Accredited Engineering Consultant in Al Khobar.
FJS has been based in Al Khobar since it was founded in 2017, and our office is in the Al Olaya district. Most of our projects, from an 800 m² private villa to a 20,000 m² residential compound, have been built in the city and its districts. The firm was founded by Eng. Faris Al Shaikh, who has more than 20 years of personal engineering experience.
In Al Khobar we cover the full engineering route: architectural and interior design, accredited engineering supervision, land surveying and project management. One office can carry a project from the first site study to the final certificate.
If you are building in Saudi Arabia for the first time, the process will not look like the one you know from elsewhere. Permits, site supervision and the final certificate all run through a government e-services platform, and a licensed engineering office is involved at each stage. The sections below explain how that works in Al Khobar.
Services in Al Khobar
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Architectural Design
Architectural design balancing creativity and function — turning your vision into a buildable, budgeted project.
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Interior Design
Interiors that pair beauty with function — from layout through materials and lighting.
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Structural Design
Structural design to the Saudi Building Code, balancing safety against efficient material use.
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MEP Design
HVAC, electrical, plumbing and fire systems, coordinated with the architecture before site.
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Engineering Supervision
Accredited supervision ensuring the contractor builds to the design and the Saudi Building Code.
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Land Surveying
Accredited land and plot surveys with reports accepted by government platforms.
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Project Management
End-to-end delivery from contractor selection to handover, with schedule and cost control.
Local conditions
What building in Al Khobar involves.
Al Khobar is a coastal city. Being close to the Gulf means high humidity and salt in the air all year round. That is not a minor climate detail: it decides which facade materials, insulation systems and treatments for exposed steel will last.
Facades that perform well in a dry inland climate do not hold up as well on the Gulf coast. Corrosion shows first in metal details, then in joints and seams. We take this into account when choosing materials and writing the construction specifications, at the design stage rather than after it.
There is also a consideration below ground. Parts of the Eastern Province coastal strip have sabkha soil, a salt-flat soil where the groundwater is shallow and saline. It has a lower bearing capacity, and its salts attack the concrete and reinforcing steel in foundations. For that reason we do not settle the foundation system on a coastal site until the soil has been investigated.
Setbacks and building ratios also vary between Al Khobar's districts. Our initial study always starts by checking what the regulations actually allow on your specific plot.
Permits
Who issues building permits in Al Khobar.
Building permits in Al Khobar are issued by Al Khobar Municipality, one of the sub-municipalities under the Eastern Province Amanah (the regional municipal authority). Applications are submitted and tracked online through Balady, the Ministry of Municipalities and Housing's e-services platform where building permits are issued. There is no paper application.
The route starts when the owner authorises an engineering office on Balady to carry out the design. The office prepares the drawings and submits them for technical review, which checks them against the Saudi Building Code (SBC), the national building code whose 2024 edition has been mandatory since mid-2025. The municipality then reviews the drawings and issues the design approval. After that a supervising office is assigned, the contractor is named, latent-defects insurance (insurance against hidden building defects) is completed where required, and the fees are paid. The permit is then issued.
In Al Khobar we handle the design route on the platform and then supervise construction through to the occupancy certificate, also called the building completion certificate. You can follow every step from your own Balady account.
Frequently asked questions.
How do I choose a good engineering consultant in Al Khobar?
Check three things. The office should be accredited and registered on Balady, it should have completed work you can look at, and it should give you a written scope of work that states exactly what you will receive. Ask any office for all three before you sign, including us.
Which areas of Al Khobar do you cover?
All of them, including Al Aziziyah, Al Rakah, Al Thuqbah, the Golden Belt, Ishbiliyah and Al Khuzama.
Do you work in Dhahran and Aramco areas?
In Dhahran, yes: we serve it from our office in neighbouring Al Khobar and offer all our services there, from design to supervision. Permits in Dhahran go through Dhahran Municipality, another sub-municipality of the Eastern Province Amanah, via Balady. For a site inside a company-administered area, what applies depends on which authority has jurisdiction over that plot, because that authority sets the requirements and the permit route. We confirm it before scoping any work.
How much does it cost to design a villa in Al Khobar?
Design fees are usually calculated as a percentage of the project cost or as a rate per square metre. They vary with the size of the building and the scope of service, for example design only or design and supervision. Send us your plot area and your brief and we will come back with a specific quote.
Do you provide engineering supervision in Al Khobar?
Yes. Accredited engineering supervision is one of our core services. It covers periodic site visits and the reports Balady requires, through to the issue of the building completion certificate.
Who issues building permits in Al Khobar?
Al Khobar Municipality, one of the sub-municipalities of the Eastern Province Amanah. The application is submitted and tracked on Balady: the owner authorises the engineering office on the platform, and the office submits the drawings for technical review and then municipal review until the permit is issued.
I am new to Saudi municipal procedures. How involved do I need to be?
Your main step is authorising the engineering office from your own Balady account. The office prepares the drawings and takes the file through technical review and municipal review, and you can follow each stage from your account until the permit is issued and, later, the completion certificate.
Does a plot near the sea in Al Khobar need a soil investigation?
We recommend a soil investigation for any project, and it becomes essential on sites near the coast or on filled (backfilled) land, where there may be sabkha soil with shallow, saline groundwater. The investigation is what determines the foundation system, the type of concrete and the waterproofing needed below ground.
Official sources
- Issuing a building permit — Balady — Ministry of Municipalities and Housing
- Building permit requirements and conditions — Balady — Ministry of Municipalities and Housing
- Saudi Building Code — editions and parts — Saudi Building Code National Center
- Building occupancy certificate (building completion) — Ministry of Municipalities and Housing
Contact
Talk to an engineer.
Send us the plot location and what you want to build. We reply with the scope, the route through the permit, and a written quote.