Saudi Arabia starts issuance of permanent premium residency permit to foreigners

As Saudi Arabia officially started the issuance of Permanent Premium Residency Permit to Foreigners, Indian investor Yosuffali M A, Chairman of the Lulu group became one of the first to be given the permanent residency permit by Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The Premium Residency, informally known as Saudi Green Card, is a residence permit in Saudi Arabia that grants expatriates the right to live, work and own business and property in the Kingdom without need for a sponsor.

The introduction of the Premium Residency comes as a part of Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 reform plan, which was announced by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to boost the Saudi economy.

Reacting to the news Yusuffali said that it is obviously a very proud and humbling moment in his life. This is a great honour not



only for him but for the entire Indian expat community. He thanked King Salman, Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman and the government of Saudi Arabia. This new permanent residency initiative will further boost Saudi Arabia's image as one of the key investments and business hubs of the region as well as attract and retain new investors.

This initiative of Saudi Arabia is to target key investors and prominent personalities from various fields including sports, arts and culture, who have played a defining role in the nation-building process.

Mr Yusuffali, the NRI businessman based in Abu Dhabi is Chairman of Lulu Group which owns and operates more than 35 hypermarkets and supermarkets which includes ARAMCO Commissaries and National Guards superstores.