18 June 2013
Some government departments are making efforts to get partial extension of the three-month grace period for violators of iqama (residency permit) and employment regulations, a local newspaper has reported.
The departments have only asked for the extension of the second clause in the order that the Ministries of Interior and Labor announced, Al-Riyadh daily reported yesterday without specifying the government departments that are striving for the extension.
"When illegal workers make a final exit during the grace period, the fees for residency and labor permits will be waived and punishments -- including fines for past violations -- will not be imposed. The fingerprints of violators would be taken as part of updating their data when they had not been taken on a previous occasion," the second clause reads.
The clause puts to rest the fears of illegal workers who would like to come back to the Kingdom after their final exit, by stating that the finger printing would not thwart plans for a return to the Kingdom on a fresh visa.
Market sources believe that no violator will be permitted to rectify his status after the July 3 deadline.
The Ministry of Labor has been texting all businessmen registered with it that all violators would be punished after the concession period and there would not be any extension.
Abdul Rahman Al-Qahtani, a business source, however, said an extension of the concession period would give all violators the opportunity to leave the country unpunished.
He believed that the remaining days of the grace period were not enough to process the documents of all violators as huge crowds were queuing up at all passport offices in the Kingdom.
A contractor, Naif Al-Harbi, said he observed over the past few days that the violators of labor regulations were becoming increasingly worried as the end of the concession period was fast approaching. The government warned that any citizen or expatriate sheltering or transporting illegals would be severely punished.
Even though Al-Harbi denied that the exodus of illegal workers would have any impact on large contracting companies, he admitted that subcontractors who depended on illegal workers would suffer most when such workers would be forced to leave the country. He attributed the growth of illegal labor markets in the country to the practice of subcontractors employing illegal workers with higher wages. He said the opportunity to earn more wages from subcontractors had tempted many legal workers to run away from their sponsors and work illegally.
Some government departments are making efforts to get partial extension of the three-month grace period for violators of iqama (residency permit) and employment regulations, a local newspaper has reported.
The departments have only asked for the extension of the second clause in the order that the Ministries of Interior and Labor announced, Al-Riyadh daily reported yesterday without specifying the government departments that are striving for the extension.
"When illegal workers make a final exit during the grace period, the fees for residency and labor permits will be waived and punishments -- including fines for past violations -- will not be imposed. The fingerprints of violators would be taken as part of updating their data when they had not been taken on a previous occasion," the second clause reads.
The clause puts to rest the fears of illegal workers who would like to come back to the Kingdom after their final exit, by stating that the finger printing would not thwart plans for a return to the Kingdom on a fresh visa.
Market sources believe that no violator will be permitted to rectify his status after the July 3 deadline.
The Ministry of Labor has been texting all businessmen registered with it that all violators would be punished after the concession period and there would not be any extension.
Abdul Rahman Al-Qahtani, a business source, however, said an extension of the concession period would give all violators the opportunity to leave the country unpunished.
He believed that the remaining days of the grace period were not enough to process the documents of all violators as huge crowds were queuing up at all passport offices in the Kingdom.
A contractor, Naif Al-Harbi, said he observed over the past few days that the violators of labor regulations were becoming increasingly worried as the end of the concession period was fast approaching. The government warned that any citizen or expatriate sheltering or transporting illegals would be severely punished.
Even though Al-Harbi denied that the exodus of illegal workers would have any impact on large contracting companies, he admitted that subcontractors who depended on illegal workers would suffer most when such workers would be forced to leave the country. He attributed the growth of illegal labor markets in the country to the practice of subcontractors employing illegal workers with higher wages. He said the opportunity to earn more wages from subcontractors had tempted many legal workers to run away from their sponsors and work illegally.
© Arab News 2013
