Economy
Saudi Women Get a New Right: Allowing Their Kids to Travel
(Bloomberg) — Saudi mothers will be able to apply for passports for children in their custody and approve travel abroad under new guidelines. The changes, detailed on the website of Saudi Arabia’s General Directorate of Passports on Monday, spell out how a major policy change earlier this month — which allowed women over 21 to leave the country without a male relative’s permission from the end of August — will work in practice.
Saudi women’s rights activists have campaigned for years against the kingdom’s guardianship system, which rendered women legal dependents of a male relative throughout their lives — typically a father or husband, but sometimes a brother or son.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has put loosening social restrictions at the heart of his economic transformation plan for Saudi Arabia, which relies on diversifying away from oil and attracting foreign investment.
The new guidelines specify that men and women over the age of 21 can obtain passports and travel without a guardian’s approval. Those who are under 21 won’t need permission if they are either married, traveling to study on a government scholarship or heading overseas on “official duties.”
In another key shift, Saudis under 21 whose fathers are dead can get approval to travel from their mother, as opposed to another male relative — though the guidelines still appear to give priority to fathers if both parents are alive.
In cases of divorce, whichever parent has custody can apply for passports and issue travel permissions for their children. Previously that right was restricted to men, leaving some mothers in the lurch.
-
Dossier2 months agoDossier, 2026
-
OER Magazines1 month agoOER, February 26
-
Banking & Finance2 months agoSohar International and Sohar Islamic Supports Over 100 Families in Al Wusta Governorate Through Its ‘Sohar Al Attaa’ Initiative
-
Banking & Finance2 months agoNational Finance Unveils Exclusive Ramadan Offers on Auto Financing
-
Economy1 month agoMiddle East Tensions Heighten Risks to Strait of Hormuz, Raising Uncertainty for Global Oil Markets
-
Economy2 months agoAnalysis: Oman-India CEPA Opens Path to Deeper Trade Investment and Growth
-
Economy2 months agoANALYSIS: Oil Near Seven-Month Highs Amid US, Iran Tensions
-
Alamaliktistaad Magazines2 months agoAl-iktisaad, February 26

You must be logged in to post a comment Login