Non-Resident Indians in Saudi Arabia


Non-Resident Indians in Saudi Arabia are the largest community of expatriates in the country, with most of them coming from the states of Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and most recently, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat.

Overview

Indians as migrant workers first began to arrive in modern-day Saudi Arabia in relatively small numbers from the British Raj soon after the discovery of oil in 1938, but their migration numbers skyrocketed exponentially after the 1973 energy crisis and subsequent oil boom. However, migration to Saudi Arabia dropped dramatically after reaching its peak in 2014 due to the introduction of the Nitaqat scheme in 2011, the acceleration of the 2010s oil glut by early 2016, and the launch of Saudi Vision 2030.

History

India and Saudi Arabia signed an agreement to manage and organize the recruitment of domestic workers in January 2014. Between then and April 2016, 500,000 Indians moved to Saudi Arabia for employment. The agreement includes a provision which stipulates that sponsors must pay a guarantee of US$2,500 for each Indian worker they recruit.

Demographics

The following table shows the estimated population of Indians in Saudi Arabia since 1975.
YearPopulation
197534,500
197960,000
1983110,000
1987190,000
1991251,000
1999500,000
2000570,000
2004760,000
20151,100,000
20174,100,000
20221,384,476
20231,494,947

Education

Indian curriculum schools in Saudi Arabia include:

Dammam

Riyadh

Jeddah

Buraidah

  • International Indian School Buraidah

Jubail

  • International Indian School, Al-Jubail

Taif

  • International Indian School Taif