Some tips in Saudi to help expats

Greetings,

My name is Hossain, and im a new member and i'm Saudi, i live in Qatif.

i came across this site and thought id put few things i know about my country for newcomers or some who are looking for any information.

for Mobile/Cell phone, if your bringing any from outside of Saudi Arabia please make sure it support the following GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) network, otherwise it will not work.

STC(Saudi Telecom Company)

GSM-900 (GPRS, EDGE)
2100 MHz UMTS, HSDPA
2300 MHz LTE

Mobily

GSM-900/1800 (GPRS, EDGE)
2100 MHz UMTS, HSDPA, HSUPA
LTE

Zain

GSM-900/1800 (GPRS, EDGE)
2100 MHz UMTS, HSDPA
1800/ 2600 MHz LTE

you can find these numbers on the phone box before buying it from store, if not you can ask the person in charge.

for phone inquiry call 905 (free for STC users) others from Zain and Mobily and any other provider will be charged SR 2.00 per minute ($0.53)


same goes for electrical devices/equipments.

the electricity here is v110 & v220 and only 60hz we dont support 50hz, the 50hz will still work but may have a problem after a while and might cause some serious injuries, so please make sure it does support the mentioned specifications specially devices that produce heat (Ovens, heaters, lights etc...) for most of the part Saudi uses American Standards.


Water

in Saudi Arabia we use Regular (Salty non-drinkable) water for washing/cleaning or any matter the only sweet water you will find in local stores around for drinking and in Jubail Industrial city they provide sweet water for all houses in that area.

Driving in Saudi

again we use the American Standard
Max Speed in Highway is 120Km/h (75mi/h)
on local Roads and inside cities it vary from 15 to 60 km/h
Driver seat is on the left side.

keep in mind that Saudi people and some other nationalities are driving like crazy so its not surprise to see people go as fast as 140-180 km/h, and they will overtake you alot, some will jump from one lane to another without giving a signal also you will see so many that are parked wrongly. So its advised to be cautious while driving, but no worries you will get used to it in no time and you might get infected by them and turn like one of them!

Side Notes:
Speeding violations penalty fine is SR 300 ($80)
Crossing a Red light is SR 900 ($240)
(these are the most common things)
if any penalty fee is not paid you will not be able to renew/get visa, driving license, travel outside of the country, Iqama etc unless paid.

in order to know if you have any violation laying around and you want to know about it, just go to this website "Ministry of Interior" and put the Iqama Number "Residential Permit Number" and click view, where it will show any violation under your name.
company cars that are registered under your name will not show unless you put the company number.

the website: Quary of Traffic Violation

in case of an accident who do i call?
you can call the traffic accident police 993
or another company thats assisting the police & insurance called "Najim" on the phone number 920000560

what if i/we require an ambulance?
you can call 997 and they will dispatch the nearest one to your location.

and if you require help on the road you can call traffic police at 996

and for firefighting you can call 998

Religion
the dominant religion is Islam, but there are so many of other religions from so many nationalities around, its not allowed to practice religious actions in public. if your wearing a cross or any other religion medal be careful of some "Hippocrates" as they like to make a scene.

Women

in here men arent allowed to interact with woman who arent a family to you. (its ok to talk to shopkeepers)

they are not allowed to drive cars (you can go to the dunes, deserts and drive with no problem, so many Saudi people do that also.

going outside should wear Abaya Hijab isnt required for expats as lately i have seen some without Hijab or Abaya either.

thats it for the time being, if i have more info i will add.

Regards,