Okaz/Saudi Gazette DAMMAM — As many as 1,089,342 housemaid recruitment visas were issued through the Musaned electronic portal in 2016, the Ministry of Labor and Social Development has announced. It said that 61,411 workers, including 40,750 who have registered their data in the system, benefited from e-services offered by the portal. The ministry established Musaned in 2014 to issue recruitment visas electronically and enlighten all beneficiaries about their rights and duties. More than nine million people have visited the site since it became operational. The system contains all required documents including recruitment application forms as well as those for salary, exit-reentry, iqama (resident ID) and driving license. Hussain Al-Mutairi, chairman of the recruitment committee of the Eastern Province Chamber of Commerce and Industry, described the program as "excellent." "Citizens can process recruitment contracts without visiting any service office," he said. "The subscription in the program is free of charge for citizens and recruitment offices," he added. Mutairi said the ministry has made it obligatory on all licensed recruitment offices to register in the program. Former deputy chairman of the committee Ibrahim Al-Sanie said the ministry has introduced the program to be a reliable platform which displays recruitment fees, nationalities which can be hired and the time limit for recruitment. "Under the program, recruitment visas are issued electronically," he said. According to the ministry, there are 605 licensed recruitment offices in the Kingdom employing more than 600,000 Saudis.
