Riyadh: The Saudi government has decided to take important steps to facilitate foreigners residing in Saudi Arabia with their families, which will make it easier to open a bank account.
The banking sector has been given utmost importance under Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030. In this regard, the Banking Council has said that by the year 2030, cash transactions with the kingdom will be completely eliminated.
The Banking Council is moving fast towards achieving the set target for which work is being done in phases. The provision of “spin” system has been ensured in supermarkets, petrol stations and other shops to ensure payment through debit card.
In addition, grocery store owners are required to provide a “spin” system in their stores, which is called “Madi” in Arabic.
The system of payment of salaries of workers in the country has also been done through banks for which every worker must open a bank account.
In the past, to open a bank account, one had to go through many difficult steps, for which one had to go through various steps besides getting advance time from the bank. However, now the steps for opening an account have been made easier.
Employee payroll account
There are different types of bank accounts for the salaries of domestic and foreign employees. An NOC is required from the sponsor to open a payroll account, after which the account is opened by filling in the prescribed form along with a copy of residency and passport.
Employees’ rights are also protected by the employee’s pay account where employee rights are protected. Salary account is proof of whether the employees are being paid on time by the employer or not. If there is an unusual delay in payment of wages, a complaint may be lodged with the Labor Office.
On the other hand, the employer also has proof that the employee has been paid and the bank payment record is the guarantor of this.
Private account
In the past, opening a private account used to be a bit difficult. If one had to open an account in the name of his wife or children, he would have to wait a long time and go through various approvals. One window operation has been facilitated in all the banks.
The most important document for opening a private account is the “postal code” which is called “titles” in Arabic. A bank account cannot be opened without a title. The national title refers to the home address that must be registered at the post office.
The address can also be obtained from the Post Office website. After getting the address from the website, it is confirmed in the post office system from where the postal code is issued.
The postal code issued by the post office must be provided at the time of opening the bank account, otherwise the account will not be opened. A copy of the residency is required in addition to the postal code or national title.
After opening a bank account and renewing the residency, it is mandatory that the residency information be updated in the bank system every year so that there is no account seizure.
With the expiration of residency approaching through the banking system, the user is notified via a mobile message so that the account can be updated immediately after the residency renewal, which does not lead to an account seizure.
If the residency is not updated in the system, the bank account is seized and it does not operate until the residency is updated.
