Saudi Gazette report MADINAH —Awad Al-Hazmi, director of the labor office in Madinah, said the Passport Department in the city should not have charged citizens who wanted to correct the professions of their expatriate workers, Al-Watan daily reported Friday. “There's been a mistake on the part of the Passport Department and an urgent meeting has been held to rectify the situation,” Al-Hazmi added. The committee, comprising members from the Passport Department and the Labor Office, said the department will not charge any fees for profession changes during the grace period granted by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah for all expatriate workers so they can be in compliance with the Kingdom's residency laws. Previously, citizens who wanted to change the professions of their expatriate workers had to pay SR1,000 in fees to the department. These citizens have demanded that the department return the money to them. Al-Hazmi told Al-Watan that the department kept charging fees for two days amid opposition from many citizens, which negatively affected the flow of work. He noted that a private driver can transfer sponsorship to a company but an expatriate who works for a company as a laborer cannot change his profession to a private driver. Citizen Yousuf Imran said he had to travel to Jeddah to correct the profession of his expatriate worker because the Madinah Passport Department charged money for the procedure. “The expeditor suggested that I go to Jeddah if I don't want to pay any fees for this procedure.” Khalid Al-Attallah, director of the labor office in Najran, said work at the Passport Department branch was smooth. Applications for final exit, transfer of sponsorship, cancellation of fugitive (huroob) reports, and correction of professions for all nationalities are being processed in a timely manner.
