Check Health Insurance by Border Number in Saudi Arabia (2026)

By Ishita Roy — Business Consultant, Noble Core · Updated June 2026

What “check health insurance by border number” actually means

Every person who enters the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on a visa is issued a border number (raqam al-hodood) — a 10-digit identifier printed on the entry stamp and linked to the visa. Until a resident receives an Iqama (residency ID), the border number is the primary number that government and insurance systems use to identify them. Mandatory cooperative health insurance is tied to that number from day one of entry.

“Checking health insurance by border number” simply means looking up an active medical insurance policy using the border number instead of an Iqama number. The Council of Health Insurance (CHI, the regulator formerly known as CCHI) maintains a central register of every cooperative policy issued in the Kingdom, so an employer, a new arrival, or a family member can verify cover before an Iqama is even printed.

This matters most in three windows: the gap between airport entry and Iqama issuance, the period when an Iqama is being renewed, and any time a worker is moving between employers. In all three, the border number is the reliable key. The check confirms whether a valid policy exists, which insurer issued it, the cover class, and the start and end dates.

Border number vs Iqama number — which do you use?

The two numbers serve the same purpose at different stages of a resident’s journey, and using the wrong one is the single most common reason a lookup returns nothing. The border number is assigned at the point of entry and is the active identifier for the first weeks in the Kingdom, before residency is formalised. The Iqama number is issued once the residency permit is printed and from then on becomes the primary ID for almost every government and insurance system.

As a rule of thumb: if the Iqama card has not yet been issued, search by border number; once the plastic Iqama exists, search by Iqama number. Many portals let you toggle between the two on the same inquiry screen, so if one returns “no record,” the simplest fix is often to switch the ID type and try again. Both numbers ultimately point to the same person and the same policy in the Council of Health Insurance register.

Who needs to check insurance by border number?

Cooperative health insurance is compulsory for expatriate workers and their dependants under the supervision of the Council of Health Insurance, so the border-number check is used by a wide range of people:

• New arrivals on a work visa — confirming the employer has activated cover before the Iqama is printed.
• Dependants on family visas — spouses and children whose policy must be active before an Iqama or visit-visa medical step.
• Employers and HR / PRO teams — verifying that every employee’s policy is live and correctly classed before submitting Iqama, Qiwa or Muqeem transactions.
• Business owners setting up in the Kingdom — founders who must insure their first Saudi and non-Saudi hires from the moment they enter.
• Visit-visa holders — including business visitors who need a short-term policy linked to their border number.

If you are forming a company and about to sponsor your first employees, getting this verification habit right early saves rejected Iqama applications later. Our team handles it as part of a full company formation in Saudi Arabia package, so insurance, Iqama and payroll line up from your first hire.

The Council of Health Insurance and why the system exists

The Council of Health Insurance (CHI) is the Saudi regulator responsible for cooperative health insurance. It sets the minimum cover standards, licenses insurers and third-party administrators, and maintains the central register that the border-number lookup queries. The body was historically known as the Council of Cooperative Health Insurance (CCHI), and you will still see both names used; the mandate is the same.

Mandatory cover is part of the Kingdom’s broader push under Vision 2030 to modernise healthcare access and protect both residents and the public health system. From a practical standpoint, it means that anyone working in Saudi Arabia — and their dependants — should always have an active policy on file, and that any employer can be held to that standard. The border-number inquiry is the public-facing tool that makes the requirement easy to verify.

For a business, the takeaway is simple: insurance is not an optional perk you add later. It is a compliance obligation that sits alongside your Commercial Register, your GOSI registration and your Qiwa contracts, and the systems are increasingly linked so that a gap in one shows up as a block in another.

Step-by-step: check health insurance on the CHI portal

The Council of Health Insurance runs the authoritative inquiry. Follow these numbered steps; exact button labels can change, so read each screen carefully.

1. Open chi.gov.sa and go to the E-Services or Inquiries menu.
2. Select the “Insurance Inquiry” (or “Check Insurance Validity”) service.
3. On the ID-type selector, choose “Border Number” instead of “Iqama / National ID”.
4. Enter your 10-digit border number exactly as printed on the entry stamp.
5. Enter your date of birth (usually requested as Hijri or Gregorian) and complete the captcha / verification.
6. Press Search. The result shows the insurance company name, policy class, start date and expiry date.

If the screen reports “No active policy,” the cover has not yet been issued or activated — that is the signal to contact the employer or insurer rather than to assume a system error.

When the lookup succeeds, read every field, not just the green “active” status. The insurer name tells you who to contact for claims; the policy class (for example, the cover tier) determines which hospitals and treatments are included and whether it meets the minimum required for certain residency steps; and the start and end dates tell you exactly how long the protection runs. A policy that is technically active but expires next week still needs urgent renewal.

Checking the same status via Absher

Residents with an Absher account (absher.sa) can also view health-insurance status under the individual’s profile. Absher pulls from the same national records, so it is a convenient secondary confirmation once a person is registered, though the CHI portal remains the primary border-number lookup before an Iqama exists.

Checking via Muqeem (for employers)

Employers and establishments use Muqeem to manage residents linked to their commercial registration. Within Muqeem, an establishment can review the insurance and document status of each sponsored individual by their border number or Iqama, which is useful when verifying a whole team at once.

Documents and details you need before checking

The lookup itself is light, but accuracy depends on having the right reference details to hand:

• Border number — the 10-digit number from the visa entry stamp (sometimes labelled “Border No.” or “Visa Border Number”).
• Date of birth — matching the passport / visa record.
• Passport number — useful as a cross-reference if the border number is mistyped.
• Employer / sponsor name — to confirm the policy is issued under the correct establishment.
• Insurance certificate or policy number — if the employer has already shared it, for matching against the portal result.

For the Absher route you additionally need a registered Absher account with a verified mobile number, and for Muqeem you need establishment access tied to your Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (MHRSD) / Qiwa credentials.

Indicative fees and timelines

The verification itself is free on every official channel. The cost sits in the underlying policy that the employer or sponsor buys. The figures below are indicative — premiums vary by age, cover class and insurer, so always confirm current pricing with a licensed insurer and the live portal.

Item	Channel / authority	Indicative fee (SAR)	Timeline
Check insurance by border number	CHI (chi.gov.sa)	Free	Under 1 minute
Check via Absher	Absher (absher.sa)	Free	Instant (account holders)
Check team status	Muqeem (muqeem.sa)	Per subscription	Instant
Basic cooperative policy (worker, annual)	Licensed insurer	~1,000–2,500 (indicative)	Issued within 1–3 days
Dependant policy (annual, per person)	Licensed insurer	~1,000–3,000 (indicative)	Issued within 1–3 days
Iqama issuance / renewal (govt fee)	Absher / Muqeem (MHRSD)	~650/yr + applicable levies (indicative)	Same day once paid

Premiums for older dependants and higher cover classes run materially above these ranges. Treat the table as a planning guide, not a quote, and confirm current figures on the official portal or with your insurer.

How health insurance connects to your Iqama and visa

Active cooperative insurance is a precondition for several residency steps. The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development and the General Organization for Social Insurance (GOSI) systems expect an in-force policy before an Iqama is issued or renewed, and before many Muqeem transactions complete.

1. Entry — the worker arrives on the border number; the employer’s policy should already cover them.
2. Insurance activation — the insurer registers the policy against the border number with CHI.
3. Iqama issuance — once insurance and other steps are confirmed, the Iqama is printed and the border number is superseded by the Iqama number.
4. Renewals — each Iqama renewal requires the policy to be valid for the renewal period.

Because these systems talk to one another, a lapsed or mismatched policy is one of the most common reasons an Iqama transaction is blocked. Checking by border number early catches the problem before it reaches the Iqama stage.

Checking insurance for dependants and family members

Each dependant on a family visa needs their own active cooperative policy — cover is per person, not per household. A spouse, child or parent who entered on a visit or family visa will each have their own border number, and each must be checked separately. This is easy to overlook when a family arrives together, and an uninsured dependant can hold up an Iqama or visit-visa medical step for that individual even when the main earner’s cover is perfectly in order.

To check a dependant by border number, repeat the CHI inquiry with that person’s own 10-digit number and date of birth. For children, make sure the policy class is appropriate for paediatric care, and for older parents on a visit visa confirm the cover meets the requirement for their visa type. If you manage a family or a team, keep a simple list of border numbers, insurer names and expiry dates so renewals never sneak up on you.

How often should you check, and when?

Verification is free and quick, so there is no reason to leave it to chance. Build the check into these moments:

• On arrival — within the first days, confirm the employer’s policy is live against your border number.
• Before any Iqama step — issuance, renewal or transfer; an expired or low-class policy is a frequent cause of rejection.
• 30 days before policy expiry — gives time to renew without a gap.
• When changing employer — the new sponsor’s policy must take over cleanly; check that a fresh policy is active under the new establishment.
• Before a medical claim or hospital visit — so you know the insurer and cover tier in advance.

For employers, a monthly batch review in Muqeem of every sponsored individual is a sensible discipline. It surfaces lapses early, keeps your establishment compliant with the Council of Health Insurance and the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development, and means no Iqama transaction is ever blocked by a surprise insurance gap.

Common errors and how to fix them

Most failed lookups come down to a handful of issues:

• “No active policy” result — the employer has not purchased or activated cover yet, or the insurer has not registered it with CHI. Contact the sponsor’s HR/PRO and ask for the policy certificate.
• Border number typed wrong — re-read the entry stamp; the number is 10 digits with no spaces. A single transposed digit returns no record.
• Date-of-birth mismatch — try the alternative calendar (Hijri vs Gregorian) if the first attempt fails, matching exactly what is on the visa record.
• Wrong ID type selected — make sure “Border Number” is chosen, not “Iqama” — they are different fields.
• Status shows but class looks low — some Iqama steps require a minimum cover class; ask the employer to confirm the policy class matches CHI requirements.
• Policy expired — if the expiry date has passed, the cover must be renewed before any dependent residency transaction will go through.

Insurance for new businesses and their first hires

If you are establishing a company in the Kingdom, you become a sponsor the moment you issue your first work visa — which means cooperative health insurance becomes your legal responsibility for every employee and their dependants. Foreign founders setting up under a Ministry of Investment (MISA) licence with 100% ownership in most activities still operate within the same Council of Health Insurance, MHRSD and GOSI framework as any Saudi employer.

Getting insurance, GOSI registration (total contribution around 21.5% for Saudis, lower for expatriates), Qiwa contracts and Iqama issuance to line up is the part that trips up new entrants. A founder who can confidently check a policy by border number is in a far stronger position to keep onboarding clean. If you want the whole stack handled, our MISA license in Saudi Arabia service covers licensing, Commercial Register, GOSI, insurance set-up and first-hire compliance in one engagement.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Assuming the visa includes insurance automatically — cover must be actively purchased and activated by the sponsor; the visa alone does not create a policy.
• Checking only the Iqama number — before the Iqama is printed, the border number is the only key that returns a result.
• Trusting a screenshot of an old policy — verify the live status; policies expire and renewals are not always automatic.
• Ignoring the cover class — a policy can be “active” yet sit below the class required for certain residency steps.
• Leaving dependants uninsured — every dependant on a family visa needs their own active policy before their Iqama or related steps.
• Waiting until a renewal is blocked — check well before the Iqama or policy expiry, not on the deadline, so there is time to fix any gap.
• Using unofficial third-party “checker” sites — rely on CHI, Absher and Muqeem; never enter ID details on unverified portals.

How Noble Core helps

Noble Core is a Saudi business-setup consultancy. We do not just register companies — we make sure the compliance plumbing behind your team works from day one. For health insurance and residency specifically, our support includes:

• Verifying policy status by border number and Iqama for every new hire and dependant before residency steps.
• Coordinating cooperative insurance at the correct cover class with licensed insurers, registered against CHI.
• Aligning insurance with Iqama, Qiwa, Muqeem and GOSI so onboarding does not stall at the insurance check.
• Full company formation — MISA licensing, the new unified national Commercial Register (ID starting with “7”, confirmed annually with a 5-year grace), Chamber membership, ZATCA / VAT registration and payroll.

Our packages start from SAR 36,999, and we keep you across every authority — MISA, the Ministry of Commerce, the Council of Health Insurance, MHRSD, GOSI and ZATCA — so a simple insurance lookup never becomes a residency roadblock. Talk to our team to set up your company and onboard your first insured employees the right way.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I check health insurance by border number in Saudi Arabia?

Go to the Council of Health Insurance portal at chi.gov.sa, open the insurance inquiry service, choose “Border Number” as the ID type, enter your 10-digit border number and date of birth, then press search. The result shows your insurer, policy class and validity dates. The check is free and takes under a minute.

What is a border number in Saudi Arabia?

A border number is a 10-digit identifier issued when you enter the Kingdom on a visa, printed on the entry stamp. Until your Iqama is printed, the border number is the main number government and insurance systems use to identify you, including when you check health insurance by border number on the CHI portal.

Can I check health insurance by border number without an Iqama?

Yes. Before an Iqama is issued, the border number is the correct key for the lookup. On the CHI portal at chi.gov.sa, select “Border Number” instead of “Iqama”, enter the 10-digit number and your date of birth, and the system returns your active cooperative policy details if one has been activated by your sponsor.

Is checking health insurance by border number free?

Yes, verifying insurance status is free on every official channel, including the CHI portal (chi.gov.sa), Absher and Muqeem. There is no charge to look up a policy. The cost lies in the underlying cooperative policy your employer or sponsor purchases, which is indicatively around SAR 1,000 to 3,000 per year depending on cover.

Why does my insurance show ‘no active policy’ by border number?

A “no active policy” result usually means your employer has not yet purchased or activated cover, or the insurer has not registered it with the Council of Health Insurance. It can also be a mistyped border number or wrong date format. Re-check the number, then ask your sponsor’s HR or PRO for the policy certificate.

Can I check Saudi health insurance on Absher or Muqeem?

Yes. Absher (absher.sa) shows insurance status under an individual’s profile once they are registered, and employers use Muqeem (muqeem.sa) to review the insurance and document status of sponsored staff. Both pull from national records, but the CHI portal remains the primary place to check health insurance by border number before an Iqama exists.

Is health insurance mandatory for workers in Saudi Arabia?

Yes. Cooperative health insurance is compulsory for expatriate employees and their dependants under the Council of Health Insurance framework. Sponsors must provide active cover, and a valid policy is generally required before an Iqama is issued or renewed, so checking the policy by border number early helps keep residency steps on track.

How does Noble Core help with insurance and company setup in Saudi Arabia?

Noble Core verifies policy status by border number and Iqama, coordinates cooperative insurance at the correct class, and aligns it with Iqama, Qiwa, Muqeem and GOSI. We handle full company formation, MISA licensing, the new unified Commercial Register, ZATCA and payroll, with packages from SAR 36,999 so your first hires are insured and compliant.