In what looks like a race among them, Gulf countries are trying to attract professional talents and secure the labor force needed to carry out their development plans. Over the past few years, these states have adopted new approaches to open sustainable pathways for the entry of investment and human capital, and to fuel emerging sectors in need of skills and expertise not available locally. The latest step in this race came from Saudi Arabia, which announced granting “Entrepreneur Residency” to more than 100 innovators from around 20 countries during the “Biban (Doors) 2025” forum.
The Kingdom is also preparing to begin on January 28 implementing its decision to grant a lifetime permanent residency to anyone who buys a residential property worth no less than 4 million riyals ($1.066 million). This is an unprecedented development in a market that has long been extremely conservative about freehold ownership by foreigners. As these countries achieve varying degrees of success in attracting investors and skilled labor, the economic debate goes beyond the direct return on these incentives to focus on reshaping internal demand, stimulating markets, and drawing a new demographic and economic map for “post-oil economies.”
The Race for Talent and Capital
The approaches adopted by Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states to attract investment capital and professional talent are similar, though their mechanisms are different. In the UAE, the number of Golden Visas issued in 2024 reached about 500,000, compared with around 158,000 holders in 2023. The fees for a residence visa vary by category: an investor pays between 6,000 dirhams ($1,634) and 11,000 dirhams ($2,995).
Saudi Arabia has recently taken various steps to simplify visa applications for investors and skilled workers and has relaxed their requirements. A total of 8,074 residency permits were issued in 2024, while the official “Visa Platform” received more than 40,000 applications between January 2024 and July 2025. The cost of permanent residency in the Kingdom is 800,000 riyals whereas renewed residency costs 100,000 riyals per year. The investment pathway requires owning a property valued at $1.06 million.
In Qatar, an investor residency can be obtained through purchasing a property that is worth $200,000.
Oman, for its part, introduced a program based on two tracks: the first grants a five-year residency in exchange for an investment of $650,000. The second grants a ten-year residency for $1.3 million.
Bahrain offers one of the most flexible systems in the GCC. The Kingdom granted more than 10,000 Golden Residencies by the end of 2024, requiring the purchase of property worth 200,000 Bahraini dinars ($530,000).
Kuwait has not launched specific programs regarding investor residency but is reviewing its current policies, according to media reports.
These policies signal a shift toward using residency as a tool to reshape labor and ownership, to achieve development, and diversify economic activities. Economist Dr. Mohammed Al-Assoumi tells Alhurra that “there is an unprecedented shift in the development trajectory, and what distinguishes the Gulf’s economic environment today is diversity among countries, not similarity.” He affirms that “the GCC’s entry into the world of technological and scientific competition has become an urgent necessity mandated by the nature of modern economy.” Economist Yousef Al-Houti considers that the competition among Gulf states to develop residency systems is not just a symbolic race but “a healthy phenomenon” that helps circulate capital and fuel productive sectors. He notes that “this competition boosts purchasing power in Gulf markets, particularly in cities that have not yet reached tourist saturation and still require seasonal activation”.
Diverse Economic consequences
Figures and policies related to obtaining residency in a Gulf country show that most programs target investment capital ranging between $200,000 and more than $1 million. These countries hope their property-based residency schemes and skilled labor visas will produce a range of economic benefits. Al-Houti explains that the most important benefit is energizing the real estate market, noting that property ownership “adds revenue to the treasury through direct and indirect fees, circulates money, enhances added value, and stimulates construction activities in areas designated for investment but have not yet been utilized.” However, these policies could negatively affect Gulf states’ efforts to indigenize their labor forces. To addresses these challenges, Al-Houti says there should be legislation requiring investors to give priority in employment to native citizens. Vocational training programs that strengthen the ability of locals to compete should be launched.
A number of Gulf states are trying to keep pace with global economic shifts and to benefit from technological expertise and AI capabilities; an effort that makes attracting professional talents even more essential. Al-Assoumi believes that “incoming expertise will gradually transfer agency to the local labor market, contributing to the creation of a human capital pool that is capable of operating within the new technology-based economy.”
These policies might give rise to social concerns about rising property prices or potential imbalance in the job markets. Al-Assoumi argues that “such concerns are not supported by data, and that high-quality education and the growing rates of population development provide a solid ground that is capable of absorbing the effects of these transformations.”
Sukina Ali
A Saudi writer, researcher, and TV presenter
