Premium Residency types explained

Premium Residency is a Saudi residence permit issued by the Premium Residency Center. Its holder is not tied to a sponsor: you can live in the Kingdom, work, move between employers and do business under the Investment Law.

There is not one Premium Residency but seven products. Each has its own conditions and its own government fee, and some lead to permanent residency. Picking the right one is the first decision.

The Center lists the same core benefits on every product page:

• Live in the Kingdom with your family: spouse, children under 25 and parents
• Leave and come back without a visa, for you and your family
• No expat fees for you, your dependants and companions
• Move freely from one employer to another
• Own real estate, and do business under the Investment Law
• Visit visas for relatives, and the citizens' lanes at airports
• Family members may work in the private sector

These two products have no professional or investment test. The Center asks for proof that you can support yourself financially.

• Limited Duration Premium Residency: a fixed term of one to five years, renewable. Government fee: SAR 100,000 for each year.
• Unlimited Duration Premium Residency: permanent residency. Government fee: SAR 800,000, paid once.

Both run for five years, renewable once, and can become permanent after 30 months of residence within five years while you still meet the conditions. The government fee is SAR 4,000, paid once. The main holder is exempt from Nitaqat.

• Special Talent Residency: for experienced professionals with a bachelor's degree or higher and more than three years' experience, an employer recommendation and a minimum points score. The Center sets three tracks with minimum monthly salaries: researchers (SAR 14,000, with published research and a contract with an approved entity), healthcare and scientific professionals (SAR 35,000) and senior executives (SAR 80,000).
• Gifted Residency: for talent in culture and sport, such as film, design, music, heritage or fashion, and sports from football to e-sports. It needs a recommendation from the Ministry of Culture or the Ministry of Sports, and either a recognised award or nomination, or the ministry's own minimum criteria.

Both are for people building a business in the Kingdom. The government fee for each is SAR 4,000, paid once.

• Investor Residency: permanent residency directly. You need a Ministry of Investment registration with your own share worth at least SAR 7 million, a commercial registration, proof the capital was paid in, and 10 employees shown on the company's GOSI certificate. The SAR 7 million investment must be kept for the first two years.
• Entrepreneur Residency: for founders of startups, in any sector. Category 1 needs a Ministry of Investment entrepreneur registration, a funding round of at least SAR 400,000 from an investor on the Center's approved list, and a founder's share of at least 20%; it runs for five years, renewable once. Category 2 needs a round of at least SAR 15 million, a share of at least 10% and 10 new jobs in each of the first two years, and gives permanent residency directly. The founder can nominate two staff for Special Talent Residency, and the company is exempt from Nitaqat for its first three years.

For owners of residential property in the Kingdom. The government fee is SAR 4,000, paid once.

• Category 1: you own, or hold the usufruct of, an existing residential property worth at least SAR 4 million. It must be a completed home, not land, and it must not be mortgaged. The residency lasts as long as you keep the property.
• Category 2: you buy a residential unit off-plan worth at least SAR 4 million from a developer approved by the Real Estate General Authority, pay at least SAR 1 million or 10% (whichever is higher) without mortgage financing, and the ownership must transfer to you within five years of purchase.

The Center also asks for a minimum stay in the Kingdom: 10 days in the first year and 5 days in each later year.

Whatever the product, the Center's general conditions are:

• At least 21 years old
• A valid passport
• Proof of financial solvency
• A clean criminal record
• A medical report no older than six months
• If you apply from inside the Kingdom, a legal residence there

Medical insurance in the Kingdom is needed before the residency is issued. The Center states that its conditions can change, so check them again just before you apply.

The Center's service-level page states 90 business days to process an application, and 15 working days to grant the residency once the fee is paid. Time spent completing a missing document, or waiting on another government body, is not counted in those 90 days.

The government fee is paid after approval, not when you apply: you have 30 days from the approval notice to pay, or the application is cancelled.

Mohla Premium Residency starts with an honest eligibility review, so you do not spend on an application you are unlikely to win. We then collect your documents, verify them with their source, arrange attestation and Arabic translation, submit the file to the Premium Residency Center and answer every request for more information until the decision.

The government fee is paid to the Center at cost. Mohla's own fee is in the written quote you receive before any work starts. Approval is always the Center's decision.