According to an official report, a total of 9,479 people were arrested for violations of residency laws, while 3,763 were held over illegal border crossing attempts, and a further 1,430 for labor-related issues.
The report showed that among the 996 people arrested for trying to enter the Kingdom illegally, 64 percent were Ethiopian, 33 percent Yemeni, and 3 percent were of other nationalities.
A further 37 people were caught trying to cross into neighboring countries, and six were held for involvement in transporting and harboring violators.
The Saudi Ministry of Interior said that anyone found to be facilitating illegal entry to the Kingdom, including providing transportation and shelter, could face imprisonment for a maximum of 15 years, a fine of up to SR1 million ($260,000), as well as confiscation of vehicles and property.
Suspected violations can be reported on the toll-free number 911 in the Makkah and Riyadh regions, and 999 or 996 in other regions of the Kingdom.
Nearly 5.7 million violators of residency, work and border security systems have been arrested in the Kingdom, according to an official report.
Since the campaign began on Nov. 15, 2017 — and up to June 16, 2021 — there have been 5,651,619 offenders, including 4,323,083 for violating residency regulations, 803,186 for labor violations and 525,350 for border violations.
The report said that 116,930 people were arrested while trying to cross the border into the Kingdom: 43 percent were Yemeni citizens, 54 percent were Ethiopians and 3 percent were of other nationalities.
In addition, 9,550 people were arrested for trying to cross into neighboring countries, and 8,241 were arrested for involvement in transporting and harboring violators.
Some 2,769 Saudis were arrested for harboring violators against local laws, of whom six were being detained pending the completion of procedures.
Immediate penalties were imposed against 715,216 offenders, 913,306 were transferred to their respective diplomatic missions to obtain travel documents, 1,050,132 were transferred to complete their travel reservations, and 1,559,919 were deported.
Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development control teams carried out 17,737 inspection tours in a single week on private sector enterprises in the Kingdom to ensure compliance with labor regulations.
Teams also followed up on precautionary and preventive measures against the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The inspection tours, carried out between April 1-7, recorded 2,261 violations of work regulations and 184 violations of precautionary measures, while the ministry issued 1,724 warnings.
The ministry received 1,408 reports via various media, which were directly handled by officials.
Inspection tours will continue on private sector enterprises in all regions of the Kingdom, the ministry said, stressing the importance of complying with labor market regulations to avoid penalties
Breaches of labor laws can be reported through the call center (19911) or “ma3an-lil-rasd” app.
