Director-General of Residency Affairs Brigadier General Hamad Al-Tawala said that the residencies of 182,393 expats stranded abroad have expired during the period between March 12, 2020, and 10th, January 2021, Aljarida daily reported.
In a press statement, Brigadier-General Al-Tawala explained that to stop the spread of coronavirus across the country, the Council of Ministers issued its decision No. 1016/2020, which stipulates “an emphasis on not granting entry visas of all kinds for all nationalities except with the approval of the Ministerial Committee for Corona Emergencies”.
Accordingly, sponsors must obtain the approval of the committee to issue entry visas for their employees. When the latter enter the country, they must be granted the required residence under their employers’ sponsorship.
Regarding expatriates who possess valid residency and whose stay outside the country exceeded six months, Brigadier General Al-Tawala said, “Coordination is ongoing between the Residency Affairs Department and the Information Systems Department to suspend work for six months, after which residency is forfeited for those outside the country if it ends. Therefore, they may enter the country during the period of the validity of their residency, even if their stay outside the country exceeded six months”.
He revealed that the number of violators who benefited from it from April to December 31 reached 69,427. Regarding the issuance of family visas to parents as rumored through the social media, Brigadier General Al-Tawala said, “We do not currently have a study in this regard, and no decision has been taken concerning this matter.”