Govt mandates new requirements for Saudi-expat marriage

October 16, 2016

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

marriageThe 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.

Comments

Wonder Kotian
 - 
Sunday, 16 Oct 2016

Bap ray Bap where are you my friend?? are you hanging around Snake land, surprise you met SAUDI, are you looking for visa to go Saudi?? many of your brother awaiting in this desert land, you do not go for Chumma then you have to have special training not like your snake land training, why cant you come our gods own country?? you looks like Moodiji, both are wife less, why cant you start WIFE LESS GROUP UNION (WLGP) looks better than Terrorist.
then you can start your real GANGASARA business.

Well Wisher
 - 
Sunday, 16 Oct 2016

Hihihi. Koopa mandooka Naren!!! Mandooka thinks that Koopa is everything. Just ask your Chaddi brothers in KSA. These are the rules set by KSA. You may be enjoying prostitution in Singapore or Thailand. Feel sorry for you.

Naren kotian
 - 
Sunday, 16 Oct 2016

Aprushyathe ...Saudi consider them as purest ...and others are fit for toilet cleaning. ..that's too I met a Saudi in Singapore ..he said. ..non Saudis are fit for toilet cleaning ,meat cutting and car and dish washing only ....they said they won't allow their sisters to give chummah to non Saudis in the name of ummah ...haha

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Agencies
May 26,2020

Riyadh, May 26: The authorities in Saudi Arabia have decided to ease some restrictions put in place over coronavirus fears, allowing movement and resumption of some economic and commercial activities, Saudi Press Agency reported early Tuesday citing an official source at the Interior Ministry.

The move also allows restarting of domestic flights, opening of mosques, restaurants and cafes and work attendance, however, the temporary suspension of Umrah pilgrimage remains in force.

The easing of restrictions will be carried out in a phased manner, with the first phase beginning on Thursday (May 28) and ending on May 30.

In the first phase, the movement within and between all regions of the Kingdom in private cars will be allowed from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. except in Makkah. Economic and commercial activities will resume in retail and wholesale shops and malls but beauty salons, barber shops, sports clubs, health clubs, entertainment centers and cinemas will continue to remain shut due to social distancing concerns.

In the second phase, which begins on May 31 and ends on June 20, the movement is allowed from 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. in all areas of the Kingdom, except in Makkah. All congregational prayers, including Friday prayers, will resume in all mosques across the Kingdom except in Makkah.

The suspension of workplace attendance will end, allowing all employees in ministries, government entities and private sector companies to return to working from their offices provided that they follow strict precautionary guidelines.

The suspension on travel between regions in the Kingdom using various transport methods will no longer be in place. Airlines will be allowed to operate domestic flights if they adhere to precautionary measures set by the civil aviation authority and the Ministry of Health. The suspension of international flights, will, however, continue until further notice.

Restaurants and cafes serving food and beverages can reopen, however, beauty salons, barber shops, sports clubs, health clubs, entertainment centers and cinemas will be barred from reopening in the second phase. The ban on social gatherings of more than fifty people, such as weddings and funerals will also continue to remain in force.

In the third phase commencing on June 21, the Kingdom will return to "normal" conditions as it was before the coronavirus lockdown measures were implemented.

Meanwhile in Makkah, the first phase measures will be implemented between May 31 to June 20 and the second phase will begin on May 21. Friday prayers and all congregational prayers will continue to be held in the Grand Mosque, only to be attended by Imams and the employees.

Comments

Mohammed Sarfraz
 - 
Tuesday, 26 May 2020

I think second phase is May 31 to June 20. Must be a typo. 

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Agencies
April 2,2020

Ankara, Apr 2: Saudi Arabia on Thursday declared a 24-hour lockdown in all parts of Makkah and Medina cities as part of measures to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

"The 24-hour curfew will be imposed in all parts of the cities of Makkah and Medina, with a ban on entry and exit from both cities," the Saudi Interior Ministry said on Twitter.

The lockdown starts from Thursday “until further notice.”

All commercial activities inside the residential neighborhoods of the two cities were also prohibited, except for pharmacies, food products stores, gas stations and banking services, the ministry said.

After first appearing in Wuhan, China last December, the virus has spread to at least 180 countries and regions, according to U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University.

Its data shows the number of confirmed cases worldwide have surpassed 962,900, with the death toll over 49,100 and more than 202,700 recoveries.

Anadolu Agency website contains only a portion of the news stories offered to subscribers in the AA News Broadcasting System (HAS), and in summarized form. Please contact us for subscription options.
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News Network
March 6,2020

Riyadh, Mar 6: Saudi Arabia on Thursday emptied Islam's holiest site for sterilisation over fears of the new coronavirus, an unprecedented shutdown state media said will last while the year-round Umrah pilgrimage is suspended.

The kingdom halted the pilgrimage for its own citizens and residents on Wednesday, on top of restrictions announced last week on foreign pilgrims to stop the disease from spreading.

State television relayed images of an empty white-tiled area surrounding the Kaaba -- a large black cube structure inside Mecca's Grand Mosque -- which is usually packed with tens of thousands of pilgrims.

As a "precautionary measure", the area will remain closed as long as the umrah suspension lasts but prayers will be allowed inside the mosque, state-run Saudi Press Agency cited a mosque official as saying.

Additionally, the Grand Mosque and the Prophet's Mosque in the city of Medina will be closed an hour after the evening "Isha" prayer and will reopen an hour before the dawn "Fajr" prayer to allow cleaning and sterilisation, the official added.

A group of cleaners was seen scrubbing and mopping the tiles around the Kaaba, a structure draped in gold-embroidered gold cloth towards which Muslims around the world pray.

A Saudi official told news agency the decision to close the area was "unprecedented".

On Wednesday, Saudi Arabia suspended the umrah for its own citizens and residents over fears of the coronavirus spreading to Islam's holiest cities.

The move came after authorities last week suspended visas for the umrah and barred citizens from the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council from entering Mecca and Medina.

Saudi Arabia on Thursday declared three new coronavirus cases, bringing the total number of reported infections to five.

The umrah, which refers to the Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca that can be undertaken at any time of year, attracts millions of Muslims from across the globe annually.

The decision to suspend the umrah mirrors a precautionary approach across the Gulf to cancel mass gatherings from concerts to sporting events.

It comes ahead of the holy fasting month of Ramadan starting in late April, which is a favoured period for pilgrimage.

It is unclear how the coronavirus will affect the hajj, due to start in late July.

Some 2.5 million faithful travelled to Saudi Arabia from across the world in 2019 to take part in the hajj, which is one of the five pillars of Islam as Muslim obligations are known.

The event is a massive logistical challenge for Saudi authorities, with colossal crowds cramming into relatively small holy sites, making attendees vulnerable to contagion.

Already reeling from slumping oil prices, the kingdom risks losing billions of dollars annually from religious tourism as it tightens access to the sites.

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