Read More

CANADA: Police Clearance Certificates & Criminal Record Checks

Canadian immigration matters often require a police clearance certificate and/or RCMP criminal record check.  WR provides the following overview to familiarize clients with Global Affairs Canada’s request for these documents as well as necessary document procurement procedures. Police clearance certificates are issued in Canada by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), the federal police service, and are commonly referred to as “RCMP criminal record checks.” Applications for RCMP checks for immigration purposes require fingerprints to be taken by a local police station in Canada, or by an accredited fingerprinting company inside or outside Canada. A list of accredited companies can be requested at CCRTIS-SCICTR@rcmp-grc.gc.ca. The fingerprints are then submitted to the RCMP’s Canadian Criminal Real Time Identification Services (CCRTIS) for searches of the National Repository of Criminal Records, and the RCMP issues a one-page criminal record check displaying the fingerprints, the person’s picture, the content of the repository, and the official RCMP dry seal. The RCMP criminal record check may be submitted to Canada’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, referred to as “Global Affairs Canada,” for authentication. Authentication is the certification of the genuineness of the RCMP’s seal so that the issued document may be recognized in another jurisdiction. Documents brought […]

Read More