The Minister of Labor and Social Development, Dr. Ali Al-Ghafis, confirmed that the first installment of “Citizen Account” support payments for 82% eligible beneficiaries for the month of December—totaling 2 billion riyals—had been deposited into their bank accounts, with 50% households receiving the full benefit at an average of 938 riyals per household, and the overall average benefit per household standing at 835 riyals.
Al-Ghafis explained that the payment covered nearly 3 million families and individuals, for a total of 10.6 million beneficiaries, with about 25% of those registered receiving partial support because they are middle-income, and fewer than 9% of those registered receiving the minimum benefit—these are families or individuals with medium to high incomes.
The “Citizen Account” program aims to mitigate the potential direct and indirect effects of economic reforms on eligible Saudi households. The support covers the increased costs resulting from the adjustment of electricity and gasoline prices, as well as the implementation of value-added tax on food and beverages.
For his part, Program Director Ali Rajhi stated that the second installment of the subsidy will be deposited into the beneficiaries” bank accounts on January 10, and will be available to those whose applications were completed before December 16 of this year. Subsequent payments will be disbursed on the 10th of each Gregorian month, unless that date falls on a Friday, in which case the funds will be deposited one day earlier; if it falls on a Saturday, they will be deposited one day later.
It was reported that a ”calculator” has been added to the program’s online portal to help users estimate their benefit amounts, noting that the minimum benefit amount for eligible recipients is 300 riyals, and that the amount is determined by the number of family members, the ages of dependents (if they are older or younger than 18), and the family’s total income.
The program director noted that the window for appealing a decision of ineligibility opens today, Complaints regarding the cash benefit determination will also be accepted five days after the funds are deposited, by submitting a complaint request through registered accounts on the online portal www.ca.gov.sa, or by calling the program’s call center at 19912. He urged citizens who were unable to register during the previous period to register as soon as possible through the program’s portal.
