The Interior Ministry is making penalties against establishments that violate residency and labor laws harsher with the introduction of prison time for violators.
Whereas previously the penalties were only fines, the ministry has now decided to expand them. Those in violation will be fined and will serve a prison term which will increase if violations persist.
The Interior Ministry called on all facilities that have workers in violation of labor laws to quickly rectify their status if they want to avoid fines and penalties, which affect the owners of the workplaces and service offices.
A ministry source said that there is ongoing coordination with the Ministries of Labor and Commerce and Trade against harboring illegal workers. He added that in the event of employing an illegal worker or committing other violations, the fine would be SR10,000 as well as a prison sentence, together with permit cancellation.
If the national is a first time violator, he will have to pay SR10,000 and will spend two weeks in prison. The second violation will incur SR 20,000 and one month in prison, while the third time he will pay SR50,000 and will be imprisoned for three months.
These new steps apply to service offices, especially those that delay applications or don't go through the proper official channels to deal with workers directly, and which bypass the owner or are in violation of the law by employing foreign workers in the offices.
Harsher penalties for unlawful hiring
