Saudi Arabia’s business community is adapting to the frequent changes in travel requirements, the latest of which include a booster, or third dose of vaccine, and a 48-hour PCR test, as the world continues to deal with coronavirus.
As of February 1, a booster jab of an approved coronavirus vaccine was required for adults aged 18 years old to enable them to keep their fully vaccinated status on the Tawakkalna app (Saudi Arabia’s version of the UAE’s Al Hosn app, a digital record of vaccines and PCR tests for residents, nationals and travellers).
“This has caught some of our clients by surprise, particularly when they have already received, for example, two doses of Sinopharm and two doses of Pfizer,” said Paul Arnold, managing director of Sovereign Saudi Arabia.
“In reverse, we have seen some businessmen and women departing Saudi earlier than they had originally planned given that they could not maintain the “green” fully vaccinated status on their Tawakkalna app without a booster shot,” he continued.
February 9 saw the Saudi authorities introduce a 48-hour negative PCR test requirement (versus the previous 72 hour requirement) for travellers from several countries, including the UAE, the UK and the US, as well as a rapid antigen test upon arrival to the kingdom.
Entry requirements for travellers to the kingdom are dependent on their residency status (i.e. Saudi national, resident or expat visitor/tourist) and their vaccine status and have needed some adapting to, explained Arnold.
“Whilst we have not seen any drop-off in demand over the last several months for frequent business travel to and from Saudi Arabia, there does appear to be ongoing concerns around last minutes changes to border restrictions causing some people to intentionally exit the kingdom each weekend or cancel their planned trips outside of Saudi Arabia,” said Arnold.
“However, the situation is improving and we continue to support clients with their pre-arrival guidance, on-the-ground support services and business expansion plans,” he added.
High business interest in Saudi Arabia continues, despite coronavirus-related travel restrictions
Restriction and its impact on business
Despite these challenges, there is still a “huge interest” from companies looking to expand into Saudi Arabia, said Alex Nicholls, director of Enter KSA, AstroLabs, adding that they’ve seen a 112 percent increase in the number of companies they’ve helped expand to Saudi Arabia in the last year alone.
To Nicholls, frequently changing travel requirements is part and parcel of any country adapting to the ongoing pandemic and its changing severity.
“The new requirements of two vaccine jabs and a booster has not come as a surprise. People are keen to travel regardless and it’s our role to closely monitor changes and get our customers ready accordingly,” said Nicholls.
“Saudi Arabia was ranked second in a recent poll for dealing with Covid-19 and this means changing travel regulations as the situation changes. The country’s management of the pandemic has made it a thriving business community and enticing to foreign businesses looking to expand,” he explained.
Nicholls noted that, because of the travel restrictions, it is preferable for companies doing business in Saudi Arabia to be registered in the kingdom as that would mean they get Iqamas, or residency papers, for their employees.
“Our AstroLabs Talent team has witnessed an analogous trend when hiring in the Middle East with many companies opting to hire within Saudi Arabia, particularly leaning towards hiring Saudi nationals within the kingdom, supporting Saudisation quota needs and reducing the amount of consultants needing to fly into the country,” said Nicholls.
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