Saudi Arabia Compliance Guide: Employment & Payroll, Tax & Regulations
Key Law Terms Overview in Saudi Arabia
Labor Law — Royal Decree No. M/51 dated 27 September 2005
Part 1: Definitions and General Provisions
Chapter 1: Definitions
Article 1
This law shall be called the Labor Law.
Article 2
In this Law, the following terms shall have the meanings assigned thereto, unless the context requires otherwise:
Ministry: Ministry of Labor.
Minister: Minister of Labor.
Labor Office: The administrative authority assuming jurisdiction over the labor affairs within an area specified by a decision of the Minister.
Employer: Any natural or corporate person employing one or more workers for a wage.
Worker: Any natural person – male or female – working for an employer and under his management or supervision for a wage, even if said person is not under his direct control.
Minor: Any person of 15 and below 18 years of age.
Work: The effort exerted in all human activities in execution of a (written or unwritten) employment contract regardless of their nature or kind, be they industrial, commercial, agricultural, technical, or otherwise, whether physical or mental.
Original Work: For individuals: Their usual business activities. For firms: The activities for which the firm was established as stated in its articles of incorporation, franchise contract – if a franchise company, or Commercial Register.
Temporary Work: Work considered by its nature to be part of the employer’s activities, the completion of which requires a specific period or relates to a specific job and ends with its completion. It shall not exceed 90 days in either case.
Incidental Work: Work that is not considered by its nature to be part of the usual activities of an employer, and its execution does not require more than 90 days.
Seasonal Work: Work that takes place during known periodical seasons.
Part-Time Work: Work performed by a part-time worker for an employer and for less than half the usual daily working hours at the firm, whether such a worker works on a daily basis or on certain days of the week.
Continuous Service: The uninterrupted service of a worker for the same employer or his legal successor from the starting date of service. Service shall be deemed continuous in the following cases:
- Official holidays and vacations.
- Interruptions for sitting for examinations in accordance with the provisions of this Law.
- Worker’s unpaid absences from work for intermittent periods not exceeding 20 days per work year.
Basic Wage: All that is given to a worker for his work by virtue of a written or unwritten employment contract regardless of the kind of wage or its method of payment, in addition to periodic increments.
Actual Wage: The basic wage plus all other due increments decided for a worker for the effort he exerts at work or for risks he encounters in the course of performing his work, or those decided for the worker for the work under the employment contract or work organization regulation. This includes:
- The commission or percentage from sales or profits paid against what the worker markets, produces, collects, or realizes from increased or enhanced production.
- Allowances the worker is entitled to for exerted effort or risks he encounters while performing his job.
- Increments that may be granted in accordance with the standard of living or to meet family expenses.
- Grants or rewards: What the employer grants to a worker and what is paid to him for honesty or efficiency and the like, if such grant or reward is stipulated in the employment contract or the work organization regulation of the firm, or if it is customarily granted to the extent that workers consider it part of the wage rather than a donation.
- In rem privileges: What the employer commits himself to provide to the worker for his work by stating the same in the employment contract or the work organization regulation, and it is estimated at a maximum of two months basic wage per annum, unless it is otherwise estimated to exceed that in the employment contract or the work organization regulation.
Wage: actual wage.
Firm: Any enterprise run by a natural or corporate person which employs one or more workers for a wage of any kind.
Month: 30 days, unless otherwise specified in the employment contract or the work organization regulation.
Regulations: The Implementing Regulations of this Law.
Chapter 2: General Provisions
Article 3
Work is the right of every citizen. No one else may exercise such right unless the conditions provided for in this Law are fulfilled. All citizens are equal in the right to work without discrimination on the basis of gender, disability, age, or any other form of discrimination, whether during their performance of work, at the time of employment, or at the time of advertising.
Article 4
When implementing the provisions of this Law, employers and workers shall adhere to the provisions of Sharia.
Article 5
Provisions of this Law shall apply to the following:
- Any contract whereby a person commits himself to work for an employer and under his management or supervision, for a wage.
- Workers of the government and public organizations and institutions including those who work in pastures or agriculture.
- Workers of charitable institutions.
- Qualification and training contracts with workers other than those working for the employer within the limits of the relevant provisions provided for in this Law.
- Part-time workers with respect to safety, occupational health, and work injuries, as well as decisions issued by the Minister.
Article 6
Incidental, seasonal, and temporary workers shall be subject to the provisions on duties and disciplinary rules, the maximum working hours, daily and weekly rest intervals, overtime work, official holidays, safety rules, occupational health, and work injuries and compensation therefore as well as whatever is decided by the Minister.
Article 7
- The following shall be exempted from the implementation of the provisions of this Law:
a) The employer’s family members, namely, the spouse and the ascendants and descendants who constitute the only workers of the firm.
b) Players and coaches of sports clubs and federations.
c) Domestic workers and the like.
d) Agricultural workers, private herdsmen, and the like.
e) Sea workers working on board vessels with a load of less than 500 tons.
f) Non-Saudi workers entering the Kingdom to perform a specific task for a period not exceeding two months. - The Minister shall issue, in coordination with relevant agencies, one or more regulations for the categories set out in subparagraphs (a), (c), (d), (e), and (f) of paragraph (1) of this Article, containing the rights, obligations, and other special provisions related to each category.
Article 8
Any condition that conflicts with the provisions of this Law shall be deemed null and void. The same applies to any release or settlement of the worker’s rights arising from this Law during the validity of the employment contract, unless the same is more beneficial to the worker.
Article 9
Arabic shall be the language used for data, records, files, employment contracts, and the like as provided for in this Law or in any decision issued in implementation of its provisions as well as the instructions issued by the employer to his workers.
If the employer uses a foreign language besides Arabic in any of the aforementioned cases, the Arabic text shall prevail.
Article 10
All periods and schedules provided for in this Law shall be according to the Hijri calendar, unless otherwise stated in the employment contract or the work organization regulation.
Article 11
If the employer assigns all or part of his original work to a natural or corporate person, the latter shall give his workers all the rights and privileges which the original employer gives to his workers.
Article 11 bis
Without prejudice to the provisions of this Law and relevant regulations, the Minister may take any measures that would improve the performance of the labor market and regulate labor mobility.
Article 12
- The Ministry shall develop one or more model bylaws which shall include rules and regulations related to the conduct of work. It shall also include provisions relating to benefits, violations, and disciplinary actions.
- The Ministry shall set rules regulating the adoption of bylaws.
Article 13
- Every employer shall draft bylaws for his firm in line with the Ministry’s model bylaws. Exceptions to this provision may be granted by the Minister.
- The employer may incorporate into the bylaws additional terms and conditions that do not conflict with the provisions of this Law, its Regulations, and the decisions for the implementation thereof.
- The employer shall make the bylaws and any amendments thereto accessible to employees in a manner that ensures their knowledge of the provisions.
Article 14
Repealed
Article 15
An employer shall, upon commencement of work in any firm, notify the competent labor office in writing of the following data:
- Name, type, and headquarters of the firm, as well as its mailing address and any information that facilitates contact therewith.
- Line of business for which it is licensed, providing the number of the Commercial Register or the license, its date, and issuing authority, together with a copy thereof.
- Number of workers to be employed in the firm.
- Name of the firm’s manager in-charge.
- Any other data required by the Ministry.
Article 16
- If the employer is unable to run the business in person, he shall designate a representative at the workplace. In case of multiple partners or managers in the firm, one of them, from among those residing at the place of work, shall be nominated to represent the employer and be liable for any violation of the provisions of this Law.
- The employer shall notify the competent labor office in writing of the name of the partner or manager, and, in case he is replaced, he shall notify the labor office of the name of the new partner or manager within seven days at most of the date the latter assumes the job.
- In case no manager is appointed to be in charge of the firm, or if the appointed manager does not assume his duties, then the person who actually runs the firm or the employer himself shall be considered the manager in charge of the firm.
In all cases, the employer is ultimately liable.
Article 17
An employer shall maintain, at the workplace, records, statements, and files the nature and contents of which shall be specified in the Regulations. He shall display at a visible location at the workplace a schedule of working hours, breaks, weekly rest days, and the time each shift starts and ends, when operating in shifts.
Article 18
If the ownership of a firm is transferred to a new owner or a change takes place in its legal form through merger, partition, or otherwise, employment contracts shall remain in force in both cases and service shall be deemed continuous. As for workers’ rights accrued for the period prior to the change, such as wages or unrealized end-of-service awards on the date of the transfer of ownership and other rights, the predecessor and the successor shall be jointly and severally liable.
However, in the case of transfer of ownership of individual firms, for any reason, the predecessor and the successor may agree to transfer all the previous rights of the worker to the new owner subject to the written consent of the worker. If the worker disapproves, he may request the termination of his contract and collect his dues from the predecessor.
Article 19
Amounts due to the worker or his heirs under this Law shall be deemed first rate privileged debts and the worker and his heirs shall, for the purpose of settling them, be entitled to a privilege over all the employer’s properties. In case of the employer’s bankruptcy or the liquidation of his firm, the aforementioned amounts shall be entered as privileged debts and the worker shall be paid an expedited amount equivalent to one month wage prior to the payment of any other expenses including judicial, bankruptcy, or liquidation expenses.
Article 20
An employer or a worker may not perform any act that may abuse the provisions of this Law or the decisions or regulations issued for its implementation. Neither of them may undertake any act that infringes upon the freedom of the other or the freedom of other workers or employers to realize any interest or impose a point of view that conflicts with the freedom of work or the jurisdiction of the competent authority in charge of the settlement of disputes.
Article 21
The Minister, in implementing the provisions of this Law, shall coordinate with relevant authorities whenever necessary.
PART 2: Organization of Recruitment
Chapter 1: Employment Units
Article 22
The Ministry shall provide employment units, free of charge, at locations convenient for employers and workers, which shall undertake the following:
- Assist workers in finding suitable jobs and aid employers in recruiting suitable workers.
- Gather necessary information on the labor market and its developments and analyzing such information to make it available to various public and private organizations concerned with economic and social planning affairs.
- Perform the following duties:
3.1 Registering job seekers.
3.2 Obtaining data on vacant jobs from employers.
3.3 Referring workers’ applications to suitable vacant jobs.
3.4 Providing advice and assistance to job seekers with respect to vocational qualification and training or the required retraining to fill vacancies.
3.5 Other matters decided by the Ministry.
Article 23
Every citizen of working age who is capable of work and willing to work may register his name at the employment unit along with his date of birth, qualifications, previous employment, preferences, and address.
Article 24
The Regulations shall specify the rules and procedures for work progress at employment units, forms of registers, notices, and other papers used for its work in addition to job classification tables, according to the official job classification, which shall be the basis
Reference Link:
https://www.hrsd.gov.sa/sites/default/files/2023-02/Labor.pdf
Disclaimer: This content is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
The Implementing Regulations of Labor Law and its Annexes
Minister’s Office
Ministerial Decision
The Minister of Labor and Social Development,
Based on authorities duly granted to him,
Having reviewed the Labor Law issued by Royal Decree No. (M/51) dated 23/ 08/ 1426 H, and amended by Royal Decree No. (M/24) dated 12/ 05/ 1434 H, as well as Royal Decree No. (M/46) dated 05/ 06/ 1436 H, amended by Royal Decree No. (M/14), dated 22/ 02/ 1440 H, amended by Royal Decree No. (M/134), dated 27/ 11/ 1440 H; and
Having reviewed the Implementing Regulations of Labor Law and its Annexes issued by Ministerial Decision No. (70273), dated 11/ 04/ 1440 H,
Decides as follows:
I: Paragraph (3) of the clause (7) of Article (38) of the Implementing Regulations of Labor Law and its Annexes issued by Ministerial Decision No. (70273), dated 11/04/1440 H shall be deleted.
II: Paragraph (1) of clause (8) of Article (38) of the Implementing Regulations of Labor Law and its Annexes issued by the Ministerial Decision No. (70273), dated 11/04/1440 H, shall be amended to read as follows:
The violator shall claim for a settlement within (90) ninety days starting from the date of notification of the administrative decision imposing a relevant penalty. In such case, the settlement claim shall be considered by the competent authority within a period of at most (90) ninety days as of the date of the claim. Such authority may recommend pending the penalty enforcement until considering the said claim.
III: Paragraph (5) of clause (8) of Article (38) of the Implementing Regulations of Labor Law and its Annexes issued by the Ministerial Decision No. (70273), dated 11/04/1440 H, has been amended to read as follows:
The violator shall abide by the violation settlement decision within (60) sixty days after the date of notification; otherwise, the settlement shall be abrogated.
IV: This decision shall repeal all previous decisions in contradiction with the decision herein.
V: This decision shall be published in the Official Gazette and on Ministry’s website; in addition, it shall become into force after the date of publication.
VI: The Deputy Minister shall take the necessary actions for enforcement.
God Bless
Minister of Labor and Social Development
(Signed)
Ahmad bin Sulaiman Al-Rajhi
The Implementing Regulations
Article (6)
Incidental, seasonal and temporary workers shall be subject to the provisions of duties, disciplinary rules, the maximum working hours, daily and weekly rest periods, overtimes, public holidays, safety rules, occupational health, work injuries and compensations therefore as well as the Minister’s decisions.
Article (1)
Subject to Article (6) of Labor Law:
- If both parties to the temporal or incidental employment contract continue the contract enforcement for a period exceeding (90) ninety days, the temporal or incidental employment contract shall be deemed as a permanent employment contract subject to all provisions of the Labor Law. Neither the job title indicated in the work permit submitted by the worker- if expatriate-, nor the residence period granted thereunder is considered.
- The Labor Courts shall have the jurisdiction to consider the disputes arising between the parties over the incidental, seasonal and temporal employment contract.
Article (7)
- The following shall be excluded from the implementation of this Law:
(a) The employer’s family members, namely, the spouse, the ascendants and descendants who constitute the only workers of the establishment.
(b) Players and coaches of sports clubs and federations.
(c) Domestic workers and the like.
(d) Agricultural workers, private shepherds and the like.
(e) Sea workers working on board of vessels with a load of less than five hundred tons.
(f) Non-Saudi workers entering KSA to perform a specific task for a period not exceeding two months.
- The Ministry shall- in coordination with the competent authorities- draft one or more regulations for categories mentioned in sub-paragraphs (a), (c), (d), (e) and (f) of paragraph (1) of this Article; specifying the rights, duties and other special provisions relevant to each category.
Article (2)
Subject to the provisions of sub-paragraph (d) of paragraph (1) of Article (7) of the Law:
The agricultural workers, shepherds and the like shall mean agricultural workers, shepherds and the like who work in individual’s houses, farms, livestock farms, laying aside those working in establishments.
Article (12)
- The Ministry shall establish a unified form- or more- of the work regulations, to be comprehensive of work organization rules and related provisions, including provisions on privileges, violations and disciplinary penalties.
- The Ministry shall establish controls and mechanisms for the adoption of the work regulations.
Article (13)
- Each employer shall set work regulations to govern the work performed in his establishment in accordance with the form set by the Ministry, from which the Minister may be exempted.
- The employer may include additional conditions and provisions in the regulations, in a manner consistent with this Law and regulations thereof as well as the decisions issued in implementation thereof.
- The employer shall announce the work regulations and any amendment thereto by displaying it in a visible place within the establishment or by any other means that ensures the workers’ awareness thereof.
Article (3)
Subject to the provisions of paragraph (1) of Article (12) of the Law, the unified form of the work regulations shall be approved as per the form attached hereto (Annex No. 1).
Article (4)
Subject to the provisions of paragraph (2) of Article (12) and paragraph (2) of Article (13) of the Law, the establishment’s work regulations shall be approved according to one of the following procedures:
- The establishment may select the online unified form of the work regulations, in order to regulate the establishment’s work without any amendments or additions, through the Ministry’s e-services portal, and to follow-up the required steps pending the final approval, by issuing relevant e-certificate.
- If the establishment desires to prepare a special work regulation rather than selecting the unified form regulations, such regulations shall be audited and approved by the law firms certified by the Ministry of Labor and Social Development. Relatedly, the law firm shall ensure that no contradiction with the provisions of Labor Law, its Implementing Regulations or enforcement decisions is established. Consequently, such regulations shall be referred to the competent authority determined by the Ministry in order to be approved as per the applicable procedures.
Article (17)
The employer shall maintain at the workplace records, statements and files specifying the nature thereof; in addition to the data that shall be included within the regulations.
The employer shall display at a visible place within the workplace a schedule of working hours, breaks, weekly rest days and time of start and end of each shift, when working in shifts.
Article (5)
Subject to Article (17) of the Law, the employer shall incorporate under the statements, records and files maintained in the workplace- whether in hard or soft copies- the following details:
- Workers’ Name Statement: including names, occupations, ages, nationalities, and identifications numbers of workers, and numbers and dates of work permits in case of non-Saudis.
- Workers’ Wage Payroll: including wages of workers, dates of receipt, deducted amounts and deduction reason.
- Fine Record: including the name and wage of worker, and the amount, reason and effective date of fine.
- Attendance Record: including the attendance and departure to/from the workplace as well as any other statements specified by the employer.
- Saudi Training Record: including the training program’s title, category, duration, year, enrolled workers and their percentage out of total workers.
- The medical examination record for the establishment’s workers who are likely to be infected with occupational disease: including the workers names who were examined as well as the date and result of examination.
- Work file for workers: including data, address, copy of the employment contract and any certificates or documents submitted to the employer.
Article (20)
An employer or a worker may not perform any act that may abuse this Law or the decisions or regulations issued in implementation thereof. Neither of them may undertake any act that infringes upon the freedom of the other or the freedom of other workers or employers to realize any interest or impose a point of view that conflicts with the freedom of work or the competence of the authority settling the disputes.
Article (6)
Subject to Article (20) of Labor Law:
The employer may not withhold the passport, residence or medical insurance card of the non-Saudis.
Article (22)
The Ministry shall establish employment units, free of charge, at locations convenient for employers and workers, which shall:
- Assist workers finding suitable jobs and helping employers recruiting suitable workers.
- Collect and analyze necessary information about the labor market and its developments so as to make it available to various public and private authorities concerned with economic and social planning affairs.
- Perform the following duties:
3.1. Registration of job applicants.
3.2. Obtainment of data about job vacancies from employers.
3.3. Referral of workers’ applications for suitable vacancies.
3.4. Provision of advice and assistance to job applicant with respect to vocational qualification and training or the required retraining to fill vacancies.
3.5. Other matters decided by the Ministry.
Article (23)
Every citizen of working age who is capable of and willing to work may register his name at the employment unit, indicating his date of birth, qualifications, previous work, wishes and address.
Article (24)
The regulations shall specify the rules for work progress and procedures at the employment units, forms of registers, notices and respective working papers as well as the vocational classification lists, according to the adopted vocational classification, which shall be the basis for regulating recruitments.
Article (25)
Every employer shall send the following to the competent labor office:
- A statement of vacancies and new jobs, their types, locations, wages, and requirements within a period of at most fifteen days from the date of vacancy or creation thereof.
- A notice of measures taken to employ the citizens nominated by the employment unit within seven days from receiving the nomination letter.
- A list of names, jobs, occupations, wages, ages and nationalities of his workers, as well as numbers and dates of work permits for non-Saudis and other data specified in the Regulations.
- A report on the status, conditions and nature of work and the anticipated increase or decrease in jobs during the year following the date of the report.
- The statements specified in Paragraphs (3) and (4) of this Article shall be sent off during the month of Muharram every year.
Article (7)
Subject to the provisions of Article (22, 23, 24 and 25) of Labor Law, there shall be mutually coordinated between the Ministry and Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF) in order to activate and support the employment units affiliated to HRDF to employ, qualify, train the national workers to replace the expats.
Article (26)
- All establishments in all activities, whatever the number of their workers, shall work to attract and employ Saudis, provide them with the means to keep them in the job and provide them with an adequate opportunity to prove their suitability for the job by guiding, training and qualifying them for their assigned jobs.
- The percentage of Saudi workers employed by the employer may not be less than 75% of the total number of his workers. The Minister may temporarily reduce this percentage in case of inadequacy of technically or academically qualified workers or in case of impossibility to fill the vacant jobs with citizens.
Article (8)
Subject to the provisions of paragraph (2) of Article (26) of Labor Law, the obligatory Saudization rates for establishments shall be determined through programs set out by the Ministry. Through such programs, the Saudization rates for each activity of the private sector shall be followed-up. Furthermore, all or part of the Ministry’s services provided for establishments failing to achieve the specified Saudization percentage shall be ceased, such as the Program for Incentivizing Establishments to Saudize Jobs (Nitaqat); provided that the Ministry periodically updates these programs whenever necessary.
Article (28)
Each employer, employing twenty-five or more workers where the nature of his work allows recruitment of the disabled persons who have been professionally rehabilitated, shall employ a number of disabled persons that represents at least 4% of the total number of his workers either through nomination by the employment units or other means.
Furthermore, the employer shall send to the competent labor office a list of the jobs and posts occupied by the professionally rehabilitated disabled persons and their wages.
Article (9)
Subject to Article (28) of Labor Law,
- A person with disability means every person proven under a medical report issued by the Ministry of Health or Hospitals of other governmental sectors or under one of the identification cards issued by the Ministry of Labor and Social Development (MLSD) that he has one or more permanent disability as in the following forms:
Visual, hearing, mental, physical, and motor impairment, learning disability, speech disorder, behavioral and emotional disorders, autism, or any other disability requires one form of the facilitating measures and services.
- The facilitating measures and services: mean the engineering modifications and provision of appropriate work conditions and environment according to the standards stated under Chapter (2) of architectural requirements folder, under Saudi Building Code and any of the arrangements indicated under the guiding list attached hereto (Annex No. 2) that might be required to enable the person with disability to perform the assigned tasks.
- The ability to work means that the person with disability has fulfilled the vacancy requirements, or the work applied for, including the science, vocation, skill and/or other requirements that help him perform his work.
- In order to consider the person with several disabilities according to (Nitaqat) program, the following requirements shall be applicable:
a. The person with disability shall obtain the identification card from MLSD indicating the type and degree of disability.
b. The functions and employment nature held by the worker as well as the type and degree of disability.
- Each and every worker shall benefit from the necessary facilitations and measures in order to perform his work if proven according to a medical report issued by the authorities stipulated under clause (1) of this Article that he suffers from an illness or disability that does not require a leave for a period exceeding 120 days after the date of disability.
- Workers with disability shall have all rights and benefits provided for others, specified under the Labor Law, these Regulations or the establishment’s work regulations.
- The disability may not be regarded as a main reason to reject the person-with-disability employment, promotion, or the provision of professional trainings if the ability to work is fulfilled under the definition included in clause (3) of this Article.
- There may be no wage discrimination among workers based on disability, which shall be deemed as a misconduct.
- The establishment shall keep the data, work nature, wages, and types of measures and facilitations of the workers with disability. Such data shall be disclosed to the work inspectors upon request.
- The job applications submitted by persons with disability shall be in accordance with the forms and controls applicable by HRDF.
- The establishment recruiting persons with disability shall maintain the place-based requirements and explanatory services stipulated under the guide attached hereto (Annex No. 2).
- The work inspectors shall, upon paying an inspection visits for establishments, examine the persons-with-disability number, work nature, arrangement types and explanatory services.
Disclaimer: This content is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
Wage protection
The wages protection program observes the processes of the wages payment for all the labors (whether males or females) in the private sector establishments ( for both the Saudis & foreigners) in order to establish a data base that contains an updated information pertaining to the payment of the wages to the private sector labors, and to verify the extent of abidance of the establishments by paying the wages on time and with the amount previously agreed upon.
The implementation of the program has started since 22/07/1434H, corresponding to 1/06/2013, to include in its first stage , the giant size establishments (3,000 employees or more )as approbation period .Those establishments will be able to register and submit the wages payment files on the electronic services portal of the ministry, from the current June wage or salary whereas the obligatory implementation starts from the date of 25/10/1434H, corresponding to 1/09/2013, in accordance with the previously announced plan.
*The establishment s have the right to subscribe to the wages protection system in a probative way before their obligating date and this probative subscription will have no penalties or remarks consequences.The establishment s have the right to subscribe to the wages protection system in a probative way before their obligating date and this probative subscription will have no penalties or remarks consequences youtube.
| Obligatory Date of submitting the wages files to the ministry | Category (based on the number of the laborers according to the unified number of the establishment or the economic activity | |
| Gregorian Date | Hijra Date | |
| 1/09/2013 | 25/10/1434H | 3,000 laborers or more The national schools of the economic activity (national schools for boys &girls , foreign or international schools , national schools for boys , national schools for girls , kindergarten ) irrespectively to their size. |
| 1/12/2013 | 28/01/1435H | 2,000 laborers or more |
| 1/03/2014 | 29/04/1435H | 1,000 laborers or more |
| 1/11/2014 | 8/01/1436H | 500 laborers or more |
| 1/02/2015 | 11/04/1436H | 320 laborers or more |
| 1/04/2015 | 11/06/1436H | 240 laborers or more |
| 1/06/2015 | 13/08/1436H | 170 laborers or more |
| 1/08/2015 | 15/10/1436H | 130 laborers or more |
| 1/11/2015 | 18/01/1437H | 100 laborers or more |
| 1/02/2016 | 22/04/1437H | 80-99 laborers |
| 1/05/2016 | 24/07/1437H | 60-79 laborers |
| 1/08/2016 | 27/10/1437H | 40-59 laborers |
| 1/12/2016 | 30/12/1437H | 30-39 laborers |
| 1/03/2017 | 2/06/1438H | 20-29 laborers |
| 1/07/2017 | 6/10/1438H | 15-19 laborers |
| 1/09/2017 | 9/12/1438H | 11-14 laborers |
| Will be determined later | 1-10 labore |
The Benefits of the Program:
For the private sector laborers:
- The laborer ensures receiving his wage or salary on time & with the amount agreed upon without any delays , cheatings or fraud.
- Avoiding the disparity in the data registered by the employer from what has been previously agreed upon and is normally paid.
- Proving the employee’s rights through the transparent information of the wages, and an approved wages data reference in case there are any disagreements regarding the wages.
For the employer (the establishment owner):
- Reducing the labor disagreements or troubles and providing a healthy work environment which encourages increasing the productivity.
- Making the labor dues or accruals on top of the priorities of the employer.
- Proving the payment of the labor wages without needing the receipt payrolls, and to retrench the malicious complaints.
- Providing the required precise information in order to enable the ministry of labor to release or publish statistics & data about the labor market in a way that serves all the parties including the employer himself(the establishment).
- Increasing the competitiveness in the labor market and attracting the national cadres or staff.
For the community:
- Providing a level of social welfare, psychological settlement or reassurance and a safe work environment.
- Ensure providing the social protection to all the private sector employees after retirement and in case of injuries via the compliance of the wages data registered in social insurances to the actual wages.
For security :
- Controlling the foreign labor wages and linking them with what suits the labor contracts in addition to evaluating the suspected banking cases.
- Reducing the risks and the thefts cases resulting from paying the labor wages in cash money.
- For economy:
- Contributing in increasing the productivity of the labor in the private sector because of ensuring his rights.
- Providing the opportunities of establishing economic entities and jobs for the Saudi citizens through retrenching the fictitious employers , the foreign loose or abandoned labor and the labor concealment.
- Providing actual or real updated information and data which reflects the condition of the private sector and its future requirements.
what shall I do?
The Requirements of Registering in the Wages Protection Program
Bank Accounts:
1- The establishment has to open “bank accounts” or issuing “salary paying card” for all the laborers via the local banks. Salary Payment:
The bank accounts are the familiar known accounts through which all the banking services could be performed.
The Cards:
They are the ATM cash cards that are issued by the establishments through the banks with the names of laborers of those establishments and those cash cards only allow receiving the wages.
2- Registering the establishment in “the wages protection program ” via the site of the ministry for the electronic services https://www.mol.gov.sa/securessl/login.aspx,
then registering the data of the laborers wages.
3- The establishment should update the laborers data on a periodical basis once any changes occur.
How does the Program Work?
The program observes the data of paying the monthly wages of the establishments and compares them to the registered data in the ministry of labor, and the ministry also observes the punctuality of the employer in the payment and with the amount that has been agreed upon in accordance with what has been registered in the wages protection system.
The Discipline :
- The employer is considered disciplined when he submits the wages data regularly and the ministry will calculate the discipline on the basis of , the number of the months in which the submission of the approved wages payment file to the ministry electronic services site, has delayed. But if the employer has submitted the file late and has already settled the wages on the determined time, then the system would recognize that on condition that the delay of submitting the file for each month should not exceed three months.
- The ministry of labor will also recognize the discipline of the employer by his payment to the amount of the wage that has been agreed upon, and that the wage is equal to the wage registered, by comparing the data registered in the wages protection system with the data of the wages payment file & the data of the social insurance.
- The Monthly Wages Payment File:
- The employer should submit the monthly wages payment file in the unified form and the file contains the following data:
- The net wage that would be transferred or deposited in the employee’s account.
- The employee’s account number.
- The employee’s name.
- The name of the bank that contains the employee’s account.
- The description of the remittance.
- The amount of the basic salary.
- The amount of the housing allowance.
- Other allowances.
- Total amount of deduction.
- The employee identity number (the identity card or the Iqama).
- The remittance process number.
- The status of condition of the transferring process.
- The date of the transferring process.
The Program Regulations:
For the establishment:
The Services: commencing from the date of 25/10/1434H, corresponding to 1/09/2013 the establishments of giant size will be obliged through regulations that depends on the establishment delay period in submitting the wages file to the ministry of labor site from the date of the wages due where the penalties might reach to the extent of stopping the ministry services from the establishment according to the schedule below , knowing that , not abiding by paying the wages on time and /or with the amount agreed upon will be subjected to the labor system regulations and the inspection regulations adopted by the ministry of labor.
The establishment , when not paying the wages of the labor on their determined due date or time , would be penalized by SR3000 fine, and the fine is multiplied based on the multiplicity or enumeration of the laborers:
| The Delay period of Submitting the File | The Regulations |
| Two months |
|
| Three months |
|
Controlling &Inspection :
In case of the delay of submitting the file for one moth or delaying the payment the wage from the date agreed upon, or paying the wages with amounts differing from what has been agreed upon , then an inspecting visit to the establishment & the violation or breach would be scheduled in accordance with the ministry of labor regulations.
The Prosecution : in case it has been proved that there is a breach regarding the payment of the wages , the ministry of labor would refer the establishment to the judicial powers in order to take the required procedures or measures.
- The establishment , in case not paying the laborers wages on the determined due date, would be penalized with SR3,000, and the fine is multiplied based on the multiplicity or enumeration of the laborers.
- For the employees:
The data of wages protection regulation would be an approved reference in the judgment or settlement of the related complaints.
Disclaimer: This content is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
Occupational Safety and Health Management Regulation
1-1 Occupational Safety and Health Policy
A. The Facility shall develop a written policy for occupational safety and health. The policy shall be written clearly and accurately in the languages most used by members of the facility, but the Arabic language shall prevail over the others.
B. The policy aims at ensuring safety and health of all the facility members and visitors, or the passers-by who may be affected by the work site, by preventing injuries, ill-health, diseases, and work-related accidents. The policy shall:
a. Determine clearly the expectations and priorities in the field of occupational safety and health at all facility levels.
b. Cover any other details relevant to occupational safety and health practices that may include general operations, responsibilities and roles, including reporting work injuries and accidents and occupational diseases to the General Organization for Social Insurance, any other requirements as needed.
C. This policy shall be specific to the facility and cover the most important occupational health and safety aspects, given the size and nature of the facility’s business or activities.
D. The policy shall adhere to the relevant legislation in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and any other requirements that the facility has participated in.
E. The facility’ CEO, the General Manager, or the senior management shall make the policy effective by signing it.
F. This policy should be easily made available to all the facility members through the appropriate means, including but not limited to storing the policy on the server, in a hard copy, etc.
G. All the facility members shall be informed of this policy and any changes thereto, through all the appropriate means, including but not limited to email, posters, live presentation, publications, etc.
H. The policy shall be reviewed at least every two years and updated as necessary.
1-2 Worker Participation
It is applied to both the intermediate and highest levels.
2- Organization
2-1 Responsibility and Accountability
A. The facility and its management bear the full responsibility, and also they are ultimately responsible for providing a safe and healthy workplace for all workers and visitors, or the passers-by who may be affected by the work site.
B. The facility is responsible for providing adequate resources to achieve its objectives in the field of safety and health, for example (including but not limited to):
a. Financial resources
b. Human resources
c. Technologies
d. Infrastructure and equipment
e. Information Technology Systems
f. Experience and training
C. The facility shall clearly determine the role of all workers who perform occupational safety and health-related duties and their responsibilities and accountability, and also the powers granted to them, and shall describe it in the form of job titles, manuals, procedures, or all of them, then it shall be sent to the concerned workers.
D. The facility shall appoint a person(s) at the management level as officials who have the following powers and authorities:
a. Develop and impellent the Occupational Safety and Health Management Regulation within the facility.
b. Review and evaluate the Occupational Safety and Health Management Regulation regularly.
c. Submit periodic reports to the remaining departments (Sections) of the facility with regard to performance of the Occupational Safety and Health Management Regulation.
d. Promote the participation of all workers in the process of occupational safety and health (For example: Speaking to the workers regularly and considering their opinions when taking decisions related to the occupational safety and health).
E. The facility shall, at all the facility levels and through the appropriate communication channel(s) (For example: email, posters, presentation, etc.) communicate the following:
a. The importance of occupational safety and health as being a joint liability for all the workers.
b. The duty of workers to protect their safety, health, colleagues, and others in or near the workplace.
c. The duty of workers to cooperate with the employer, colleagues and any person performing his duty imposed by internal or external legislation with regard to the occupational safety and health, through following the instructions, training, reporting the hazardous conditions and using tools / equipment / devices / clothes in an appropriate and safe manner.
d. The appointed or responsible person(s) who bears the responsibility, accountability and power to determine, evaluate, or control the occupational safety and health risks.
2-2 Competency and Training System
A. The facility shall ensure having competent workers (i.e. workers who are adequately qualified and suitably trained and with sufficient experience) to implement safety and health aspects related to their duties and responsibilities. To this end, the facility shall:
a. Determine needs of training.
b. Conduct training courses according to the specified needs, provided to be:
- Given to the concerned workers, as appropriate, free of charge.
- Conducted in a language and vocabulary that is easy for workers to understand.
- Conducted within the working hours, if possible.
- Conducted by competent persons.
B. The facility shall document (both the content of training and the attending workers).
2-3 Documentation of the Occupational Safety and Health Management Regulation
It is applied to both the intermediate and highest levels.
2-4 Communication System
It is applied to both the intermediate and highest levels.
3- Planning and Implementation
3-1 Initial Review of Occupational Safety and Health
A. The facility shall conduct an initial evaluation process in order to evaluate the status and practices of occupational safety and health that it has and document the necessary actions to be taken, as a result of the evaluation process, in a written form.
B. In case there is no any system that is currently followed in the Occupational Safety and Health Management or that is recently established by the facility, the facility shall conduct an initial evaluation process, provided to be used as a basis for establishing and implementing the Occupational Safety and Health Management Regulation.
C. The initial review shall be conducted by the facility or a third party (For example: External consultants), provided that the third party conducting the review process shall be experienced in evaluating the occupational safety and health and the review shall be approved by those responsible for occupational safety and health in the facility.
D. The initial review shall:
a. Determine whether the facility comply with the relevant legislation in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and any other requirements that the facility participated in.
b. Determine and evaluate the safety and health risks arising from work environment and its organization.
c. Evaluate whether the current or scheduled controls are enough to remove/ control risks (for example: in terms of control: analysis of data relevant to the workers’ safety and health).
E. After completing the review process, the results shall be included in an action plan, provided to:
a. Give the priority to deficiencies.
b. Determine timelines.
c. Determine and allocate the necessary resources (human and financial).
d. Appoint the responsible person (s).
F. The results and subsequent action plans shall be documented and communicated to the workers.
G. The facility shall ensure that the person(s) who conduct the initial review process is competent to do so and will not only work with the senior management, but also the remaining workers and their representatives, as appropriate.
3-2 Planning, Developing and Implementing the Occupational Safety and Health Processes
It is applied to both the intermediate and highest levels.
3-3 Objectives of Occupational Safety and Health
It is applied to both the intermediate and highest levels.
3-4 Prevention Measures and Risk Control
3-4-1 Preventive and Control Measures
A. The facility is responsible for determining and evaluating the risks that threaten the safety and health of workers and for implementing the necessary preventive and control measures by the following:
a. Provide or redesign the processes and procedures to allow the possibility of managing the specified risks, so that it will be safe for the manpower, if the source of risk cannot be eliminated.
b. Replace the hazardous task, tool, machine, material or process with a less hazardous alternative, where possible.
c. Provide the appropriate PPE for the workers to reduce the risks.
B. The facility shall regularly review, control and update the agreed measures to ensure that the activities, processes, equipment or materials, including the new ones, are safe to be used by the workers.
C. The facility shall ensure that the adopted measures comply with the relevant legislation in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and any other requirements that the facility participated in.
D. The facility shall inform all the workers that they are expected to determine and report the risks threatening the safety and health.
3-4-2 Change Management
It is applied to the highest level.
3-4-3 Prevention in Emergency
A. The facility shall make arrangements for prevention in emergency, including documented procedures that shall:
a. Determine the possibility of occurrence of accidents and emergency (Natural and industrial) and take the necessary measures to prevent occurrence of risks related to this emergency or to reduce the impact of disasters, when it occur.
b. Ensure providing the workers with the information necessary for their protection in emergency at the work site.
c. Provide the appropriate training for all the workers of the facility, at all levels, such as: regular training on procedures for prevention, readiness and response in emergency.
d. Coordinate and provide information, when necessary, to the relevant external emergency authorities and other entities, as appropriate.
e. Be ready to deal with emergency such as providing first aid and medical assistance, firefighting and evacuating the work site from all people present there.
B. The facility shall develop and document an action plan for emergency that includes the specific actions that employers and workers need to take to ensure the safety of workers in emergency. The plan includes, (but not limited to) the following:
a. The appropriate mean to report an emergency (For example: calling emergency phone number).
b. Evacuation policy and procedures.
c. Emergency evacuation procedures and passageways, such as: plans of floors, workplaces, safe areas or areas of refuge.
d. Names, addresses, departments and phone numbers of the officials in emergency from inside and outside the facility to contact them in case of emergency.
e. Procedures for workers who use fire extinguishers or implement other basic services that cannot be turned off with every emergency alert prior to evacuation, as appropriate.
f. Rescue tasks and medical tasks for the workers assigned to perform it.
g. Specific site and procedures for all the workers after evacuation.
h. Safe place, inside or outside the facility, to store the importance records such as original or duplicate copies of accounting records, legal documents, etc.
i. A way to alert the workers about how to evacuate or take other actions, and how to report emergencies.
C. The facility shall periodically inspect/ test emergency equipment (such as: fire extinguisher and alarm devices and systems) and conduct training in emergencies, and other applicable emergency procedures in the following cases:
a. According to a schedule determined by the facility.
b. During meetings allocated for occupational safety and health.
c. Following organizational changes.
d. Following an event that requires implementing emergency response procedures.
e. Following changes to legal requirements, etc.
3-4-4 Procurement
It is applied to the highest level.
3-4-5 Contracting
It is applied to both the intermediate and highest levels.
4- Evaluation
4-1 Performance Measurement & Control
It is applied to both the intermediate and highest levels.
4-2 Investigation System
It is applied to both the intermediate and highest levels.
4-3 Audit
It is applied to the highest level.
4-4 Senior Management Review of Occupational Safety and Health
It is applied to both the intermediate and highest levels.
5- Development
5-1 Preventive and Corrective Actions
It is applied to the highest level.
5-2 Continuous Improvement
It is applied to the highest level.
Reference: https://www.hrsd.gov.sa/sites/default/files/2023-02/161238_0.pdf
Disclaimer: This content is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
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Regulation Updates in Saudi Arabia
Discover the latest employment and compliance updates in Saudi Arabia — helping you stay ahead in a changing regulatory landscape.
Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development Announces Higher Saudization Rates in Marketing and Sales Professions
What it is: The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development announces higher Saudization rates in specified marketing and sales professions, including a minimum monthly wage requirement, creating new employer obligations on hiring compliance and minimum wage.
What it changes: This policy update raises mandated Saudization quotas for certain marketing and sales roles and adds a specified minimum monthly wage requirement for those positions, establishing employer obligations related to hiring compliance and wage standards.
Who is affected:
- Employers hiring for the specified marketing and sales professions
- Workers employed in the specified marketing and sales professions
What employers should do:
- Ensure hiring practices align with the new Saudization quotas for the affected roles
- Comply with the new minimum monthly wage requirement for the affected positions
- Review and adjust hiring policies and payroll practices to meet the updated obligations
Notes: Effective month: 2026-05. Manual verification recommended.
Notarized Employment Contract is an Enforceable Instrument
What it is: The Notarized Employment Contract initiative has a second phase that requires employment contracts to be notarized or updated through the Qiwa platform and to obtain an execution number.
What it changes: Establishments must notarize or update employment contracts via the Qiwa platform and obtain an execution number, enabling employees to seek enforcement for unpaid wages and affecting payroll and contract documentation processes.
Who is affected:
- Workers or employers explicitly mentioned or clearly implied by the policy summary.
What employers should do:
- Notarize or update employment contracts through the Qiwa platform.
- Obtain an execution number for the notarized or updated contracts.
Notes: Effective month: 2026-05. Manual verification recommended.
Human Resources Ministry Updates Qiwa Platform Compliance Rules for Employment Contracts
What it is: The Ministry updated Qiwa Platform compliance rules for Employment Contracts to raise the documentation compliance target to 85% and requires employers to document Employment Contracts via the Qiwa platform.
What it changes: Employers must document Employment Contracts through the Qiwa platform, and the documentation compliance target is now 85%. This change affects how work permits are recorded and classified within the Qiwa system.
Who is affected:
- Employers
What employers should do:
- Document Employment Contracts using the Qiwa platform to meet the new 85% compliance target.
Notes: Effective month: 2026-04. Manual verification recommended.