Which workers need it, how the test works in Pakistan, and what it does to the visa timeline.
The Skill Verification Programme (SVP) is a Saudi Ministry of Human Resources programme that tests skilled workers before they receive a work visa. For professions on its list, a valid SVP certificate is needed for the visa to proceed. In Pakistan the test is taken at NAVTTC-authorised centres. It has two parts: a computer-based theory test and a practical test of the work itself.
Workers in professions on the programme's list. Pakistan was the first country brought into the programme. It began with five trades (plumber, electrician, welder, refrigeration and air-conditioning technician, and automobile electrician) and now covers more than a thousand occupations across 23 sectors. The profession on the visa decides whether a test is needed, so it should be checked when the file opens.
Tests are booked through the programme's platform and taken at NAVTTC-authorised centres in Pakistan. The programme's international portal is svp-international.pacc.sa.
The skill test is the step whose length varies most, because it depends on test-centre slots. For a worker the employer has already selected, processing typically takes two to three weeks without a test and three to four weeks with one. When we recruit the workers ourselves, testing runs alongside the other steps and fits within the usual timeline.
SVP tests practical skill in a trade. It does not ask about degrees. The Qualification Verification Programme (QVP) is separate: it applies to degree-based professions and checks that the worker's academic and professional certificates are genuine, by contacting the issuing institutions. A worker usually needs one or the other, depending on the profession, not both.
We assess our candidates against the standard for their trade before booking the official test, so that a worker is not sent to a test he is not ready for. Trade certificates and experience letters help, but the practical test is what counts.