Hiring a Maid in KSA, Saudi Domestic Help

If you are an expat working in Saudi Arabia it can be very difficult to legally find additional help to keep your home clean, the washing done and even the children looked after. You cannot sponsor a maid if you are not a Saudi and a worker cannot work for someone that is not their sponsor so if you need domestic help in KSA currently your options are very limited.

You can hire a maid illegally as there are many available that have run away from abusive or non-paying sponsors, these maids can be very good or you could end up with one that is completely dishonest; one of my friends hired an Indonesian girl as a maid on a part time basis only to have her steal his watch, wallet, laptop and other small items while he was running an errand. He returned from his errand to find her gone from his home and of course he had no address for her or other ID so had no way to find her other than looking for her in the area that he managed to recruit her.  He also could not go to the police as he had hired her illegally and on top of that he was a bachelor and should not have been alone in the house with her.

Maids in Saudi Arabia

 

 

In addition to the possibility of finding a dishonest worker you will also find that many will ask for wages that are above the normal Saudi rates for the work, although the wages are still low when compared  to most western expats wages or what they would have to pay in their home countries. Most Saudis pay in the region of 1300 SAR per month for a maid, most freelancers will ask 1500 to 2000 or in some cases even more as they know that your options are limited.

 

 

 

Finding a maid can be quite difficult, most of the people that I know ask the maids of friends if they know of someone that is available or they will go to one of the souks where these women tend to meet and hope to meet someone that is looking for work or at least knows someone that is. If you are offering a salary on the higher side you will very quickly find a maid, and have her start sometimes within a few days; if you are offering the “normal” salary it may take several weeks to find someone depending on the amount of demand at the time.

Some Saudis also recruit illegally to avoid the expense of having to sponsor a work visa and all of the related medical expenses and so forth, the time taken to legally recruit can be a few months or longer so they often see this as a better route.

This is all about to change however as the government is changing the rules for the hiring and sponsoring of domestic workers, they are licensing various agencies within the kingdom to recruit domestic workers from overseas and have them available for hire to Saudi and even expat households. For now Saudis will be able to still recruit and sponsor  their own visas but many will avail of this new way of getting domestic help.

These agencies will be responsible for all of the recruitment process for domestic workers and for housing and supporting them until they are found work in the kingdom. This will mean that you should soon be able to go to the agency office and collect a new maid at a reasonable rate, it has been suggested between 1300 and 1500 SAR without any of the problems and processes that you currently have to go through.

It will be interesting to see how this affects the treatment of maids in the kingdom as now the agencies will be responsible for the welfare and payment of their employees subcontracted out to individual households. Where many maids currently suffer poor treatment and have sponsors that regularly fail to pay their wages this should be alleviated through the new system as the licensed agencies will now be responsible.

It will also be interesting to see how this affects the current ban on domestic workers from the Philippines and Indonesia; the governments have demanded better working conditions for their citizens and the Saudi government instead of ensuring more humane conditions have banned the employment of domestics from those countries! Maybe the new system will better meet the demands of these governments and allow the recruitment from these countries to resume.

you can read more about this at;

Saudi Gazette – Shortage of domestic workers to be over soon.

 

 

25 comments for “Hiring a Maid in KSA, Saudi Domestic Help

  1. abdulla davids
    June 3, 2012 at 5:20 pm

    Hi both me and my wife have been offered positions as store managers with a lucrative retailing company. Both of us will be based in Reyaadh and as noted by the hours that the stores trade till 11pm in most cases. We have 2 kids 6 and 3 respectively and our daughter is due for schooling this coming year. I have mailed my concerns to the recruitment agency to raise these with the company. We have noted that compounds are way too expensive and full at this stage and have decided that if everything goes well then we would rent an affordable apartment as the intention is to save as much we can in south africa. These posts are permanent and not contract and I am a bit unsettled w.r.t. our kids. My wife have found that there are affordable schooling in Reyaadh apart from the expensive private schooling. What advice can u give me please. Regards abdulla

    • admin
      June 4, 2012 at 3:44 pm

      Hi Abdulla, schooling is not overly expensive and many companies do offer families an allowance for this as well as housing, travel etc.. I will be honest however I do not know much about specific schools within Riyadh so I cannot advise you as to the best for your child.
      Looking after your children should be easy enough, see if you can get your employer to hire a maid for you; better than hiring one off the street who you know nothing about. Once the changes come in for the hiring of maids later in the year it will be made much easier for you as you will be able to just go to the agency and take one.
      Good luck with your work in Riyadh, keep in touch and let us know how you get on.

  2. Maryam
    August 26, 2012 at 7:03 am

    I just moved to Riyadh and have 4 kids. Two under the age of 18 months. I need a maid very badly and will pay good. I don’t know which agency to contact and don’t know anyone here or even where to go to find a maid. My home is very pleasant to all maids as I do respect them and take care of them. I had two maids temporarily since their owners went in vacation to London. They were with me for only 14 days and didn’t want to go back. One was crying bc she wanted to stay with me. So if anyone can advise me it will help out greatly. Thanks. My email is ishinoor@yahoo.com

    • admin
      September 3, 2012 at 12:17 pm

      Hi Maryam,
      The government does not seem to have yet got their act together with regards to the agencies that will be able to provide you with maids just yet, although they say that they should be available soon! If you want to hire one then you could post an advert in the relevant section of http://www.expatriates.com/ which is quite a good place for a lot of things in Saudi or you could just go and talk to any Filipinas or Indonesian girls in one of the local souks who may be able to point you in the direction of someone looking for work.

    • November 28, 2012 at 3:53 pm

      u want house maid call me 919344004545

      • Dr. Fahad
        June 3, 2013 at 8:45 pm

        Mr. Jafar please send me ur email id so that we can be intouch. i will be needing a maid soon for my home. regards.

      • August 9, 2014 at 7:29 am

        yes i want to working domestic help maid

  3. Fathai
    December 22, 2012 at 5:58 pm

    we have alot of house maid and drivers in Nigeria if you are interested you can contact me on faceolalekan@yahoo.com

    • admin
      December 23, 2012 at 2:53 pm

      The Saudis are moving over to a system where the maids are being hired through an authorized agency, households will then hire direct from the agency rather than having to seek and hire maids on their visas.

  4. Mohammedamin sherif
    February 21, 2013 at 4:50 pm

    Ethiopia
    i send housemaid from Ethiopia to saudi.
    if u want to work my office reply
    etcagency607@gmail.com
    etcagency607@yahoo.com
    00251910472923
    etc man power
    from Ethiopia
    Mohammedamin sherif

    • Ibn Mohammed
      October 11, 2015 at 5:42 pm

      hello Mr Mohammed,

      My boss needs a maid and would like to know if you are still in business. contact me via email, ibnmohammed82@gmail.com

      regards
      Ibn Mohammed

  5. Bothyna Murshid
    April 19, 2013 at 5:10 pm

    hi my name is Bothyna and i am a working lady here, I need a housemaid who can help with cleaning my home, I dont have any kids and my home is not that big. she can come at 9 am and leave at 6 or 5 pm. please help me, i am going crazy with this matter. thanks all in advance

  6. Dr. Fahad
    June 1, 2013 at 3:54 am

    aoa. i am looking forward my posting at Tabuk or Taif, i have two kids who needs to be looked after as my wife will be working as well here. i wanted to know the mailing address or some contact of these maid recruiting agencies
    Second question is how can i bring one maid from pakistan. what are the visa requirements. and how much time it takes. regards. Allah bless u.

  7. Mohammed
    August 21, 2013 at 2:22 pm

    We are looking for full time housemaid in Dammam KSA age preferred above 35 and she must be already here

    We are a big family living in Dammam couple and 5 kids age 6 to 16 3 boys and 2 girls

    Full-time and part-time possible as well
    Good salary not less than 3000 accommodation will be provided also

    Prefer Filipina or sir Lankan nationality

    One should know below listed work.

    Keeping the house clean
    Ironing
    Helping in kitchen
    Must be a happy and positive person
    Must love and enjoy being with children
    Must live neat and clean every time.

    Only serious people can communicate with me through my e mail with their CV and full details

    Saudiman69@yahoo.com

    Good luck

  8. September 6, 2013 at 11:57 pm

    im evangeline legaspi looking employer in saudi arabia as a cook or a housekeeping. im 48 years and a single parent.

  9. Sjm
    October 11, 2013 at 11:12 pm

    I’m badly looking for a maid to look after my two kids. Can someone share contacts please!
    Thanks

  10. sarah
    November 22, 2013 at 10:09 pm

    I really am in urgent need of a house maid in bisha ksa, cuz I work and have a son no one to leave him with. Plz reply.

  11. Randa Hariri
    December 31, 2013 at 4:08 am

    Hi there,

    I am a Syrian citizen living in Riyad and working as an English instructor. I need a full time maid urgently. I prefer Indonesians or philipinos. I have a small family and I am willing to pay well. The housemaid will have her own room and TV. Can anyone advise me?

  12. shabir ahmed
    May 27, 2014 at 11:06 am

    Required a house-maid[45 to 50 years]in Riyadh , KSA,to look ater my
    doctor daughter & her 3 years old daughter,only 2 members.To stay with
    them, preferably a muslim.

  13. August 30, 2014 at 5:20 pm

    I need a house maid from Indonesia to do some laundry job, kitchen jobs and house cleaning

    Thanks

    M. Tariq Saeed
    0534496594

    Jubail Unniversity College, Al-Jubail
    Jubail Industrial city-31961, A

  14. humayun
    June 6, 2015 at 2:21 am

    I m in jeddah an engr by profession….can use any website and apply for maid from india….or a nurse for my wifes care during her pregnancy and caring for my 11 month child….

  15. humayun
    June 6, 2015 at 2:27 am

    I m in jeddah an engr by profession….can i use any website and apply for maid from india….or a nurse for my wifes care during her pregnancy and caring for my 11 month child….

  16. Sonia
    October 14, 2015 at 4:44 pm

    Hi, just wanted to ask that what if one has an illegal maid working here and wants to make her legal..what procedure do we have for her without making her exit the country

    • admin
      October 18, 2015 at 6:47 pm

      Sonia, there is no official way to make her legal while there are no amnesties in place.

  17. fifi
    February 8, 2016 at 3:48 am

    Hi..
    are you in need of a house help? I speak english french and italian,so i am flexible, in the communication department,reliable honest and know my way around the house(work wise), so if interested,drop me a line on my email,i live in dammam. I prefer a non saudi household.
    Thank you.

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