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RIYADH: Saudi Arabia will allow certain categories of citizens and residents to exit and re-enter the kingdom through all land, sea, and air ports starting from Tuesday, given that all coronavirus-related precautionary measures are followed, state news agency SPA reported yesterday.
No person is allowed entry to the kingdom, unless they have proof of being free of Covid-19. This must be done by providing a negative result of a coronavirus test that is not older than 48 hours and must be done at a certified entity.
The kingdom will allow all of its citizens to travel internationally after January 1, 2021, however, it exempted a list of people who meet certain conditions.
The categories of people allowed to travel from Tuesday are as follows:
For Saudi nationals:
Government employees, both civilian and military, assigned to official duties.
Employees in the Saudi diplomatic and consular missions abroad, as well as attaches abroad and employees in regional and international organisations. This exemption includes their families and companions.
Permanent employees in public, private or non-profit establishments outside the kingdom, and those who have job titles in companies or commercial establishments outside Saudi Arabia.
Businessmen whose occupation requires travel for commercial and industrial business, and export, marketing and sales managers whose work requires visiting their clients.
Patients who require treatment abroad, especially cancer patients and organ transplant patients. This must be based on medical reports.
Scholarship students, students paying their own tuition and trainees in medical fellowship programmes, whose studies or training requires travel abroad. This exemption includes the students’ companions.
Two categories of humanitarian cases:
1. Reuniting a citizen’s family with their relatives abroad.
2. The death of a husband, wife, a parent, or child outside the kingdom.
Citizens who reside abroad and their companions, so long as they have documentation proving their residency abroad.
Participants in regional and international official sporting events, including players and members of technical and administrative staff.
For non-Saudis:
GCC citizens and non-Saudis will be allowed to enter the kingdom with valid work, residency or visit visas, given that they adhere to the coronavirus-related health precautions.
Saudi Arabia will later announce a plan to gradually re-allow Umrah pilgrimage, based on the coronavirus pandemic updates.
The kingdom had banned all international travel to and from its lands since early March as a measure to control the spread of the coronavirus.
The government began reopening and returning to “normalcy” at the end of May, but international flights remained banned.