Job Discussion Forums

eatapeach · Joined: 18 Mar 2012 Posts: 7

Hi. I would be so grateful for real time info on the following:

1) Is there any truth that Al Khaleej does not pay in an accurate and timely manner (excluding any adminstrative or unintentional mistakes that happen on occassion)?

2) The idea of an EXIT visa worries me. Can a mutliple entry/exit visa be obtained through this employer? I have these visions of my boss subjectively deciding if I can leave the country, be it for the weekend or permanently.

3) If an emergency does arise, do employer and/or KSA government show any sense of urgency on your behalf in obtaining the EXIT visa?

Thank you so much for any help.

desert_traveller · Joined: 28 Nov 2006 Posts: 335

Grendal · Posted: Wed Mar 21, 2012 8:33 am Post subject:

I've got it all figured out. Define "it". "It" is the bucket that gets full. Then this one ain't full yet, of either substance.

The first problem is getting here by however means either a work visa which transfers into an iqamah or a visit visa. With the iqamah you pay something like 200 SAR at most ATM machines under the government payments section then you go to your employer who prints out an exit entry form for you because now you have paid and unlocked one exit entry for that iqamah number. Your employer puts their seal on this exit/entry visa and it's all ready for use at the airport when you leave. When you get back you just enter with your passport and iqamah photocopy. You should always keep this visa with your passport when traveling.

Regards.

Grendal

p.s. this is not a definitive answer but it is my experience.

johnslat · Posted: Wed Mar 21, 2012 12:45 pm Post subject:

Dear desert_traveller,

" . . . most importantly, doubt all definite and definitive answers that you receive here or anywhere else. worst are the ones who think they have got it all figured out."

At last - a definitive answer.
Very Happy

Regards,
John

JerkyBoy · Joined: 12 Jan 2012 Posts: 485

eatapeach · Joined: 18 Mar 2012 Posts: 7

individual events never come nicely together to form consistent patterns, and whatever answers you get here are no guarantee or even indication of what eventually happens to you

Yes, I was looking for a pattern. But the lack of a pattern is helpful.
If individual actors in KSA can, at times, be agents of chaos, or their behavior varies wildly in non negotiable situations, (i.e. pay packets), it is a deal breaker.

When giving over so much power in your life, as a girl, to an employer in a theocracy, it would be more tolerable if they were as reliable as the trains in Germany.
Strict but fair.

The loss of power coupled with uncertainty about critical issues is not enticing. It is actually frightening.

eatapeach · Joined: 18 Mar 2012 Posts: 7

The first problem is getting here by however means either a work visa which transfers into an iqamah or a visit visa. With the iqamah you pay something like 200 SAR at most ATM machines under the government payments section then you go to your employer who prints out a exit entry form for you because now you have paid and unlocked one exit entry for that iqamah number. You employer puts their seal on this exit/entry visa and it all ready for use at the airport when you leave. When you get back you just enter with your passport and iqamah photocopy. You should always keep this visa with your passport when traveling.

Dear Grendel,

This is very helpful. Thanks!

That would take the anxiety out of one exit.

Let's say one weekend I want to fly to Dubai. Can that unlocked exit number be used for that purpose? And gain readmiitance...no probems?

I have this imagine of a wily supervisor, a smoke filled room and him toying with the idea of letting me leave KSA for the weekend.

It is hard to wrap your head around the whole IDEA of an exit visa linked to an employer.

If you want to do a runner in the middle of the night in Ankara, Vientiane, Moscow or Lima...no one gives it a glance. Sometimes, you just NEED to leave a country...it is an itch that starts and you have to go.

Therefore, the idea of one or two individuals being in charge of my ability to leave is terrible.

I will not beat it into the ground after this. I dont want to be burdensome.

But if it will be a Gordian Knot to fly out and visit other countries from time to time, that is a deadloss.

eatapeach · Joined: 18 Mar 2012 Posts: 7

Grendal · Posted: Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:37 pm Post subject:

eatapeach · Joined: 18 Mar 2012 Posts: 7

nomad soul · Joined: 31 Jan 2010 Posts: 11454 Location: The real world

JerkyBoy · Joined: 12 Jan 2012 Posts: 485

"I livvve in my sister's basemeennt!"

Grendal · Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2012 8:39 am Post subject: Re: To Grendal

johnslat · Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2012 12:39 pm Post subject:

Dear Grendal,

I suspect eatapeach's user name may have been inspired by T. S. Eliot:

From "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"

"I grow old � I grow old �
I shall wear the bottoms of my trousers rolled.

Shall I part my hair behind? Do I dare to eat a peach?
I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach.
I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each.

I do not think that they will sing to me."

Regards,
John

rio darro · Joined: 04 Dec 2008 Posts: 28

Hi eatapeach,

I lived almost 3 years in KSA and concur with what desert_traveler said. From personal experience, I can assure you that will NOT be able to leave the country (let alone get back in) no matter the reason if your papers are not in order. Much of that, indeed, is going to depend on the type of visa you carry- and regardless of holding an iguama or not, and the willingness of your employer to have earlier issued you a multiple entry.

You may, indeed, be subject by those same employers to those smoky rooms amongst whom are able to decide if you can leave or not, and for how many days. It's not a free will situation. At the border it is not in their hands to make a quick decision-they won't- it will hinge only on employer consent in the form of visa you have. Border agents have no authority to question visas (though they have some super smoky rooms to hang in!)

A reputable employer will not keep your passport and will help you to apply for an exit and re-entry visa that lasts for a defined period. (The time limit is a governmental, not institutional policy.) I was there when a transition occurred. It used to be on a multiple entry that you had 90 or 180 days from when the exit took place to get back in. I believe that changed and now it's from the date issued.

My quick recommendation is to never spend a day in the country without a valid (multiple entry) visa even though you think you're not going to use it in that time. Spend the (350?) SAR. Worth it! Hopefully your employer will understand the need and cooperate!
Best of luck always! RD

ps: eat a peach, r.i.p duane allman; best there ever was at guitar (if not motorcyclist)