How much cash to bring

Bring some money with you. around 2-3 thousand saudi riyals if  in case you are so worried. Most companies would rather forward part of the months salary to meet the immediate expenses. Safety issues with carrying around that much amount of money, well Saudi is usually a safe place, and I am assuming that you will not roaming around in the less favorite parts of the city immidiately inthe first week or so. if you are in a hotel, put the money int he safe, take out only as much required.

Most if not all companies pay on a monthly basis, that is a bit difficult to get used to especially if you have been on a different cycle.

Cheers!

Thanks RG...

i completely agree with Redgobl, just add one thing, i think foreign ATM not accepted here in Saudi even with commission. so it is better to depend on MasterCard, Visa or AmericanExpress.

Hi, I can't comment on the typical pay dates here in Saudi as I am still employed via the UK.  But I can say that I have no issues using my UK ATM cards here in Saudi.

I would suggest that you phone your bank first so that they do not stop your access thinking they are preventing a fraud attempt, which they did to me once in Qatar!

Cheers

Hi Leedslad,
As RG said, better to bring cash with you just encase you had any problem with the ATM and Im sure you will get stung with the ATM. I believe the limit is 60,000 riyal which is about GBP 10,000 so you will not have any problems bringing cash in. Also, be sure to check with your bank that you can actually use you card here in case you need to as my card was not recognised. By the way, dont forget to get travel insurance.
Best of luck!!

I had to inform my UK bank that I would be using my card in Saudi. Once bank is informed its operational.

hi

Yea, you can bring some cash, use ATM, also you can bring visacard or master card or american express. To issue new residence in Saudia, you will wait about 2 weeks only.

Hi

keep about 5000 SAR in hand.

I don't believe there's any safety issues here, however it's a good measure to go out with what you need only in case if you loose your wallet etc.    

Yes you can use your CCs, and like GenSkipper said phone your bank/CC company to let them know as this is very important.

They will block your CC otherwise (fraud prevention). Also, typically you'll have a (new) limit on how much you can withdrawal per week by the CC company itself.

Salary is paid monthly (most, if not all) as RedGobling said.

Iqama (temp. residence visa, there's no such thing as a permanent residence visa in Saudi) takes, really, few days to process. 

Once you are here, you can get a Visa/MasterCard ("emptied", what you put is what you use, I don't believe they even allow you to have a Visa/MC with money already in) so naturally there's no interest on the Card. 

Be careful though, with Saudi banks they tie your bank account/CCs with your Iqama! so if anything goes wrong like not been renewed yet they will lock and block your account and CCs!

So best is to use them to only cash your salary and send back home etc. Personally, I wouldn't trust putting large amounts in them other than to pay bills necessities etc. (minimal).

Thanks ITpro... My intention is to keep minimal funds in country but will need to figure out the best way to send money back. From other threads, the suggestion is to use local exchange brokers because of better exchange rates and lower charges... So that is the plan

You're welcome Leedslad

That's a good plan and whenever you are here, know that you have a friend here

If not mind asking, what will you be doing here (occupation)?