One of the things I've (K) always wondered about Saudi airports is how the women pass through immigration. Most Saudi women cover everything but their eyes. Contrary to what you might think, it is actually not against Islam to show one’s face to a non-related man. But since Saudis follow a strict form of Wahhabi Islam, it's very much become the norm here in KSA that women do not show their faces to non-related men. So what I've always wondered is if Saudi women need to take off their face covers when passing through immigration. The catch is that all immigration officials are men, and non-related men at that. The answer is no, at least not when leaving Riyadh. It looks like you can use anyone's passport when leaving the country because the only thing that shows are your eyes.
Naturally though, women will not be able to enter very many countries with their faces covered, so it pays to actually have your own passport with you. One exception is Dubai. Immigration officials didn't ask women to uncover their faces when entering Dubai and I suspect it might be the same in other Arab Emirates. There's been talk of hiring women to work at airports so that female travelers could deal with female immigration officials, so this might actually change in the future.
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