Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: A total of 146 Nepalis illegally employed in Saudi Arabia have received exit visas to return home.
The Saudi immigration office, at the initiative of the Nepali Embassy in Riyad, has granted ‘exit visas’ to 146 Nepali workers who were either ‘Huroob’ or had expired or missing ‘Iqama’.
Huroob is an Arabic word that signifies the act of escaping, absconding, or running away, particularly in the context of an employee being absent from work, while Iqama is residential permits employed by employers for workers.
According to a notice published by the Embassy of Nepal in Riyadh, the exit visa processing is free and no fee, as such needs to be paid to any agency. The embassy will prepare the necessary documents for workers who have received exit visas to facilitate their return home. Workers, however, will have to arrange air tickets to return to Nepal on their own.
In line with the policy of allowing illegal immigrant workers to return to their home countries, Saudi immigration has been granting exit visas to many foreign workers in recent years.
Exit visa processing is only available for individuals whose Iqama has expired for more than three months, those who have not received an Iqama despite being in Saudi Arabia for over three months, or those who have become Huroob.
The embassy has requested that Nepalis facing difficulties with exit visa processing contact the embassy office in Riyadh or the Nepali Consulate General in Jeddah for necessary information and facilitation.
