Sources have said that the Shoura Council is expected to follow the advice of its Finance Committee and reject a proposal to reduce foreign recruitment visa fees for individual workers. Official sources from the Council said that the Finance Committee based its recommendation on the fact that the proposal was “drawn up under different circumstances from now, given the moves concerning fees for iqama residency permits and the nature of recruitment”. Among those moves are the reduction in charges for house worker visa renewals from SR600 to SR350, the Ministry of Labor's drawing up of a law governing house workers recruitment firms, the “One hour, One Day, One Month” service procedure scheme, the exemption of special needs persons from visa charges, and the special residency permits for drivers, housemaids and nurses. The sources said that the Finance Committee was concerned that the proposal would not benefit limited-income groups, believing it to instead “exacerbate financial problems by encouraging house worker recruitment”. The committee also expressed its reservations over the low proposed reduction rate in fees, noting that it only amounted to four percent, and was concerned at the “possible social, economic and security effects of an increase in recruitment resulting from a lowering of fees”. Supporters of the proposal at the Finance Committee have called for the issue to be looked at by a specially-designated committee, saying that most of the committee's members had views not based on proper studies. The supporters blame high fees for housemaids running away from their sponsors and for sponsors covering for workers who seek employment elsewhere. They say that incremental visa charges as proposed would ease financial burdens and help reduce recruitment and the number of persons seeking ways around the law. Culture of dependence The Ministry of Labor has reportedly told the Shoura Council of its view on the proposal, saying that it would lead to a “significant increase” in house worker recruitment from abroad and “affect the demographic structure and reinforce the culture of dependence on others”. The ministry also has concerns that the proposal would affect Saudization in the private sector by leading to more foreign workers entering the market for jobs for which they were not brought to the country while causing a surplus demand for certain jobs from Saudis. According to the ministry, the move might also encourage poorer families to recruit house workers when “they don't have the income to keep to their commitments”. This, the ministry believes, would “lead to workers, particularly housemaids, running away, and some of them involving themselves in forbidden activities and crime”. The proposal put before the Shoura Council includes reducing entry visa fees for individual house workers, drivers, shepherds and farmhands to SR500 for the first visa, SR1,000 for the second, SR1,500 for the third, and SR2,000 for the fourth and all subsequent visas requested by the same sponsor. Also proposed were iqama permit issuing charges of SR100 for the first, SR200 for the second, SR300 the third, and SR500 for all subsequent iqamas sought by a sponsor.
