How to Open a Bank Account for Domestic Workers in Saudi Arabia

Whether you’ve recently hired a domestic worker or they have been with you for years, deciding how to pay their monthly salary is an important consideration. Should she be given direct cash or make a bank transfer? Opening a bank card for your housemaid is the best option and how you can do this easily! This article will discuss everything you need to know about opening a bank account for your housemaid in Saudi Arabia.

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Are you legally required to provide a bank account to your housemaid?

The Ministry of Labor and Social Development requires employers to provide prepaid debit card cards to their housemaids through a designated bank upon their arrival in the Kingdom. This is part of the Wage Protection Program for Domestic Workers which is expected to be completely enforced in the coming months.

To initiate the process, a housemaid’s sponsor should contact their bank to provide the debit card and access the “Musaned” online portal’s service, where they can create an electronic employment contract, specify the worker’s monthly salary, and officially document the agreement on the portal. This program benefits housemaids, who can receive their monthly salaries through a bank account on time and accurately and sponsors to effectively manage their finances and time.

To know more about domestic worker’s salary, check out this article:

What are the advantages of issuing a bank card for domestic workers?

In Saudi Arabia, many domestic workers do not have a bank account to receive their salaries and accept cash payments or direct transfer of their wages to their families in their country of origin. This has been a common practice for a long time but it doesn’t mean it’s the best option!

Helping your housemaid open a bank account is actually a win-win situation for both of you. Aside from transparency and accountability, here are the key benefits you can expect:

For you, as the the employer:

1. Save Time – Bank to bank transfers eliminate the need for physical cash transactions, saving you time, effort and also fees. Your foreign housemaid’s monthly salary payments can also be automated, ensuring a timely and consistent payment system
2. Keep track of Salary Payment – by facilitating bank transfers, you can maintain transparent and accurate records of all transactions. Bank statements provide a clear overview of payment dates, amounts, and any additional details, simplifying the process of tracking and managing salary payments.
3. Safety & Security – Keeping cash at home can be risky for both you and domestic workers. By opening a bank account, the risk of theft or loss of money is significantly reduced.

For your domestic worker

1. Easy access – Your domestic worker can access their funds conveniently through ATMs, withdraw cash when needed, or make online purchases without restrictions.
2. Improved Financial Management: Having a bank account allows housemaids to manage their finances more efficiently. They can deposit their earnings, make withdrawals, and track their transactions, promoting financial independence and empowering them to handle their own finances responsibly.
3. Access to Financial Services: Having a bank account opens up a range of financial services. You can attest to this so why not share the benefits to your housemaid? They can access services such as online banking, ATM withdrawals, and money transfer systems. This allows them to send money to their families back home or save for future goals.

Choosing a Bank

In recent years, Saudi Arabia has taken steps to ensure that domestic workers have access to bank accounts following the Wage Protection Program. Here are the banks in Saudi Arabia that facilitates account opening and salary payments for both foreign and local domestic workers:

1. Riyad Bank

Riyad bank offers a Salary Card for Household Workers which is a prepaid card that allows the employers to make monthly salary payments to the card holder (housemaid) easily and safely. This card is available to be used by household workers such as drivers, housemaids, and house guards under the sponsorship of the employer.

1. Saudi Awwal Bank

Saudi Awwal bank or SABB also offers a Household Salary Card with features similar to Riyad bank.

This card gives domestic workers the flexibility to conveniently withdraw their monthly salary through ATMs and pay for their personal or their employer’s shopping at POS with ease facilitated through the Mada network..

1. Riyad Bank

Riyad Bank’s Mada Salary Card works similarly to other Salary cards which offer basic banking services for employers and domestic workers and also guarantee an easy channel for their payments.

1. Bank Al-Jazira

Bank Al Jazira provides a modern way to pay the wages of domestic workers through a wage card, and a wage account is opened easily through Al-Jazira Online, which enables domestic workers to withdraw internationally from any country and enables their sponsor to schedule monthly salaries automatically at any time and day of the month. If the business owner obtains a wage card, he will be able to obtain “Fawry” membership for the money transfer system, which provides cash transfers to more than 200 countries around the world within minutes. It also provides currency exchange service at competitive prices.

1. The Saudi Investment Bank
   Saudi Investment Bank offers the “Easy Pay Household Card” for domestic workers, a prepaid Mada card that pays salaries and incentives through deposit from their employer only and provides a maximum cash withdrawal limit of 5000 Saudi riyals per day. The sponsor can issue it to all workers registered under his sponsorship, but it cannot be used outside the Kingdom.

What are the requirements to open a bank account for your domestic worker?

It’s important to note that the requirements for opening a bank account for a domestic worker may vary depending on the bank. However, generally, the following requirements may apply to open an account personally with your selected bank:

• Valid residence visa (iqama) – the Iqama number is required to use wage protection initiative services
• Physical presence of the domestic worker to provide necessary documentation and complete the account opening process.
• Background checks to ensure the account holder is not involved in any illegal activities

Additionally after the pandemic, opening a Prepaid Household Salary Card account can be done with utmost ease online in most banks by just providing a few information. Housemaid sponsors are encouraged to visit the Musaned platform to view the participating banks and check the website of their chosen bank for the complete requirements.

Ready to Open a Bank card for your Domestic worker?

Here are some key takeaways you should remember:

1. As an employer, you are required to provide a prepaid salary card for your housemaid. Banks offer low fees for this account and you can choose from these banks to open an account in Saudi Arabia
2. Opening a prepaid bank account for your housemaid helps you save time, keep track of monthly salary payments and keep you and your helper’s funds safe and secure.
3. To issue a prepaid salary card, you need to access the “Musaned” online portal’s service, create an electronic employment contract, specify the worker’s monthly salary, and officially document the agreement on the portal.
4. Your housemaid’s Iqama number is a number one requirement to facilitate this process.

There you have it. We hope this article encourages you to open an account for your foreign or local domestic worker and guides you through the process. This is a positive step towards ensuring fair treatment and convenience for domestic workers in the Kingdom and you are a big part of it.

If you are still looking for a house maid you can start your search at Helper’s Choice for direct and easy communication with interested candidates. Get access to our database of trusted Filipino house maids.

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Hiring Filipino Domestic Workers to Saudi Arabia

HelperChoice is an ethical online platform that directly connects domestic worker applicants and employers in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Middle East. Applicants register for free and are vetted by our team for verification on the website.

Employers can also register for free to browse through our pool of applicants and subscribe to our premium service in order to view their contact details for direct communication. Interviews are done within the website and once an employer and candidate agrees to enter into contract, employers are referred to ethical Maarofa recruitment offices in Saudi Arabia to process the worker’s visa and other hiring documents.

Know more about Maarofa service here: It’s an ethical and cost effective solution to hiring domestic workers from the Philippines.

Contact Us

If you have any enquiries, please feel free to contact our professional customer support team via email at contact@helperchoice.com or Whatsapp us.

You might also be interested in:

• The Ultimate Guide to Domestic Worker Hiring in Saudi Arabia
• Maarofa Service: A Cost effective solution to Hiring Domestic workers from the Philippines
• Electronic Visa Issuance for domestic workers in Saudi Arabia
• Domestic Worker Transfer of Sponsorship in Saudi Arabia
• Tips to Interview and Select a Domestic Worker in Saudi Arabia

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