Saudi Labor Law Amendments: What Has Actually Changed?

If you are an employee or employer in the Kingdom, the new Saudi Labor Law amendments issued under Royal Decree No. (M/157) dated 25/6/1446 AH affect you directly. They entered into force in February 2025 and amended more than 38 articles of the original Labor Law issued under Royal Decree No. M/51 of 1426 AH.

Quick Answer

The new Saudi Labor Law amendments modified 38 articles, added 7 articles, and deleted 2. The most significant changes are: extending maternity leave to 12 weeks, requiring employment contracts to be in writing and registered electronically, introducing a new definition of resignation with a standardized 30-day notice period for employees and 60 days for employers in open-ended contracts, adding 3 days of paid paternity leave, regulating probation periods with a maximum of 180 days, and expanding the cases in which a contract terminates by operation of law. The amendments took effect on 19 February 2025.

Key Changes to Employment Contracts and Probation Periods

A written contract is no longer merely a recommendation. Article (51) as amended requires that the employment contract be drawn up in two copies and registered through the Qiwa platform operated by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development. The absence of a written contract does not extinguish the employee's rights; the employee may prove the contract by any means of evidence — a point employers frequently overlook.

The probation period has been clearly regulated. The maximum is 180 days, which may be extended by written agreement provided the total does not exceed 180 days; Eid holidays and sick leave are not counted toward this period. During probation, either party may terminate the contract without an end-of-service award or notice, unless the contract provides otherwise.

The notice period has been made deliberately asymmetric: 30 days if termination is initiated by the employee, and 60 days if initiated by the employer in open-ended contracts with monthly remuneration. Any party that disregards this period must pay the equivalent in cash.

Leave: Maternity, Paternity, and Bereavement

Maternity leave is now 12 weeks at full pay, to be distributed as the employee chooses, provided that the post-delivery period is not less than 6 weeks. If the newborn is ill or has a disability, leave is extended by one additional month at full pay, with the right to a further month without pay.

Paid paternity leave of 3 days has been introduced for the first time, to be taken within one week of the child's birth. Bereavement leave upon the death of a husband has also been amended: for a Muslim woman it follows the Islamic waiting period (ʿidda), and for a non-Muslim woman it is 15 days.

Key figures: Maternity leave 12 weeks · Paternity leave 3 days within 7 days of birth · Probation period maximum 180 days · Employee resignation notice 30 days · Employer termination notice 60 days.

Contract Termination and Resignation

The amendments have redefined resignation. Article (81) as amended obliges the employer to respond to a resignation request within 30 days; failing that, the resignation is deemed accepted by operation of law. This ends the widespread practice of leaving resignation requests pending for months.

The cases in which a contract terminates by operation of law have been expanded to include: the employee's death, total incapacity to perform work as certified by an approved medical report, retirement under the Social Insurance Law, and reaching the age of sixty for men and fifty-five for women, unless otherwise agreed.

The basic end-of-service award formula has not changed (half a month's wage for each of the first five years and a full month's wage for each subsequent year), but entitlement upon resignation is now clearer: an employee is entitled to the full award after 10 years of service, two-thirds between 5 and 10 years, and one-third between 2 and 5 years.

Warning: Any party that terminates the contract arbitrarily must pay compensation of no less than 15 days' wages for each year of service under amended Article (77), in addition to the notice-period equivalent. The minimum compensation may not be less than two months' wages.

Women's Employment and Flexible Work

Flexible work, remote work, and part-time work are now explicitly recognized as employment arrangements, governed by an implementing regulation issued by the Ministry that sets working hours and hourly pay rates. Discrimination in remuneration between workers performing the same work on the basis of contract type is prohibited.

The prohibition on wage discrimination between men and women performing the same work is now an express statutory provision, and any discriminatory clause in a contract is deemed void.

What Should You Do Now?

If you are an employer, review your contract templates on the Qiwa platform and update your internal policies within the deadline set by the Ministry. If you are an employee considering resignation or facing sudden termination, keep a signed copy of your contract and all official correspondence — they are your primary evidence before the Labor Court.

For more on your employment rights in the Kingdom, see Employment Law Q&A.