Govt mandates new requirements for Saudi-expat marriage

Jeddah, Oct 16: The Kingdom has mandated new requirements for the marriage of Saudi men and women to non-Saudis.

The new regulations require that the income of a Saudi man be at least SR3,000, his age be between 40 and 65, and that appropriate housing be secured.

The age of a non-Saudi woman must be at least 25 years, and there cannot be an age difference greater than 30 years between the spouses in all cases, according to the new regulation.

For those men who have been previously married to a Saudi or non-Saudi woman, at least two years must have passed since the date of divorce.

However, if the Saudi woman is still married to the man at the time of the request, a medical report from a government or private hospital, approved by the Ministry of Health, must be attached proving the wife is unable to carry out marital duties or is infertile.

The requirements also stipulate that the owner of the request must sign all modules and adopted decisions by the competent authority, including that the approval of marriage to a non-Saudi wife does not grant her the right to obtain Saudi nationality.

Fingerprints of the applicants must be taken after their information is linked electronically to the competent authority at the Ministry of Interior, authorizing authorities at the ministry to review all civil records and data through the Bayanati service.

In cases of Saudi women marrying a non-Saudi man, the age of the woman seeking marriage must be between 30 and 55 years at the time of the request, and there must be no age difference greater than 10 years between the spouses to ensure she is not being exploited.

The age requirement is lowered to 27 years for those with disabilities or illnesses that have made her unacceptable to Saudis, or for those with special circumstances, such as orphans, provided an official document is provided by the Ministry of Labor and Social Development proving this.

Non-Saudi males must not have a Saudi or non-Saudi wife, not be previously married to a Saudi woman, and proof must be submitted that he has no

criminal record or past in his home country or in the Kingdom. Medical documentation must also be submitted proving absence of infectious or genetic diseases, in addition to documentation that he has not previously worked for a foreign army or was included on the black list for entry to the Kingdom.

The monthly salary must be at least SR5,000, and appropriate housing must be available. He must also have a valid iqama, while the Saudi spouse must attach documentation that she acknowledges marrying a non-Saudi man which does not mean his eligibility or the eligibility of her children to obtain Saudi nationality.

The applicant must not be a national of one of the countries whose nationals are prevented or forbidden from marrying Saudi nationals. The non-Saudi must be of a certain nationality and have documents proving this, while their passport must be valid without restrictions with a remaining validity period of at least 12 months. The non-Saudi must also have a valid residency permit, and both parties must pass a security check by concerned authorities.

The requirements also stipulate that there must be underlying social reasons prompting a Saudi to marry a non-Saudi, and that the marriage visa of the spouse be valid for only one year. In the case of not benefiting from the visa, at least four years must pass before making another request in this regard, with the approval of the spouse.

According to legal adviser Abdulaziz Al-Harthy, court cases involving Saudi and non-Saudi spouses are numerous, mostly related to custody or inheritance issues.

Last week the Ministry of Justice issued a decision giving judges the right to rule that a non-Saudi wife or non-Saudi husband can stay in the Kingdom until completion of the litigation period, and that citizens cannot abuse Absher to issue final exit visas.

Al-Harthy said the decision has contributed tremendously to protecting the rights of non-Saudi spouses, and ensuring they do not leave the Kingdom until after completion of trials and realizing their full rights, as well as minimizing the abuse of regulations by citizens to harm others.