The Ministry of Justice has put an end to the use of the Absher system in case of family disputes, at times abused by Saudi nationals married to foreigners.

According to Saudi laws, foreigners living in the Kingdom must have a Saudi sponsor if they are to be issued residency permits.

In case of married couples, the Saudi citizen used to have the right to ask for a final exit visa for his/her spouse, under his/her sponsorship, and that right would sometimes be abused out of malicious motives.

Now, under the new measure taken by the ministry, a judge is empowered to allow non-Saudi spouses to stay in the Kingdom pending the completion of the divorce case.

The new regulation is the result of a study prepared jointly by representatives of the Ministry of Justice and the General Directorate of Passports (GDP) on disputes in couples where one of the spouse is foreigner and lives under the sponsorship of the Saudi citizen.

The foreign party can now ask the court to allow him/her to stay in the Kingdom until the case is settled. At the same time, the party requiring to stay in the country has the right to give power of attorney to some third party to follow up on the case

Article 25 of the Shariah law stipulates that if, during the hearing of the case of a defendant, an order is issued for his/her deportation, the court is empowered to determine the period required to complete the case and send it to the relevant authority.

Legal advisor Abdulaziz Al-Harthi told Arab News that the ministry’s new measure is a positive step for all parties, irrespective of their nationalities.

It stops Saudi citizens from exploiting the applicable regulations in the Kingdom and from disregarding the rights of others in case of a family dispute in which they are involved, he said.

He said such cases are widely witnessed in family courts, which deal, in the great majority, 65 percent, with divorce cases of mixed couples, he said.

He stressed that the new system protects foreign spouses, whether in terms of custody of children or financial rights in case of inheritance.

It also ensures the application of Shariah in protecting people’s rights and the observation of the principle of justice irrespective of one’s nationality, race or gender, he said.

Al-Harthi said the electronic link between the Ministries of Justice and Interior has immensely contributed to solving many problems.

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