Saudi Arabia has introduced revised limits on instant work visas for businesses seeking to recruit foreign workers, with newly established companies now restricted to a maximum of five visas during their first two years of operation.
Under the new framework, businesses that have been operating for more than two years may obtain up to 50 instant work visas, either through a single application or multiple applications submitted within the same week at the entity level.
The changes were highlighted in a recent regulatory update by immigration services firm Fragomen and are linked to Saudi Arabia’s broader efforts to regulate foreign labour recruitment, strengthen compliance and advance the localisation of jobs for Saudi nationals.
The revised framework is administered through Qiwa, the digital labour platform operated by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development, MHRSD.
The new limits represent a significant change for businesses that rely on foreign workers, particularly newly established companies that may need expatriate employees during their early stages of operation.
According to the updated rules, companies operating for less than two years can obtain up to five instant work visas.
Businesses that have been operating for more than two years, however, can access up to 50 visas, either in one application or through multiple applications during the same week at the company level.
The revised framework also provides a separate pathway for businesses participating in the Establishment Programme.
Such businesses that meet the prescribed requirements will initially receive two work visas, with their allocation capable of increasing as they progress through the programme and improve their Saudisation rate under the Nitaqat system.
The changes effectively tie access to foreign labour more closely to the maturity of a business, its compliance record and its employment of Saudi nationals.
Saudi Arabia has been pursuing a broader localisation strategy under its Vision 2030 programme, with the government seeking to increase the participation of Saudi citizens in private-sector employment while ensuring that foreign workers recruited into the country possess skills required by the labour market.
The Ministry has also introduced a separate work-permit classification system for non-Saudi workers based on skill categories. The classification considers factors including educational qualifications, professional experience, professional skills, wages and age.
The ministry said the skills-based classification was designed to improve the recruitment of qualified workers, facilitate the transfer of expertise to the Saudi labour market and ensure that foreign workers possess competencies that meet the needs of the Kingdom’s economy.
The classification was implemented in two stages, beginning with workers already employed in Saudi Arabia in July 2025 and extending to incoming foreign workers from August 3, 2025.
Conditions for recruiting foreign workers
Under the revised Qiwa framework, businesses seeking to recruit non-Saudi workers from outside the Kingdom must satisfy a number of conditions.
The establishment must be active and have valid work permits for its existing employees. Where applicable, its commercial registration must also be valid.
The business must also meet the required Saudisation threshold and be classified at least within the Medium Green category under the Nitaqat programme.
Employers are further required to comply with the Wage Protection System and have no outstanding labour-compliance issues.
Other requirements include maintaining sufficient financial credit on Saudi government platforms such as Absher or Muqeem and completing the annual self-assessment requirement for establishments with 10 or more employees.
