Pillar guide · Updated 20 June 2026
Saudi Arabia issues nine distinct categories of work authorisation, each with its own ministry, fee structure, and Iqama implication. This guide is the operational playbook our mobility desk uses on live filings — what to apply for, who issues it, what it costs, and how long it takes in 2026.
Most foreign companies start by asking for ‘a Saudi work visa’ and discover there is no single product. The Ministry of Human Resources (MHRSD) and the Ministry of Interior split work authorisation into block visas (employer-sponsored, long-term), temporary work visas (project-based, up to 12 months and extendable to 24), business visit visas (no work permitted, scoping only), and special-purpose tracks such as the Premium Residency or the Investor Visa where the holder sponsors themselves.
Picking the wrong category is the single most expensive mistake we see. A temporary work visa cannot be converted to an Iqama. A business visit visa cannot be used to attend a Saudi payroll. A block visa that is not actually backed by an MHRSD quota will sit in Qiwa for months and never issue. The decision starts with three questions: who is the legal employer, how long is the assignment, and does the assignee need an Iqama.
A block visa is the standard work authorisation granted to a Saudi employer for a named profession and headcount. The employer applies on Qiwa for an MHRSD quota, the quota becomes a block number, MOFA stamps the visa at the embassy in the candidate's country, and the candidate enters Saudi Arabia and is issued an Iqama within 90 days.
Block visas are tied to the Saudization rating of the employer: an entity in Nitaqat Red or Low Green cannot pull most foreign professions, while Platinum entities have full access. The profession requested must match the candidate's qualifications — engineering and medical professions require attested degrees verified against the SCFHS (medical) or the Saudi Council of Engineers register.
Costs in 2026: MHRSD fees around SAR 9,700 per worker per year (including the labour levy), MOFA visa stamping SAR 2,000, plus medical and attestation costs ranging SAR 500–1,500 depending on country of origin.
Temporary work visas (TWV) are issued to a Saudi entity for a defined project — typically EPC, oil & gas turnarounds, IT implementations, or trade-show build-out. The visa is valid up to 12 months, extendable once to a maximum of 24, and the holder does not receive an Iqama. Instead they hold a Border Number (Hudood) printed on the visa sticker.
TWVs are filed on Qiwa under a separate quota category. The applicant must show a contract between the Saudi sponsor and the home-country employer or contractor. TWVs are blocked for several restricted professions (HR, legal, accounting) where the Ministry expects Saudization, and the Mudad payroll system treats TWV holders differently from Iqama holders.
Whichever category you choose, every Saudi work visa moves through the same three portals. Qiwa (MHRSD) issues the quota and the block. MOFA stamps the visa at the embassy after the candidate's documents are attested. Muqeem (Ministry of Interior) records the Iqama once the candidate enters Saudi Arabia and completes their medical.
The portals do not talk to each other automatically. A common failure mode is a candidate arriving on a valid visa, completing the medical, and waiting weeks for the Iqama because the employer's GRO never closed the Muqeem record. We file Muqeem within five working days of arrival on every Tamra-sponsored hire.
Every entity in Saudi Arabia is graded on the Nitaqat (Saudization) scale: Platinum, High Green, Medium Green, Low Green, Red. The rating decides how many foreign professions an entity can sponsor, which visas it can renew, and whether it can transfer Iqamas in.
A foreign company entering through an LLC typically starts at zero employees and lands in Platinum (because the percentage of Saudis to non-Saudis is irrelevant at the founding moment). The first non-Saudi hire often drops the entity to Red, freezing further visas until a Saudi national is hired. Solving the Saudization gate before the visa filing — not after — is the single biggest accelerator on a Saudi hire plan.
Not every Saudi assignment needs a work visa. Three alternatives cover the majority of cases where a block visa would be too slow or too expensive: an Employer of Record sponsors the employee on Tamra's licence (zero-entity hires), the Premium Residency lets a single founder live and work in KSA without an employer sponsor, and Business Visit Visas cover scoping trips, client meetings, and conferences.
Each alternative has compliance edges. EOR holders are sponsored by the EOR's entity and cannot legally perform work for a different employer. Premium Residency holders can own businesses without a Saudi partner but must still file tax. Business Visit Visa holders cannot collect a salary, sign contracts on behalf of a Saudi entity, or attend payroll.
MHRSD will not approve a work permit unless the requested profession code matches the candidate's attested qualifications. An engineering graduate cannot be sponsored as a ‘Sales Manager’; a finance graduate cannot be filed as ‘Software Engineer’. The profession code drives the Saudization weight, the minimum salary threshold for family sponsorship, and Iqama renewal eligibility.
Medical and engineering professions have an additional layer: the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties (SCFHS) classifies medical staff into licensure tiers, and the Saudi Council of Engineers (SCE) verifies every engineering Iqama against the engineer's degree and experience. A profession-code mismatch is the second-most-common visa rejection on our desk after Saudization band failures.
Once issued, the Iqama belongs to the worker and can move between Saudi sponsors via Qiwa's Nakl al-Khidmat (sponsorship transfer) workflow. Both the current and target employer must agree, both must hold compatible Nitaqat bands, and the worker must give explicit Qiwa consent.
Transfers cost SAR 2,000 between most entities and SAR 0 if both employers are Nitaqat Platinum. The 2021 Labour Reform Initiative removed the historical employer-veto on first-year transfers, but Qiwa still applies a 1-year minimum service rule before a transfer can proceed without the current employer's consent.
Family sponsorship is unlocked once the principal's Iqama is issued and the salary threshold is met. The threshold varies by profession band: SAR 4,000/month for most professional roles, SAR 10,000+/month for senior management. Children up to 18 (or 25 if in full-time education) and the spouse may join; parents are restricted to specific medical or care cases.
Each dependant carries SAR 400/month government dependant levy (the ‘family tax’) plus mandatory CCHI insurance. The dependant visa is issued at the embassy in the family's country of residence, takes 15–30 days to stamp, and the in-country Iqama issues within 90 days of arrival. Schools require the family Iqama before enrolment, so timing the family arrival before the school year is a frequent Tamra co-ordination.
Iqama holders cannot leave Saudi Arabia without an Exit/Re-entry visa issued on Absher by the employer. Single-trip exits are free; multiple-trip exits cost SAR 200 per month of validity. Forgetting to issue one before travel causes the worker to be flagged at immigration and either denied boarding or detained on return.
A Final Exit visa cancels the Iqama and the work permit on the same Absher transaction. It must be issued by the employer, signed off by the worker, GOSI cleared, and EOSB paid before the system will print the visa. End-to-end, a clean Final Exit runs 3–5 working days on Tamra-managed offboardings.
| Category | Government fees (SAR) | Annual labour levy (SAR) | Iqama issued |
|---|---|---|---|
| Block work visa | ~SAR 2,000 MOFA + SAR 650 medical | SAR 9,700/year | Yes (within 90 days) |
| Temporary work visa | ~SAR 2,000 MOFA + Qiwa fee | Pro-rated 12 months | No (Border Number) |
| Business visit visa | ~USD 100 e-visa | — | No |
| Premium Residency (limited) | SAR 100,000/year | — | Yes (self-sponsored) |
| Premium Residency (permanent) | SAR 800,000 one-off | — | Yes (lifetime) |
Figures are headline employer costs; recruitment, attestation, medical, and travel costs are excluded. Always verify on Qiwa before quoting a candidate.
Plan for 30–60 days from quota request to Iqama, assuming the candidate's documents are already attested. The bottleneck is almost always MOFA stamping at the local Saudi embassy, which varies from 5 to 20 working days depending on country.
Yes — through an Employer of Record. The EOR uses its own MISA license and MHRSD quota to sponsor the visa, employs the worker on a Saudi-compliant contract, runs payroll through Mudad, and remits GOSI. The end client receives services under a master services agreement, not an employment relationship.
A block visa is a long-term, employer-sponsored work permit that leads to an Iqama. A Temporary Work Visa is a project-based authorisation for up to 12 months (extendable to 24) with no Iqama issued — the holder uses a Border Number for ID. Block visas are renewable annually; TWVs are not.
MOFA stamping happens at the Saudi embassy where the candidate is legally resident, which is usually their home country. Third-country stamping is possible if the candidate holds a valid residence permit there. We do not recommend applying from countries where the candidate is on a visit visa — embassies routinely refuse.
Once the candidate holds an Iqama, the Iqama (not the visa) can be transferred between Saudi sponsors via Qiwa, subject to both employers' Nitaqat ratings and the worker's consent. Transfer is free between Platinum entities and costs SAR 2,000 between most others.
The degree must be authenticated by the country's foreign ministry (apostille if a Hague signatory), then legalised by the Saudi embassy. For India, Pakistan, the Philippines, and several African countries the chamber of commerce attests first. Tamra's mobility desk co-ordinates this against the latest MHRSD circular.
An entity that moves from Green to Red mid-filing will see new work permits frozen but visas already issued can complete the Iqama process. Pending Qiwa quota requests are typically returned to draft and need to be re-submitted after a Saudi hire restores the colour band.
Yes. The Council of Cooperative Health Insurance (CCHI) requires every Iqama-holding worker to be insured by an approved Saudi provider before the Iqama prints. Most employers buy a one-year policy bundled with the visa filing; renewals follow the Iqama cycle.
No — family members travel on dependant visas issued after the principal's Iqama is in hand. The principal needs a minimum salary (currently SAR 4,000–10,000 depending on profession) and suitable housing. Dependant fees are SAR 400 per dependant per month plus SAR 100 medical levy.
We pre-validate the quota in Qiwa before opening the visa file, run the candidate's attestation in parallel with the embassy slot booking, and book the medical for day-of-arrival. End-to-end median on Tamra-managed visas is 28 days versus the market median of 45.
Our Riyadh team handles the live filings every day.
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