JEDDAH – Huroob (missing from work) cases against all expatriates will be canceled in the new mechanism to correct the residency status of foreigners, Labor Ministry sources said. The sources did not specify when the correction measures will begin but attributed the delay in their implementation to the numerous violations to be covered and the comprehensive facilities to be offered. The sources also said that foreigners working in establishments in the red Nitaqat zone whose iqamas have expired can transfer to other sponsors without the need to renew their iqamas first. They explained that the correction procedures will begin with the iqama transfer first, then the change of the job title whenever required. They added that the availability of a passport is not a condition in the case of transfer from red Nitaqat establishments. Sources also estimated the number of unemployed Saudi women is five times that of men despite the employment of thousands of women in lingerie shops. About 85 percent of citizens under Hafiz program are women and the private sector is urged to provide more jobs to the Saudi women. Meanwhile, the labor and passport offices all over the Kingdom have geared up to rectify the status of undocumented foreigners before the end of the three-month grace period, which started on April 6. In Buraidah, both Saudi sponsors and their workers rushed in large numbers to the labor and passport offices to avail themselves of the grace period. Qasim Police spokesman Capt. Hammad Al-Harbi said citizens and foreigners were coming in large numbers to the passport department to enquire about the new correction mechanisms. “The foreigners now have a chance to correct their status before the termination of the grace period,” he said. The spokesman explained that regardless of the grace period, the passport campaign against illegal residents will never cease. A source at the labor office in Buraidah, who opted not to be identified, said the requests for recruitment visas for foreign manpower have dropped by about 50 percent. He said the office daily completes transfer of iqamas for more than 120 housemaids in addition to the other services. A number of foreigners said that their sponsors exploited their need for iqama transfer and asked them for large sums of money. Citizens, who are employing foreigners, also complained against greedy sponsors. Saad Al-Balawi, who owns a cafeteria, said the sponsor of the foreigner who works in his cafeteria asked him to pay SR20,000 to release the worker to him.
