JEDDAH, 10 January 2008 — The Shoura Council is studying a proposal to decrease recruitment and iqama fees of house servants and drivers from SR2,000 to SR500 for a visa and from SR500 to SR100 for an iqama.
The proposal comes amid calls by Saudis to reduce government service charges and cut fees for all recruitment visas in order to offset the burden caused by rising prices of essential commodities.
The proposal, according to a report carried by Al-Madinah newspaper, suggests that charges for the recruitment of housemaids, servants and farmers be reduced to SR500 for the first visa, SR1,000 for the second, SR2,000 for the third and SR3,000 for the fourth.
The charge for issuing resident permits or iqamas to these foreign workers must be slashed to SR100 for the first, SR300 for the second, SR500 for the third and SR700 for the fourth, the proposal said.
It also called for the encouragement of companies to recruit, train, accommodate, transport and lease house servants. “This will be of great service to Saudis and residents who want to temporarily avail themselves of the services of house servants,” said a Saudi banker.
Dr. Abdullah Al-Dossari and Mohammed Al-Quwaihes, the Shoura members who presented the proposal to the 150-member body, said there were demands to unify recruitment and iqama fees for all sectors and groups without differentiating between businesses and families.
They also pointed out that the application of high recruitment and iqama charges to businesses had not been successful in reducing the number of foreign workers. According to Labor Ministry reports, the number of recruitment visas is increasing each year because the recruitment of skilled foreign manpower is essential for new development projects.
Previous restrictions imposed by the Labor Ministry have caused more problems for Saudi employers and investors. They found difficulty in getting required manpower while workers available in the market demanded higher salaries. Many foreign workers abandoned their previous companies, seeking higher wages. The restrictions also created a blackmarket for the employment of runaway workers.
Moreover, many families do not need to recruit house servants for permanent jobs, but currently there is no system to hire workers temporarily. The new proposal also differentiates between those who recruit one person and more.
The Shoura members said they proposed the new law in order to reduce the burden on citizens created by higher recruitment and iqama charges. Most Saudi families will not be able to get rid of house servants as they need them to take care of their children and drive them to school.
Dr. Abdullah Al-Saihati, chairman of the Saihati Group in the Eastern Province, welcomed the proposal and said it would benefit a large number of Saudis. “However, the reduction should be for all recruitment visas because we need many professionals and skilled workers for our big projects.”
Dr. Abdul Ilah Saati, vice dean of Community College at King Abdul Aziz University in Jeddah, called it an extremely important proposal. “We have been waiting for this for a long time. It is long overdue,” he added.
