"Alcohol Was Supposedly Forbidden"... Saudi Arabia Quietly Allows Sales to High-Income Foreign Professionals

Alcohol Sales to Non-Muslim Foreigners with Premium Residency at Diplomatic Quarter Store
Ordinary Citizens Still Strictly Prohibited from Purchasing Alcohol
Seen as Part of Liberalization Experiment Led by Mohammed bin Salman

There have been reports that Saudi Arabia, where alcohol is strictly prohibited, has recently begun quietly allowing the sale of alcohol to wealthy foreign residents.

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According to Yonhap News Agency on the 20th (local time), citing the Associated Press, a liquor store exclusively for non-Muslim diplomats, which opened in the diplomatic quarter of Riyadh last January, has recently started selling alcohol to non-Muslim foreigners who hold the "Premium Residency" (Iqama).

The Premium Residency is a visa issued by the Saudi government to high-income professionals such as doctors, engineers, and investors.

Although there has been no official announcement about the store expanding its alcohol sales, it has been frequently observed that customers who heard about it through word of mouth form long lines at the entrance.

There are no signs indicating alcohol sales on the store’s exterior, mobile phones and cameras are not allowed inside, and identity checks to confirm eligibility for entry are conducted very thoroughly.

Aside from diplomats and foreigners with Premium Residency, Saudi citizens and ordinary foreigners are still not allowed to purchase alcohol in Saudi Arabia.

As the birthplace of Islam, Saudi Arabia has banned alcohol entirely since 1951, after Prince Mishari, son of the kingdom's founder King Abdulaziz, shot and killed a British diplomat while intoxicated. Saudis who wish to drink often travel to neighboring countries such as Bahrain, or resort to smuggling alcohol or illegal home brewing.

Among Saudi youth, it has become popular to enjoy non-alcoholic beers and similar beverages, often for the purpose of posting photos on social media or to enhance the mood at festivals and other events.

The Associated Press assessed that this expansion of alcohol sales is the latest example of Saudi Arabia's ongoing liberalization efforts, in a country that was once extremely conservative.

Under "Vision 2030," an economic and social reform plan led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia is gradually dismantling religious and traditional taboos.

In recent years, restrictive regulations have been eased, including allowing women to drive in 2018, hosting pop concerts, relaxing strict gender segregation in public places, opening movie theaters, and issuing tourist visas.