Photo credit: Council on foreign relations
Saudi Arabia has abolished the controversial “kafala’ system.
The Times of India reports that the move ends over 50 years of a framework that tied foreign workers’ residency and rights to employers. A part of the Saudi authorities’ Vision 2030, it grants millions of migrant workers the freedom to change jobs and leave the country without sponsor approval, aiming to boost dignity and reduce exploitation.
Before its abolition, it defined the lives of millions of migrant workers in the Gulf. It decided whether they could change jobs, whether they could leave the country, and whether they could fight back against abuse.
Critics compared it to “modern-day slavery.”
The kafala system was a legal framework that governed the employment and residency of migrant workers across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states. It began in the 1950s, when oil-rich economies needed cheap labour to build cities and infrastructure but wanted to avoid granting permanent residency or citizenship.
Under kafala, a foreign worker’s legal status was tied entirely to their employer, or kafeel. The sponsor controlled their visa, their rights to live in the country, and often their ability to change jobs or even exit the country.
Without the sponsor’s approval, workers could not:
X Change employers
X Leave the country
X Seek legal recourse if abused
It was designed to minimise state bureaucracy and regulate labour through private sponsors. However, in practice, it created an enormous power imbalance. Employers could confiscate passports, withhold wages, or threaten deportation, and workers had almost no way to challenge them.
Kafala became one of the most criticized labour systems in the world. Human rights groups and the International Labour Organization (ILO) criticized the gulf governments of enabling forced labour and human trafficking under the guise of sponsorship.
Many workers remained in exploitative or abusive situations, especially in domestic work, construction, and agriculture. In extreme cases, NGO’s documented conditions resembling indentured servitude.
X Around 13.4 million migrant workers live in Saudi Arabia
X Millions come from South and Southeast Asia
X An estimated 4 million are domestic workers, often isolated and vulnerable to abuse
The decision to abolish it is a part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s sweeping plan to diversify the country’s economy, attract foreign investment, and modernise its global image.
It also reflects mounting international pressure. Gulf states have faced criticism from global rights groups, Western governments, and even multinational companies over their labour records.
