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27 July 2016
RIYADH: With the end of the Umrah season, the Passport Department has advised pilgrims to return home on schedule and warned that all those who give shelter to the overstayers will be subject to a fine up to SR100,000, jail for two years and will be deported if they are expats.
Around six million pilgrims visited the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah during this season.
Maj. Talal Al-Shalhoub, spokesman of the Passport Department said on Monday that the pilgrims are expected to return to their respective home countries before the end of the visa period.
Al-Shalhoub said residents and citizens should be aware of their obligations toward the state. Providing accommodation for Umrah overstayers or keeping them in safe place to avoid hands of law is an offense under the Saudi law.
"Citizens and residents will be held accountable for such offenses," he stressed.
The spokesman also pointed out that Umrah pilgrims who over stay their visas in the Kingdom due to medical reasons will be considered for extension of visas provided their reasons are genuine.
Arrangements have to be made for their return as and when the period of illnesses are over, he added.
He said the Passport Department coordinates with all relevant government agencies in facilitating the return of the pilgrims to their respective countries of origin.
It is said overstayers can destabilize the security and destroy the economy of the country.
If a large number of them were to overstay their visas, they would start looking for jobs and they would be willing to do jobs for which they have no skills. They will compete with expatriate workers who enter the country legally. The overstayers will send all of the monies they earn back to their home countries.
With regard to security destabilization, the authorities do not have any reliable information about overstayers and where they live because they do not have resident permits. If an overstayer commits a crime, it is difficult to catch him because his whereabouts are unknown.
RIYADH: With the end of the Umrah season, the Passport Department has advised pilgrims to return home on schedule and warned that all those who give shelter to the overstayers will be subject to a fine up to SR100,000, jail for two years and will be deported if they are expats.
Around six million pilgrims visited the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah during this season.
Maj. Talal Al-Shalhoub, spokesman of the Passport Department said on Monday that the pilgrims are expected to return to their respective home countries before the end of the visa period.
Al-Shalhoub said residents and citizens should be aware of their obligations toward the state. Providing accommodation for Umrah overstayers or keeping them in safe place to avoid hands of law is an offense under the Saudi law.
"Citizens and residents will be held accountable for such offenses," he stressed.
The spokesman also pointed out that Umrah pilgrims who over stay their visas in the Kingdom due to medical reasons will be considered for extension of visas provided their reasons are genuine.
Arrangements have to be made for their return as and when the period of illnesses are over, he added.
He said the Passport Department coordinates with all relevant government agencies in facilitating the return of the pilgrims to their respective countries of origin.
It is said overstayers can destabilize the security and destroy the economy of the country.
If a large number of them were to overstay their visas, they would start looking for jobs and they would be willing to do jobs for which they have no skills. They will compete with expatriate workers who enter the country legally. The overstayers will send all of the monies they earn back to their home countries.
With regard to security destabilization, the authorities do not have any reliable information about overstayers and where they live because they do not have resident permits. If an overstayer commits a crime, it is difficult to catch him because his whereabouts are unknown.
© Arab News 2016
