Changing Iqama Profession in Saudi Arabia

If your current profession on passport or Iqama is different from your actual profession, you need to change your profession. In Saudi Arabia, you are known with the profession you have on your visa or Iqama. Even if you are a doctor but the profession on your visa or iqama is labor, you are considered labor in the government office. By the way, it is very important to mention here that it against the law to have a different profession in your Iqama than your actual profession. Passport office conduct raids to different companies time to time and if somebody is caught, he is kept in detention center and later on deported from Saudi Arabia.

Need for change in profession arises normally when you enter to Saudi Arabia on Azad or Free Visa. Before changing the profession of the Iqama, I would suggest you to go through the list of profession which is benefited on priority basis by the Saudi authorities. However, you should make sure that your intended profession is not one of those professions reserved for Saudis. In order to change the profession on your iqama, you need to have;

• An attested degree from Saudi Culture and Saudi Embassy in your country.
• Attested degree should be of relevant field of your intended profession. If you want to change your profession to doctor, you should have attested degree of doctor.
• Deposited SR 1,000/- for the change in profession. However, according to Arab News, The labor Ministry has waived the SR1,000 fee for changing professions if the process takes place through its online portal. You will have to bear these charges
• To contact Mandoob of your company after fulfilling all the above mentioned steps. Mandoob of your company may also have to bribe someone in the Jawazat for which he may ask you to give him some money e.g. SR 1,000.

Consequences of having Different Profession

• As it is already mentioned, it is illegal to have a different profession on your iqama, you can be detained in the detention center in case of any raid of Jawazat in your office.
• Your application for visa will not be successful if your profession is low profile.
• You cannot get family status in Saudi Arabia. You cannot bring your family to Saudi Arabia on permanent basis.
• You cannot apply for visit visa for your parents, unmarried sisters and others.

Visa profession cannot be changed if any of the following exist;

1. Traffic violations present against employee
2. The employee’s Iqama is expired.
3. There is no approval for the request from the ministry of labor.
4. The status of the employee is “runaway”.
5. Traffic violations present against the sponsor.
6. No sufficient funds are available for profession change stop the process
7. If you have been awarded an individual visa like Driver for Home, Housemaid etc.

If you have already applied for change of profession, you can check the status of change in profession in this article.

FAQs

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Categories: Saudi Arabia immigration