The Council of Ministers on Monday instructed the Ministry of Labor and Social Development to make electronic Ijar system mandatory for the issuance and renewal of work permits for non-Saudis. The weekly session of the Cabinet, chaired by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman at Al-Yamama Palace in Riyadh, directed the ministry to coordinate with the Ministry of Housing to work out the necessary mechanism. Adel Al-Turaifi, minister of culture and information, said the Cabinet decided that any rental contract not registered with the electronic Ijar system will be considered invalid. The Cabinet also called on the ministries of justice and housing to draw up the necessary conditions and requirements to be included in the contract so as to register with the Ijar electronic system. The electronic Ijar system, which came into force in 2014, was developed by the Ministry of Housing together with the ministries of commerce and interior. The Ministry of Housing made it mandatory for all real estate firms to join its electronic Ijar system that seeks to regulate the rental market with measures to protect the rights of landlords and tenants, and control rents. The system defines the rights of tenants and landlords by having both parties sign a rental agreement via Ijar network. Majed Al-Hoqail, minister of housing, said the Cabinet directive will help in regulating the rental market. In another development, the Ministry of Labor and Social Development urged private sector firms to take advantage of the ministry's system for borrowing government staff. In an order issued in September last year, the ministry stated that borrowing Saudi employees working in the government sector and universities will be calculated in the Nitaqat Saudization program. It has been specified that the private sector can borrow employees for full time job and on the basis of a labor contract, the Saudi Press Agency reported. Borrowing of one Saudi employee from the government sector or university by the private sector will be calculated as one Saudi under the Nitaqat program.
