Saudi extends amnesty period for illegal stayers

Rasika Somarathna and Suraj Bandara

Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, extended by four more months an amnesty enabling illegal foreign workers on its soil to correct their status or return home without prosecution. The amnesty due to expire on Wednesday now has been extended until November 4 under a direct order by the Saudi King.

Foreign Employment Promotion and Welfare Minister Dilan Perera yesterday welcomed the decision taken by Saudi authorities to extend the grace period for illegal foriegn workers to regularise their status.

According to the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE), around 99 per cent, out of nearly 14,000 Sri Lankan migrant workers staying in Saudi Arabia illegally had completed formal registrations before Wednesday that would allow them to either stay and work with legal status or return home without prosecution.

The Saudi King announced the amnesty on April 3, granting foreign workers three months to regularize their residency or leave the Kingdom to avoid being jailed and fined.

Those who failed to conform will be prosecuted and may face a two year jail term and a fine of Saudi Riyal 100,000 (Rs. 3.5 million), Saudi authorities said. However, with the extension such illegal workers now have the opportunity to regularize their status until November 4.

According to the SLBFE, around 3,000 Sri Lankans out of 14,000 who have overstayed their Visa's have requested to correct their status and work in Saudi while others have consented to return home.

According to the SLBFE already 2,400 Sri Lankan's who accepted the amnesty have returned home and others are to be brought back within a stipulated time period (within 2-3 months). After Saudi authorities announced the amnesty on April 3, the Lankan embassy in Riyadh worked round the clock with additional manpower been deployed to assist Lankans staying illegally in the Kingdom. They issued temporary passports to workers who need them and guided them to contact the Saudi Immigration Police to obtain the exit permits. However, if any Lankan worker has serious criminal records pending against him or her in Saudi Arabia the Immigration Police will not grant exit permits to them, SLBFE said.

Saudi Arabia is the topmost destination for Sri Lankan migrant workers and over 600,000 Sri Lankans are employed in the kingdom. Currently there are around 1.7 million Sri Lankans in overseas employment.