TRANSFER OF SPONSORSHIP (NAQAL KAFALA)
Transfer of Sponsorship-Once you are in Saudi Arabia you become the responsibility of your employer. From paying for your first iqama until your exit visa for when you are leaving your job. It is always recommended to be on good terms with your kafeel/sponsor since without his approval you cannot exit KSA. It is for this reason it is not an easy task to shift your job in KSA. Since no employer is happy to let go off an employee and go through the whole recruitment process again. It is a matter of extreme delicacy and should be dealt with very carefully.
Transfer of sponsorship has become more routine in the last couple of years with new regulations implemented by the Saudi Ministry of Labor.
Transfer of sponsorship or Naqal Kafala
- It should be noted that you should not approach your current job with your notice letter until you have the job offer in hand from your new employer.
- As per Saudi law you need to give a notice of at least 30 days before resigning. Usually but not always the expiry of your iqama (residence permit) will coincide with your employment contract. So give your notice 30 days prior to iqama renewal.
- It always helps to get help from someone influential when talking to your current employer so that things do not go sour between you two and the matter can be resolved cordially. Keep it in mind that you are treading on dangerous waters here since one wrong move and you might end up with an exit visa. Also if you have been under your current employer’s employment for more than two years, on resignation you will be entitled to . To gain the most from it, try to handle it in the best way possible.
- If your current employer agrees to let you switch your job you will have to go to your new sponsor and ask him to enter a request for transfer or talab through the MOL website. Once this is done your current sponsor will accept the request and your transfer will be approved.
- Pay the fees for iqama transfer
Manual Transfer of Sponsorship
Manual method: Two letters of request are submitted to Jawazat office and labor office by your current sponsor allowing the change of sponsorship. Along with this the current sponsor will also have to accept the online request for transfer of sponsorship on MOL systems. This system is rarely accepted now.
Note: Do not ease back till your sponsorship has transferred completely. As per Saudi Laws your current employer can call a halt to the whole process even after issuing all these letters. If he goes back on his words for any reason within 5 days of commencement of process, the request will not be entertained by Saudi authorities.
When the process is completed your new employer will take your old iqama to the Jawazat and get a new iqama printout.
Who bears the charges for Iqama Transfer?
As per Saudi Law it is your new employer who is to handle the charges of the iqama transfer but this is not the case mostly. Your new employer would only pay charges equivalent to amount of first transfer i.e.SR2000. The rest would be on you.
For example, for second time iqama transfer the charges are SR4000.Your employer would only pay SR2000 and you will have to pay the rest. For the third iqama transfer you pay SR4000 and your employer his SR2000.
Is permission of current employer always needed for transfer of sponsorship?
No .There are instances where you do not need approval from your current employer before transferring sponsorship. In these cases you simply hand over your old iqama and passport to your new employer after serving the notice period with your current employer.
Current sponsor’s approval for transfer of sponsorship is not needed when:
- You current employer does not give you your iqama within three months of you arriving in KSA
- When your iqama is not renewed within one month of expiry
- When your sponsor is in Red or Yellow category
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