Saudi Arabia opens digital residency pathway for Yemeni workers

Saudi Arabia has opened a two-month window for eligible Yemeni workers without valid residency status to regularise their employment and transfer to new employers through government digital platforms.

The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development said the programme, launched on 11 October, covers Yemeni nationals whose residence permits have expired and those recorded as absent from work. Applicants must hold valid travel documents and satisfy the applicable regulatory requirements.

Professional workers can complete employer transfers through Qiwa, while domestic and other support workers use Musaned. Both services operate alongside the Interior Ministry’s Absher platform, allowing eligible applicants to complete procedures electronically without visiting government offices.

Workers facing absence reports may also seek cancellation of those reports before transferring their services to another employer. The ministry said the arrangements apply throughout the kingdom and are being implemented in coordination with other government agencies.

The General Directorate of Passports has subsequently clarified the documents required for different groups of Yemeni nationals. Workers with expired residence permits or absence reports must provide a valid Yemeni passport and undergo a medical examination before completing the applicable online procedures.

The clarification distinguishes employment-related cases from other residency violations covered by the wider initiative. Yemeni nationals holding expired visitor identification or visit visas can qualify for electronic extensions of six months where their biometric information is already registered in Saudi systems and they possess valid passports.

Those without Yemeni passports or other nationality documents face a different process. They must arrange an appointment through Absher, select a designated regularisation location and attend with evidence of Yemeni nationality, including an appropriate travel document issued by Yemen’s embassy.

The broader exercise follows directives issued by King Salman bin Abdulaziz after a request from Rashad Mohammed Al-Alimi, chairman of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council. The Passports Directorate announced that the arrangements would operate for two months across Saudi Arabia, beginning on 11 October.

For affected workers, the employment provisions offer a route to resolve irregular status without requiring them to remain with an employer whose sponsorship or employment relationship is no longer valid. Transfers remain subject to the receiving employer’s requirements and the rules governing the relevant employment category.

The distinction between Qiwa and Musaned is significant because the platforms serve different segments of the labour market. Qiwa administers services for professional and private-sector employment, whereas Musaned handles domestic and support-worker arrangements, including the processes associated with changing employers.

The ministry said electronic processing was intended to simplify regularisation, manage transfers under established rules and protect the rights of parties to employment contracts. Its statement did not provide a figure for the number of workers expected to benefit or specify how many applications had been completed.

The authorities have also outlined financial relief for certain eligible Yemeni workers, including waivers of outstanding work-permit charges under the correction arrangements. Eligibility for such relief is governed by the conditions attached to the relevant category rather than an automatic exemption for every Yemeni national in the country.

The measures address cases that otherwise can leave workers unable to change employers through ordinary procedures because their residency documentation has expired or an absence notification remains on their record. Removing those administrative obstacles enables qualifying applicants to seek a lawful employment relationship through the designated channels.

Officials have emphasised that the programme is not an unrestricted amnesty. Valid identity or travel documentation, medical requirements where applicable and compliance with established procedures remain central to the correction process. Applicants with different documentation problems must follow the separate routes prescribed by the Passports Directorate.

The two-month period also creates a defined timetable for employers willing to recruit eligible workers. Employers must use the appropriate digital service to process transfers, rather than relying on informal arrangements or treating the worker’s participation in the initiative as proof that a transfer has already been approved.

Saudi authorities have said the digital services are integrated across agencies to reduce the need for physical visits. The exception applies particularly to people unable to establish their nationality through the standard electronic records, who must attend an appointment and present supporting documents for examination.

For holders of expired visit documents whose biometrics are registered, the Passports Directorate has specified that the six-month extension can be processed electronically without attending one of its offices, provided the applicant has a valid passport.