Saudi extends visit visas for Yemenis

The Saudi government has extended the validity of visitor identity cards for Yemenis residing in the kingdom.

The kingdom’s General Directorate of Passports announced that Yemeni expatriates will have their visitor ID cards valid for an additional six months starting Sunday, December 18, in line with the directives of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Naif.

In a statement to Saudi Press Agency (SPA), the Passports directorate stressed that all the arrangements have been completed for the online extension of the cards.

Yemenis are not required to visit the Passports directorate offices to extend their ID cards. They can do it online through the Abshir service on the Interior Ministry’s portal after making an online payment of SAR100 through their bank accounts.

Every user will need to create an account on Abshir and opt for the ‘visitor identity’ option. The card will be printed and delivered to the user through the Wasel service of Saudi Post.

For those who have no postal address and have not registered their address on Wasel, they can register their address on Abshir to receive the card, the directorate said.

Yemeni vice president Ali Mohsen Al-Ahmar appreciated the new directive and said it proves the “profound fraternity and solidarity” between the two countries, reported SPA.

According to reports, thousands of Yemenis are currently residing in the kingdom on visit visas due to the ongoing war in their country.

A Saudi-led coalition has been fighting Houthi rebels and forces loyal to former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh in Yemen since March 2015, in a bid to restore President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to power.

The 20-month conflict has killed more than 10,000 people and left thousands homeless.