A group housing licence in Saudi Arabia is the Balady licence that every establishment with 20 or more workers needs for the building its workers live in, unless it houses them with a licensed provider. Enforcement began in September 2025, and the final phase, for establishments with fewer than 250 targeted workers, starts on 1 February 2027. This guide explains who needs the licence, what the building must meet, how the Balady and Qiwa link works, and how to choose between licensing your own building and contracting licensed labour accommodation.
The short answer is that it is the municipal licence, issued through the Balady platform, which confirms that a building meets the health, technical and safety requirements for collective housing and fixes how many people may live in it.
The licence sits under the National Program for Developing Collective Housing for Individuals, which is chaired by the Ministry of Municipalities and Housing and includes the ministries of Interior, Health, Human Resources and Social Development, Commerce, and Industry and Mineral Resources.
Each licensed unit has a capacity set from its floor area, and that capacity must match the number of workers registered to the establishment on the Qiwa platform.
Some sites inside industrial cities are licensed by the authority that manages the city rather than through Balady.
The requirement applies to establishments with 20 or more workers, and it covers the main entity and its branches registered under the same commercial register.
Enforcement began in September 2025 and has been rolled out in stages, starting with large establishments, then medium ones and then small ones.
On 29 October 2026 the programme confirmed the final phase: establishments with fewer than 250 targeted workers must comply by 1 February 2027, and the time until then is a correction window.
Paying workers a monthly housing allowance does not exempt an establishment from the licence requirement, as the programme stated in December 2025.
Stage | What it means for employers |
|---|---|
Since September 2025 | Mandatory licensing began, starting with large establishments. |
Until 1 February 2027 | A correction window for establishments with fewer than 250 targeted workers. |
From 1 February 2027 | The final phase of mandatory compliance for those establishments. |
Ongoing | Field inspections and electronic checks between Balady and Qiwa. |
The programme recognises two routes, and both are fully compliant.
For the second route, Balady offers a Collective Residence Certificate, which proves the rental relationship between the licence holder and the establishment that leases the units.
The establishment enters the licence number, the lease contract number, the rental dates and the number of bedrooms, bathrooms and total area, and the platform calculates the capacity automatically.
The licence holder then approves the request, the service is free, and Balady lists the service time as 10 days.
Before you sign with a provider, ask for the licence number and licensed capacity of the exact building, and a written commitment to approve your Collective Residence Certificate on Balady.
Then check that the capacity covers every worker on your Qiwa file, not only the crew on today’s site.
The health, technical and safety requirements were issued by ministerial decision in 1445 AH (2024), and the ministry approved an updated version in 2026 that gives licensed facilities up to a year to correct their conditions.
They cover three categories: residential buildings no taller than 23 metres, fenced residential complexes with security gates, and mobile cabins on project sites.
Requirement | What the rules say |
|---|---|
Bedroom space | At least 4 square metres per person. |
Room occupancy | No more than 10 residents per room. |
Bathrooms | One toilet, sink and shower for every 8 residents. |
Rest and dining | A shared room of at least 0.7 square metres per person. |
Supervision | A full-time Saudi supervisor in every category of housing. |
Medical | An emergency room with a licensed nurse above 1,000 residents, and a clinic with a doctor above 5,000. |
Fire safety | Extinguishers no more than 23 metres apart and exit signs that stay lit for 90 minutes in a power cut. |
Water | Tanks sanitised every 6 months and storage for at least 5 days of use. |
Mobile cabins | Licensed for the project duration or one year, renewable, with bedroom ceilings of at least 2.2 metres. |
Location rules apply as well: the site must be in an area zoned for commercial and residential use, at least 300 metres from schools and hospitals, and away from flood channels, hazardous areas and archaeological sites.
Once licensed, the operator must stay within the licensed capacity, display the licence, keep a register of residents and employ the full-time Saudi supervisor.
Read the full labour camp requirements checklist
When the ministry described the process in 2021, a licence was issued for one year after inspection, so build renewal dates into any long contract and confirm the current terms on Balady.
The right route depends on your headcount, how long you need the beds and whether housing is something your team wants to manage.
Factor | Your own licensed building | A licensed provider |
|---|---|---|
Upfront work | Lease or buy, upgrade, pass inspection and license. | Review the provider’s licence and sign a contract. |
Time to the first bed | Weeks to months, depending on works and inspection. | Days, when beds are available. |
Compliance risk | Yours, including inspections and renewals. | Shared, because the provider holds and renews the licence. |
Flexibility | Fixed capacity in one building. | Beds can follow headcount and site moves. |
Staff to manage | Saudi supervisor, cleaners, maintenance and security. | Included in the provider’s service. |
Best for | Large, stable workforces over many years. | Project crews, seasonal peaks and firms under 250 workers. |
Many contractors use both: a licensed building for the permanent core team and a provider for project crews that come and go.
According to the programme, an establishment without a valid collective housing licence that matches its workforce and capacity can have its commercial register suspended.
Violations under the group housing control procedures can also lead to the loss of certain government services, and field inspections are under way.
Because Balady and Qiwa are linked electronically, a gap between licensed beds and registered workers can be detected without a site visit, so it is worth closing before the February 2027 deadline.
BICC (Basr International Contracting Co.) houses workers in licensed accommodation in its own camps in Jubail, Jeddah and Yanbu, and in furnished staff housing in Al Khobar.
In Riyadh, Dammam and at project sites, BICC sources, licenses and operates housing for the contract term, so your crew moves into a compliant building without your team running the licence.
Meals from an ISO 22000 kitchen, laundry, cleaning, maintenance, security and transport come under one agreement, and Ajeer manpower can be seconded under BICC’s Platinum Nitaqat sponsorship.
Send your headcount, cities and dates, and you will have a plan and quotation within 48 hours.
Worker accommodation across Saudi Arabia
Worker accommodation with meals in Riyadh
Establishments with 20 or more workers that house them in collective accommodation, including branches under the same commercial register.
Establishments with fewer than 250 targeted workers must comply by 1 February 2027, when the final phase of mandatory compliance begins.
No. Contracting licensed collective housing units is one of the two recognised routes, and you record the arrangement with a Collective Residence Certificate on Balady.
No. The programme has stated that a monthly housing allowance does not exempt an establishment from the licence requirement.
No more than 10, with at least 4 square metres of bedroom space per person and one bathroom for every 8 residents.
BICC sends a plan and quotation within 48 hours of receiving the headcount, cities and dates.
Sources: Sabq, on the start of mandatory licensing and the Balady and Qiwa link, Okaz, October 2026, on the 1 February 2027 deadline, People Matters, November 2026, on the two compliance routes, Al Watan, December 2025, on housing allowances and location rules, Arabian Business, September 2025, on the 20-worker threshold and inspections, Balady, Collective Residence Certificate service, Amlak, on the updated health, technical and safety requirements, Okaz, August 2025, on the three housing categories, Ministry of Municipalities and Housing, collective housing requirements guide, Ajel, 2021, on the Balady licensing steps
Tell us the headcount, cities and dates, and we will send a plan and quotation within 48 hours.
