Can they keep your passport but issue an iqama ? Is this legal ?

There seems to be too many rules !!!

I have never seen a 12 months exit re-entry visa [neither single nor multiple]. Even for wives, max period of single/multiple  is 6 months. Last year one friend from Hyderabad really needed 10 months and we had to do a big game to get through

TheLegendLeads wrote:

I have never seen a 12 months exit re-entry visa [neither single nor multiple]. Even for wives, max period of single/multiple  is 6 months. Last year one friend from Hyderabad really needed 10 months and we had to do a big game to get through

I just got it Confirmed from a US national. Does that mean it is nationality specific ???

His Visa was issued on May 2011, did his first exit on Sep 2011 and validity of the Multiple Visa showing in the system is Sep 2012. So what can it be ??

Very confusing...

so its at least 6 months, i got that..
So, if the iqama expires first and you haven't used the multiple exit/entry visa do you still get fined??? how much are these fines were talking about as well?

saimans wrote:

TheLegendLeads wrote:

I have never seen a 12 months exit re-entry visa [neither single nor multiple]. Even for wives, max period of single/multiple  is 6 months. Last year one friend from Hyderabad really needed 10 months and we had to do a big game to get through

I just got it Confirmed from a US national. Does that mean it is nationality specific ???

His Visa was issued on May 2011, did his first exit on Sep 2011 and validity of the Multiple Visa showing in the system is Sep 2012. So what can it be ??

Over my head mate.

expatsoon2b wrote:

Very confusing...

so its at least 6 months, i got that..
So, if the iqama expires first and you haven't used the multiple exit/entry visa do you still get fined??? how much are these fines were talking about as well?

Yes, there is a penalty for that. Please don't ask 'why?', coz no one knows

I recall I paid 1,000 SAR last year for 2 expired unused visas; so 500 each.

TheLegendLeads wrote:

saimans wrote:

TheLegendLeads wrote:

I have never seen a 12 months exit re-entry visa [neither single nor multiple]. Even for wives, max period of single/multiple  is 6 months. Last year one friend from Hyderabad really needed 10 months and we had to do a big game to get through

I just got it Confirmed from a US national. Does that mean it is nationality specific ???

His Visa was issued on May 2011, did his first exit on Sep 2011 and validity of the Multiple Visa showing in the system is Sep 2012. So what can it be ??

Over my head mate.

Dont tell me it confused you also ???

Unfortunately it did.

http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article … mments=all

‘Unlawful to hold passports of expats' - Saudi Gazette
http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cf … 0313119544

some employers keep but some of them didnt.It depends upon the sponsor.

In October 2000, King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz Al Saudissued Council of Ministers Decree 166 abolishing the sponsorship system in employment relations, while maintaining it for immigration and residency purposes. That decree specifically prohibits confiscating a migrant's passport, but the practice remains widespread and officially supported, Human Rights Watch said.

http://www.hrw.org/news/2012/04/10/saud … nt-workers

July 2, 2013 -

"In April 2012, the Labor Ministry proposed abolishing the kafala system by transferring immigration sponsorship to newly created recruitment and placement agencies, but later decided to retain the current system. To tackle kafala-related abuses, Saudi Arabia needs to amend its Residency Law so that a migrant worker no longer requires a sponsor's consent to change jobs or leave the country, Human Rights Watch said.

Some 1.5 million of the migrant domestic workers remain entirely excluded from the 2005 Labor Law and thus have no legal protections even if they work for a legal sponsor.

...

On January 14, the labor ministries of Gulf Cooperation Council countries announced a unified standard contract for domestic workers, which entitles them to a weekly day off, possession of their passports, and traceable electronic monthly salary payments into bank accounts. The unified standard contract is a private agreement between parties, however, without the special protections provided by law."

http://www.hrw.org/news/2013/07/01/saud … ers-rights

(Contradicts previous Saudi Gazette report?)

I can't find a direct link to the legislation anywhere in Arabic or English, sorry.  But it seems that what the law is or isn't is kind of irrelevant anyway unless it is reflected in standard practice/respected/enforced.

http://www.hrw.org/news/2013/07/01/saud … ers-rights

What do you do if you want to leave the country but your company does not give you your pasport back? Which government agencies can you contact?

E Star

most sponsors do it though it is illegal

If it written in your contract, it is legal. You only need IQAMA to live here so it doesn't matter. Pay attention to your contract. Same thing when I was in Maldives, it is normal for employer to keep employees passport once they got resident id. It keeps the employee from fleeing before contract finish

This is a very old thread (from 2013).

Recently this year (2016), laws have been reviewed and now it's completely illegal if your employer keeps your passport. Govt authorities have in fact advised to report such cases to the Ministry of Labor so that such employer could be penalized.

Do you have anything to prove that ? Government or embassy statement?

samuel_sfx wrote:

Do you have anything to prove that ? Government or embassy statement?

http://www.arabnews.com/node/954496/saudi-arabia

Please check MoL website for more info.