By the tiswa editorial team, from the official sources listed at the end of this guide. How we write our guides
The visa got you through the airport. It will not cover four years of study. That job falls to the iqama, and the sponsor on it is your university: KAUST states plainly that non-Saudi students must hold a university-sponsored iqama2.
Iqama for international students in Saudi Arabia: how is it issued?
Through your university, and each one runs it a little differently. Two published examples show the range.
Najran University wants, for a first iqama, the admission letter, your original passport plus two copies, a medical examination at the University Medical Center, two copies each of your certificate, transcript, birth certificate, home-country medical report, home-country police clearance and academic recommendations, and six personal photographs1.
KAUST, on the Red Sea coast at Thuwal, does the iqama medical test during orientation week. Once it is done you file the request in the GA portal, Government Affairs issues the iqama in roughly 7 to 10 days from arrival, and you collect it from the Government Affairs Service Center after an email says it is ready2. Already living in the Kingdom on another iqama? You transfer sponsorship to KAUST, and if your current sponsor refuses, you have to exit the Kingdom first2.
| Procedure | What Najran University asks for | When |
|---|---|---|
| First issuance | Admission letter, passport plus 2 copies, campus medical exam, 2 copies of certificates, transcript, birth certificate, home medical report, police clearance and recommendations, 6 photos | Right after arrival |
| Renewal | Proof of enrolment, copy of current iqama, 1 photo | Every year, before expiry |
| Exit and re-entry visa | Request form with travel ticket, proof of enrolment, copy of iqama, 1 photo | Before any trip abroad |
| Final exit visa | University clearance form, copy of iqama, 1 photo | When you finish |
How do you renew a student iqama each year?
Najran University asks for three things: proof of enrolment, a copy of the current iqama and one photo1. The hard one is proof of enrolment. Universities only issue it to students registered for the term, so a registration held up by an unpaid fee or academic probation drags the renewal down with it.
Set a phone reminder a month before expiry. An expired iqama also blocks the exit and re-entry request, which asks for a copy of a valid one1.
Do GCC students need an iqama?
Not at Najran University. Its page says students from Gulf Cooperation Council countries on external scholarships are treated as Saudi students, so they need neither an iqama nor an entry visa, and they get one round-trip ticket per academic year on a ticket request form, proof of enrolment and a passport copy1. Check with your own university before you rely on it.
Exit and re-entry or final exit: when do you need each?
Exit and re-entry comes before every trip during your studies. A booked ticket is not enough. Najran University takes the request form with the ticket, proof of enrolment, an iqama copy and a photo1.
Final exit closes the file: a university clearance form, an iqama copy and a photo1. Jouf University in Sakaka sets the deadline for external scholarship students, who must leave within three months of graduation; its responsibility ends once the student has the exit visa and ticket and the residency is cancelled3. Start the clearance before the graduation ceremony, because the library, housing and your department all have to sign.
Can international students work in Saudi Arabia on a student iqama?
Not without permission, and the risk is real. Jouf University says it may end the scholarship of a student found working illegally and send the student home3. If a paid internship or campus job comes up, ask the international students office first, in writing.
Mistakes that cost weeks
- Flying home for the break on a ticket alone, with no exit and re-entry visa.
- Arriving without the home-country medical report and police clearance.
- Registering late, so proof of enrolment and the renewal both slip.
- Changing programme or student number without telling the international students office.
Write a short email to the international students office at [university]. I am admitted to [programme] and arrive in [month]. Could you send the document list for a first iqama, the date and place of the medical test, whether home-country documents need attestation or translation, how long issuance usually takes, and what I need for an exit and re-entry visa if I travel during the break? My name is [name] and my student number is [number].
The iqama follows the visa and rests on the same admission, so if the visa is still pending start with the Saudi student visa guide. For a stipend account see opening a student bank account, and for the first weeks read international student life in Saudi Arabia.
