Can I open a Saudi bank account while I'm on a visit visa?

It depends on your document: SAMA added holders of a Ministry of Interior visitor ID to its account-opening rules in September 2025, and it also allows accounts for some government and business visit visas, but not for Hajj ID holders.

Visitor ID holders

• Under SAMA circular 472021863 (25 September 2025), banks may open accounts for holders of a valid visitor ID issued by the Ministry of Interior.
• The bank needs a copy of the visitor ID, your address in Saudi Arabia, your home-country address and the purpose of your visit.
• No products or services are provided beyond the ID's expiry, the account is frozen when the ID expires, and it must be closed on final exit.
• A minor needs a guardian's consent.

Government, business, scientific and professional visit visas

• Banks may open an account so you can carry out your assignment, with a passport copy showing the visa and a letter from the inviting organisation (endorsed by the Chamber of Commerce for business visas).
• The account lasts only as long as the visa and comes with an ATM (mada) card, without a chequebook.

What isn't allowed

• Someone holding a Hajj identification card can't open a bank account.
• An expatriate working under an employment contract can't open an account without a valid iqama, unless the Ministry of Interior approves it through SAMA.

Official sources

• SAMA Rulebook: Update to the Account Opening Rules Adding the Visitor ID
• SAMA Rulebook: Expatriates and Visitors in Saudi Arabia

On Saudi Expats: see the guide to opening a bank account for what changes once you have an iqama.

Checked September 2026. Banks apply these rules through their own checks, so call ahead before visiting a branch.

Have you opened an account as a visitor? Share your experience below, including what the branch asked for.