The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has clarified its visa regulations for foreign residents, making it easier for those holding exit/re-entry visas. According to officials, individuals with these visas can return to the kingdom as long as their visas are valid until the very last day.
The General Directorate of Passports in Saudi Arabia has emphasized that those with exit/re-entry visas can extend them electronically while abroad by paying the necessary fees through either the Absher platform or the Muqeem portal.
To be eligible for an exit/re-entry visa, an expatriate’s passport should have at least 90 days of validity. For a final exit visa, this requirement is 60 days.
Importantly, the directorate has underlined that it’s not possible to change an exit/re-entry visa into a final exit visa if the individual is currently outside of Saudi Arabia.
It’s worth noting that Saudi Arabia hosts a substantial migrant worker population, mainly from various Asian countries. Recent census data from the KSA General Authority for Statistics reveals that foreigners make up approximately 41.5 percent of the kingdom’s total population, which stands at 32.2 million. Asian nationals from three countries alone account for over 42 percent of the total foreign population in Saudi Arabia, as per the same census figures.
