How can I go and live in Saudi Arabia?

[Imaduddin]

Assalamu alaykum, I'm the same brother who had the name Abd Al Islam then Awakened Muslim, now I will finally stick with Imaduddin.

For those who don't know who Imaduddin Zengi is, he is the father of Nuruddin Zengi, who in turn is the teacher of Salahuddin Ayubi. It was at the hands of Imaduddin that the crusades were really shaken up and opposed militarily for the first time by the Muslims. It took 3 generations to destroy the crusades it started with Imaduddin and finished with Salahuddin.

On topic now, I've been meaning to leave the country I am residing in and make hijrah for the sake of Allah to Madinah. I loved it there when I went for Umrah. Is anyone from Saudi Arabia who can help me? I've tried several times to contact the Embassy in my country but no one is answering my call, I've become quite angry about that.

I know that by leaving I won't have all this pathetic luxury that I have around me now, good riddance, I just like to live a simple life, not too rich just to have sufficient provisions for living and not for luxury. I miss Madinah too much. Can someone please help me?

Here's what I've come up with so far:
If someone who lives in Madinah 'takes me in' to live with them (on their land, not necessarily in their home) by paying them some money, would I be given permission to live there, I know they don't give you a passport - citizenship, but just a life long visa, would that work? Anyone know?

Jazak Allah khair for any help provided.

 

[Muhaba]

you can get visit visa and then go there. once there, you can try to find a job and then you'll get work visa and you'll be able to live and work in Saudi Arabia.

i don't know of any ways you can migrate. they don't have any immigration or naturalization system there. i heard of some revert muslims who got permanent residence visa there but how they did it is a mystery to me. they were students at Madina University and may have met some high ranking official who may have helped them. Allah knows best.

some companies sell visas that you can buy but they are costly and i don't know whether you'll be able to work anywhere with them.

a third thing you can do is open a company there. you'll need a lot of money to invest. you'll also need to get all information beforehand. i think you need a Saudi partner to start a company, like in other Gulf countries. this person may or may not invest money but he will have a share in ownership, you'll need to be careful there. you'll need to talk to lawyers and get a signed agreement to make sure that the suadi partner doesn't control the company or have the bank account in his name.

there may be other ways to open a company there without a saudi partner, but you'lll need more money and more information. see if you can get info online like from ministry of commerce. if you go to saudi embassy tell them you are interested in starting your own business and they might give you better information.

in any case, you'll need to go to saudi arabia if you want to start a company. there you'll need to get information from the minisitries and then rent an office or shop and then apply for license, etc. (if you need a saudi partner, you'll have to find one too.) once your license is ready, you can get visa there.

 

[Muslim Woman]

:wa:


What about Student Visa or Job permit ? Many people are living there since years.

 

[Muhaba]

^yes, if you can find a job, you can get a work visa. the employer will sponsor you and give you a visa. or you can buy a work visa. in the gulf region, you can't get a visa from the embassy. you get it from your employer who is the sponsor.

if you need a student visa, some colleges might give it to you but they rarely do. usually people get a residence visa from their families and then study. you can ask colleges about their policy regarding student visas, whether they give student visa or not.

 

[~ Sabr ~]

I know that by leaving I won't have all this pathetic luxury that I have around me now, good riddance, I just like to live a simple life, not too rich just to have sufficient provisions for living and not for luxury. I miss Madinah too much.

I swear Saudi is more advanced than UK and USA.

 

[dqsunday]

Check the Saudi Arabia embassy website, they tend to have info about immigration/visas on the site. At least the one I looked at did have info about it, though I didn't look closely as I am certainly not in a position to go move to Saudi Arabia. I would love to visit at some point to go to Mekka but its just not feasible for me at this time.

 

[جوري]

I have lived in Saudi for a while.. they don't grant citizenship to outsiders, they also don't enable you to go to their colleges, that may have changed since. I was a child when I lived there and that was way back when in the late eighties so things might have drastically changed. The only way I know of how is if you're working for an American company they treat outsiders well, outsiders from the west that is just not the Muslim ones unfortunately (those are their laws) the people are rather affable though and some of the kindest most religious people I have personally encountered and extremely generous even the poor amongst them..

 

[Imaduddin]

Sister Writer and Muslim Woman, they do give residency to people who are of high ranking in the fields of Science and all that, but I'm not one of those people.

I know that by getting a job there I will be allowed to live there, but I don't have intentions of opening a business, too much of a headache. Getting a job is something I am considering if what I've said below doesn't turn out the way I want to.

I have applied to study there, so I am waiting to see how that goes. I have been asking Allah to grant me this wish, but he knows what's best after all. I don't think a person like me is deserving of any help, but I still have hope on Allah, it's only Allah who can help me and no one else. And they do give visas to students, the University of Madinah is full of 'outsiders'.

Sister Hafiza, the luxury is only for those who are Saudis and who benefit from the oil, the rest of them who have migrated there are mostly poor people and get nothing from the oil money, which in reality is only for the poor and not for the rich to become richer, it's all them who do any work, it is only now in recent years that Saudis must work a little bit, they usually just work in Jewelry stores or Perfume stores nothing hard.

Sister dqsunday, I hope Allah makes it possible for you to go there, the Haram is breathtaking. I loved it so much, but the city itself as a whole was not comparable to Madinah. But I loved being in the Haram, to pray there and know that once you finish the Salah the Ka'ba is going to be right in front of your eyes is just indescribable. I never got tired looking at it, it amazed me every time that I saw it, I miss it so much.

Sister لميس (How do you write that in English letters) Yes they are very welcoming and very humble people, whether it's someone poor or someone rich, I loved being around them. That's one of the reasons I want to live there, not only will I learn the Sunnah, I will practice it insha Allah. A person is like the environment in which he lives, I had never been around such well mannered and humble people as them, and I loved the environment, life revolves around Islam and around the Masjid. As soon as I left Makkah and Madinah and went back home, life became a rat race all over again as if I had never been away.


And thanks for all the replies and information.

 

[جوري]

Sister لميس (How do you write that in English letters) Yes they are very welcoming and very humble people, whether it's someone poor or someone rich, I loved being around them. That's one of the reasons I want to live there, not only will I learn the Sunnah, I will practice it insha Allah. A person is like the environment in which he lives, I had never been around such well mannered and humble people as them, and I loved the environment, life revolves around Islam and around the Masjid. As soon as I left Makkah and Madinah and went back home, life became a rat race all over again as if I had never been away.

You can practice Sunnah anywhere in shaa Allah.. make your intentions to Allah swt may he pave the way.. I know many people even those of 'high ranking science positions' trying to move and or a few years now in shaa Allah, Allah swt yisbib al asbaab at the time he sees fit for now be the best Imad ad-deen you can be
you'd say that name like this ''lamees' I prefer Arabic now since my numerous SN's are on so many hate websites out there

 

[Imaduddin]

You can practice Sunnah anywhere in shaa Allah.. make your intentions to Allah swt may he pave the way.. I know many people even those of 'high ranking science positions' trying to move and or a few years now in shaa Allah, Allah swt yisbib al asbaab at the time he sees fit for now be the best Imad ad-deen you can be
you'd say that name like this ''lamees' I prefer Arabic now since my numerous SN's are on so many hate websites out there

Yes I can practice the Sunnah Alhamdulilah even where I am, but it was different there. I don't have to listen to materialistic conversations day and night. Everywhere that I have been it's always been about making money, everyone is chasing the Dunya as if those before them didn't. They never caught it nor will anyone else.

Tahajjud there for me was like eating lunch, you'd never miss lunch if you had food and got hungry, so too you'd never miss tahajjud if you had good health, let alone the compulsory and sunnah prayers. There was a lot of Barakah in Madinah and Makkah. That's just one of the many things, that I meant by practicing the sunnah, it is constant there.

Outside of there, you get distracted by all sorts of very less significant things and you put off the important things knowing that death is approaching.

Thanks for writing the name, I thought it was something like that, but didn't want to take the chance because I can't really read the non-Qur'anic script.

 

[جوري]

Yes I can practice the Sunnah Alhamdulilah even where I am, but it was different there. I don't have to listen to materialistic conversations day and night. Everywhere that I have been it's always been about making money, everyone is chasing the Dunya as if those before them didn't. They never caught it nor will anyone else.

Tahajjud there for me was like eating lunch, you'd never miss lunch if you had food and got hungry, so too you'd never miss tahajjud if you had good health, let alone the compulsory and sunnah prayers. There was a lot of Barakah in Madinah and Makkah. That's just one of the many things, that I meant by practicing the sunnah, it is constant there.

Outside of there, you get distracted by all sorts of very less significant things and you put off the important things knowing that death is approaching.

Thanks for writing the name, I thought it was something like that, but didn't want to take the chance because I can't really read the non-Qur'anic script.

I hate to say this then but outside of Al harmain Saudi is like any other country in the world if not more, their govt. is very oppressive. One poor sap tried to sue the royal family and you don't want to know what became of him..
let me tell you a story not to discourage you but to put it in perspective:

One a scholar sent two young men to Lebanon for a learning experience. He told them when they come back from his travels they must individually teach him about Lebanon.
They both went and did what they did and came back.. well the first guy told him, Lebanon is a land of debauchery.. its women are loosely moraled and scantily clad, the men dance and drink and there are many clubs that people dance in until fajr without shame..
then he asked the other fellow and he said, '' well I am surprised for my experience was completely different. Lebanon is a land of Islam, all the sisters I saw dressed modest, all the men attended mosques, they live upright and moral lives..

so the scholar said you're both correct..and the students quizzical asked how can that be? and the scholar said, people see and pursue only what they want...

moral of the story is obvious.. you can live a perfectly upstanding life in the west.. and there's no harm in:

Sahih International
But among them is he who says, "Our Lord, give us in this world [that which is] good and in the Hereafter [that which is] good and protect us from the punishment of the Fire."


​

 

[Imaduddin]

The story does prove a point, and to be honest I do know quite a bit about the Saudi government, it is much more worse than any other government in the world, I do dislike it very much, but I do prefer the life of a poor person in Madinah than the life of a Billionaire in my current country or any other "Advanced" country.

I'd run out of room if I had to write down all the things I hate about the Saudi government and what they have done and continue to do. But I just love Madinah so much, walking in the footsteps (both literally and metaphorically) of Rasulallah and the Sahaba is what I strive for, they are the best among us after all.

 

[dqsunday]

I can see where you are coming from Brother Imaduddin. Even before I reverted to Islam I hated the heavy commercialism...all the 'Christian' holidays were all about buying stuff. Christmas is of course the worse. People spend hundreds of dollars to appease their kids wants for all the crap they see on tv as being the IN thing to get. The latest toy, the clothin the rap stars wear etc. I see my relatives get huge amongs of stuff at christmas, often far more than the kids even need or want. My parents focused on more practice things, like clothing etc, than just toys (there is also the fact there are hundreds of more stuff available now and cheaper than there was back then) Everybody must have the lastest and most expensive technologiy devices too etc.

Its simply rediculous. The fashion is designed for women who are far from realistic..or about the weight and built of a skinny 9 year old. I never particularly liked wearing skimpy clothing to begin with. Ontop of this insane push to buy toys/clothing/gadgets at Christmas, every silly holiday has a HUGE among of junkfood and 'theme' stuff...You can't go into any store now without seeing a display of junkfood either. I think the West will be far healthier if they put the cigarettes back out on display and hide all the chocolate bars, chips, candy etc.

All this money gets wasted on such trivial things and the west is all about 'STUFF'. Since I have become a Muslimah, I feel so much less attachment to all the stuff I have...I was a big collector of Dragon figures...now...I think they are haram along with typical animals, even if they are mythical. Sometime this summer going to get rid of it all in a big garage sale. Now if I can encourage my parents to get rid of all the stuff they have which they dont' really need.

So I can see where a different culture that isnt' so focused on commercialism and possessing lifeless and useless junk...will be very appealing.

 

[Endymion]

imsad :'(

 

[Imaduddin]

I can see where you are coming from Brother Imaduddin. Even before I reverted to Islam I hated the heavy commercialism...all the 'Christian' holidays were all about buying stuff. Christmas is of course the worse. People spend hundreds of dollars to appease their kids wants for all the crap they see on tv as being the IN thing to get. The latest toy, the clothin the rap stars wear etc. I see my relatives get huge amongs of stuff at christmas, often far more than the kids even need or want. My parents focused on more practice things, like clothing etc, than just toys (there is also the fact there are hundreds of more stuff available now and cheaper than there was back then) Everybody must have the lastest and most expensive technologiy devices too etc.

Its simply rediculous. The fashion is designed for women who are far from realistic..or about the weight and built of a skinny 9 year old. I never particularly liked wearing skimpy clothing to begin with. Ontop of this insane push to buy toys/clothing/gadgets at Christmas, every silly holiday has a HUGE among of junkfood and 'theme' stuff...You can't go into any store now without seeing a display of junkfood either. I think the West will be far healthier if they put the cigarettes back out on display and hide all the chocolate bars, chips, candy etc.

All this money gets wasted on such trivial things and the west is all about 'STUFF'. Since I have become a Muslimah, I feel so much less attachment to all the stuff I have...I was a big collector of Dragon figures...now...I think they are haram along with typical animals, even if they are mythical. Sometime this summer going to get rid of it all in a big garage sale. Now if I can encourage my parents to get rid of all the stuff they have which they dont' really need.

So I can see where a different culture that isnt' so focused on commercialism and possessing lifeless and useless junk...will be very appealing.

Life has become all about money and materialism. People go nuts to get the latest iphone just because they decided to add an 's' to it, big deal. I've tried so hard to distance myself from chasing after the dunya and I just keep wondering sometimes, for how long exactly will I be able to put it off.

At one time I was exposed to an exact non-Islamic lifestyle almost 24/7, People were drinking alcohol at every chance that they got after work. In my eyes at the time when I started, I was doing perfect religiously, then after 1 year, I looked back and I had changed a little. Even if you don't want to become like that, eventually you do, the heart and brain adapt to the environment. Take lying as an example, if you live among people who lie constantly, eventually you will do it too. It starts off with one lie, and then another, and then a bigger lie and before you realize, it's become a habit.

And to be honest, I've wanted to leave to an Islamic place for a long time now, way before I went for Umrah. Going to Madinah and Makkah, just opened my eyes further that there are places for me to go to. I was afraid that Madinah might not be as I expected it to be and it actually wasn't, it was much better.

 

[dqsunday]

In some ways I was lucky for I never was much a slave to fashion. I have my own style and aim for comfortable clothing (typically loose and concealing) So it was more getting used to wearing full length sleeved shirts and not wearing shorts in the summer. Not that i wear really short shorts, just an inch or two above the knee. I don't drink much (maybe the odd glass of wine at dinner during family gatherings for holidays) but I don't have any real desire to drink even around others who drink. I don't go to bars etc mostly because I hate the noise.

There is a bit more challenge avoiding eating pork as it was more commonly something I ate and I do enjoy it. Now I have not eaten any of it since I reverted. The biggest challenge really so far, is wearing a scarf outside the house. Covering every where else is not so bad, though I do get hot...so I just avoid going out as much as I can. At night i am wearing hijab when I go for my walks or take the car out more now. I woudl be more comfortable I Think if there was a Muslim community in the town i live in, though there is a small one in the city about half hour drive away.