Previously, Saudi Arabia provided work visit visa, which has
some limitation as it was issued for only technical and specific roles.
However, the new temporary work visa has broad spectrum while process to obtain
it has also been simplified.
Development in Saudi Arabia continues to accelerate with
projects like the NEOM business development region and the strategic framework
Vision 2030, and there is an increasing need for skilled short-term workers in
the kingdom. Recognizing this need, Saudi Arabia has launched a new Temporary
Work Visa designed to streamline and expedite the process of bringing
short-term workers into the country, while also broadening which types of
workers are eligible for the visa.
This is a change from the previously available visa, the
Work Visit Visa. "The previous one used to be restricted, usually, to
technical work, and certain designations, like engineering … were used a lot in
the oil industry in the eastern province for people who worked on and off
rotation. But this new one is basically available pretty much to all,"
said Sara Khoja, an attorney with Clyde & Co in Dubai, United Arab
Emirates. "It's still designed for short-term professional projects in the
kingdom, to resource those kinds of temporary projects, but it is available to
a much wider range of individuals than the previous ones."
"Older working visas have been largely restricted to
male workers or older female workers, usually above 40," said Heinrich
Köllisch, legal consultant at Schlüter Graf in Dubai. "The invitation
procedures are much easier right now."
Why Now?
The Vision 2030 framework has encouraged many new projects
throughout the country, accelerating a trend that makes it important to bring
more workers in.
"There's just a whole array of visas that have become
available in the last two years," Khoja said. "The level of
resourcing that projects like NEOM need, it's really high. So having these
kinds of temporary visas helps."
"Saudi Arabia is undergoing many overall developments
in light of their Vision 2030, so facilitating doing business and enabling the
private sector to run and conduct and manage its business in the most efficient
and facilitated ways is one of the main objectives," said Sara Aalamri, an
attorney with AlGhazzawi & Partners in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. "The
labor law in Saudi Arabia also accommodates temporary work employment
contracts, so this would seem suitable and to fit."
Beyond Vision 2030, this new visa is part of a larger push
to make Saudi Arabia available to foreign workers and tourists. "It goes
hand in hand with other measures of opening up the country, of the
transformation of the economy from a more closed-off oil-based economy toward
an economic powerhouse in the region, where Saudi Arabia should be an
attractive place for foreign direct investments," Köllisch said.
How Does It Work?
Compared with the previous visa, the Temporary Work Visa is
much easier for foreign workers to acquire. "You need someone in Saudi
Arabia who actually invites you; they will be sponsoring the visa,"
Köllisch said. "So that entity should have a commercial register within
Saudi Arabia, that must be a Saudi commercial or Saudi entity, either a single
merchant in Saudi Arabia, a branch of a company or an independent company
itself; it should be distinct."
"It's not something that an individual could apply for or
obtain by themselves," Khoja said. "It has to [come from] a Saudi
company, well-established, registered with all the relevant authorities,
registered with the Ministry of HR. And it would apply through an electronic
platform for this business of bringing an individual in on a temporary
basis."
The visa usually lasts for a year but allows entry into
Saudi Arabia for periods of up to 90 days at any one time during the yearlong
period.
What Are the Benefits?
The ease of acquiring the visa is one of its many benefits
to both workers and companies. "The ability to bring people in quickly and
with flexible resourcing [is beneficial], because with some of the projects,
you don't want to necessarily have people on the ground all the time,
especially as some of the projects are in remote areas," Khoja said.
"It basically enables many more people to work in Saudi
Arabia on projects more easily. Entities in Saudi Arabia can support their
labor force inside with specialists as needed on a much swifter approach than
before, so less administration, more flexible, more speeded up processes on
projects inside Saudi Arabia," Köllisch said.
The main drawback of the visa is that it can't be converted
to a long-term visa within Saudi Arabia, but it gives workers an opportunity to
test the waters of working in the country before they commit to a more
long-term contract. The speed and flexibility are the main benefits for
everyone involved, from Saudi Arabia itself to the employees acquiring the
visa.
It's likely that more specialized work visas will come in
the future. "It's the beginning of a trend," Khoja said.