Law & You - 2010 No. 17

The answer is yes if your employer is willing to do so. Switching professions will require you to provide relevant certificates and to have them certified by relevant Saudi authorities, including the Foreign Affairs Ministry. Your employer can then submit a request for the change to the Passport Department, which will provide you with a new iqama.

If someone terminates his contract and leaves the Kingdom with a no-objection certificate (NOC) from his employer, can he return on a new work visa which is pending in his home country? I saw in many of your replies that one has to stay in his home country for at least one year and then come back to the Kingdom. — H.R.

You need the NOC and the termination letter from your employer. But you should also check with the nearest Saudi diplomatic mission in your home country, because regulations change without notice. It is the obligation of your employer to provide a termination letter even if he does not provide an NOC. Your employer is also obliged to issue a certificate of experience for the period of work.

I had my iqama transferred to my present employer. In my new contract there was no housing or transportation allowances indicated, as was my contract with my previous employer. I spoke to their personnel director regarding that. He told me that if I want a housing allowance I would only get 10 percent of my basic salary and no annual ticket. This applies for all  locally hired employees, but for those hired from their home country enjoy both housing and transportation allowances. May I know the provisions of the law in this regard? — X.Y.

This is an agreement between you and your present employer. You should have thought of your requirements before signing the new agreement. Now, you may take it or leave it. Try to negotiate the matter to the best of your capabilities.

I joined a reputable company as a computer operator through sponsorship transfer around a year ago by signing a two-year contract. Now I want to switch jobs. Can I resign now with a three-month notice? What is the meaning of a two-year contract? Does it mean that after the three-month probation period I am not free to leave the job? My passport is with the owner. He is threatening that if I quit the job he will send me on final exit. What shall I do in this situation? — A.P.T.I.D.

Signing a two-year contract puts on both you and your employer the obligation to continue together for the whole period. If you or your employer decides to terminate this relationship prematurely, the other party has the right to ask for compensation. Your employer is not obligated to facilitate your transfer. Your employer cannot object to you leaving the country, either. If you leave, you must stay out of the country for one year before being able to return to work for someone else.

— Answers given by  Muhammad Jaber Nader

— Questions may be sent to Arab News by e-mail (arabnews@arabnews.com), fax (02)2836228, or regular mail (P.O. Box 10452, Jeddah 21433).