How immigration policies sustain authoritarian regimes in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia, under Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman (MbS), is undergoing significant political reforms during an era characterised by heavy reliance on migrant labour. This study employs a survey experiment to estimate public support for MbS and to analyse citizens’ preferences regarding various immigration policy issues. The findings demonstrate that Saudi Arabia’s immigration system functions as an ‘immigrant ethnocracy’, reinforcing structural disparities between citizens and migrant workers. This system plays a crucial role in fostering public support for MbS and contributes to the stability of the authoritarian regime. Survey results identify three distinct societal groups: beneficiaries of the immigrant ethnocracy, traditional kinship-based groups and vulnerable low-status workers. Among these, traditional kinship-based groups exhibit the lowest levels of support for the crown prince, whereas both the beneficiaries and vulnerable workers display significantly higher levels of endorsement. Attitudes towards immigration policy vary across these groups, reflecting the differential impact of the ethnocratic system on each segment of society. These results contribute to understanding relations between migration policies and political stability in the Global South.