22,894 Penalty Decisions Against Residency Violators

Saudi authorities issued 22,894 administrative penalty decisions during Rabi Al-Awwal 1448 AH (September 2026) against citizens and expatriates who violated residency, labor, and border security regulations, as part of an ongoing national compliance campaign across all regions of the Kingdom.

The penalties applied in these decisions include imprisonment, financial fines, and the deportation of expatriate violators, with the possibility of re-entry bans. Field campaigns continue to track, arrest, and process violators of residency, labor, and border security systems throughout the country.

Strict penalties for facilitators

Individuals who facilitate illegal entry, or who transport, shelter, or employ violators face severe consequences: imprisonment of up to 15 years, fines reaching SAR 1,000,000, confiscation of vehicles and property used in offenses, and public naming of offenders in serious cases.

Establishments that violate residency and labor rules — such as employing workers illegally or allowing them to work for others — may face fines of up to SAR 100,000 imprisonment of up to one year for responsible managers, deportation of expatriate managers after serving their sentence, and a ban on recruiting foreign workers for up to five years. Such establishments may also be red-listed on the labor portal, blocking new visas and residency services.

Employers who delay Iqama renewal face escalating fines: SAR 500 for a first violation, SAR 1,000 for a second, and a fine plus deportation of the worker and future hiring restrictions for a third. Overstay violations carry structured penalties reaching thousands of riyals.

The public can report residency, labor, and border security violators by calling 911 in the Riyadh, Makkah, Madinah, and Eastern Province regions, and 999 in the rest of the Kingdom.

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