Riyadh passport office puts in extra effort to clear rush

With the July 3 deadline fast approaching, the Riyadh Passport Department has deployed more staff and set up more venues to deal with the thousands of expatriates seeking to rectify their status and citizens seeking services.
The situation is aggravated further by the fact that Saudis are leaving abroad on vacation and will not be around during the limited period available between now and July 3, when their presence is required for completing the formalities during the correction phase.   This abnormal situation explains the unprecedented crowd of expats at the RPO.
The passport office is also under pressure because it has to deal with Saudis seeking to renew their passports.
Maj. Gen. Saad bin Ibrahim Al-Jubairi, director of the Riyadh Passport Department, told a local daily: “This summer has seen us deal with overwhelming crowds, with some not having checked the validity of their travel documents until the last moment.”
Al-Jubairi said that in May the department had issued over 1 million passports for citizens and residents, and rectified the employment status of illegal expatriates.
Despite this, he said, everything is under control. To deal with the thousands of expatriate workers, the department had set up offices with extra staff throughout the city to take the pressure off the main office. These satellite offices have been issuing new residency permits, exit/re-entry visas and final exit visas.
He said there are now more counters to serve the public inside the main building and three air-conditioned tents outside with seating arrangements for those who wish to rectify their status, change professions and transfer to new sponsors.
Al-Jubairi said there have also been sections set aside at the main office for Saudi women married to foreigners, where they can sort out the documentation of their children throughout the year. There are also sections for the elderly and those with special needs.
He advised citizens and expatriates to use the online services provided by the passport office.
Al-Jubairi said the Passport Department starts work at 7:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m., and then 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. in the three air-conditioned tents outside the main building.
Riyadh Gov. Prince Khaled bin Bandar is monitoring the performance of the department and urged government workers to put in extra effort to serve citizens and expatriates.