RIYADH — The Qiwa platform under the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development has removed the occupation of general manager from expatriate records, confirming that the occupation is restricted to Saudi nationals only.
The report explained that an establishment with an employee in the occupation of general manager can change this to another occupation, such as CEO or chairman of the board, only if the employee is registered in the commercial register with the same occupation and there are no other employees in the establishment with the same occupation.
The Qiwa platform also began suspending certain job change services for expatriates. Some of the most prominent of these professions include general manager, sales representative, marketing specialist, and purchasing manager.
Businesses that want to change an employee’s occupation on the platform’s site will see a message that says, “Sorry, you cannot change an employee’s current occupation.” The platform has made it clear that once you see this message, you cannot change from that occupation to another or vice versa.
The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development recently decided to increase the localization rate of marketing and sales jobs in order to increase the level of Saudiization in the professions in order to provide stimulating and productive employment opportunities for male and female nationals.
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The first decision mandates that the saud rate in the private sector marketing profession be raised to 60 percent, effective January 19, 2026. This applies to establishments employing three or more workers in marketing positions, and the minimum wage is set at R5,500.
Targeted positions include marketing managers, advertising agencies, advertising managers, graphic designers, advertising designers, public relations specialists, advertising specialists, marketing specialists, public relations managers, and photographers. This decision will be implemented three months after the announcement date to allow facilities enough time to prepare and implement.
The second decision provides for increasing the Saudiization rate in private sector sales jobs to 60%, effective from January 19, 2026. This applies to establishments with three or more employees in sales positions. Eligible positions include sales managers, retail sales representatives, wholesale sales representatives, sales representatives, IT and communications equipment sales specialists, sales specialists, and freight brokers.
The decision will take effect three months after the announcement date to give affected facilities time to meet requirements and achieve Saudization goals.
