Article 30 of the Saudi Civil Service Law
المادة 30 من نظام الخدمة المدنية · الفصل السادس: إنهاء الخدمة
Article 30 lists the cases in which an employee's service ends, including resignation, retirement, job abolition, health incapacity, dismissal, unexcused absence, loss of nationality, death and three consecutive unsatisfactory performance ratings.
Official text after amendments (Arabic)
Compiled from the original text and every officially published amendment; the amendments are shown in full below for comparison.
مع مراعاة أسباب إنهاء الخدمة التي تنص عليها الأنظمة تنهى خدمة الموظف لأحد الأسباب الآتية:
أ - الاستقالة.
ب - طلب الإحالة على التقاعد قبل بلوغ السن النظامية حسب نظام التقاعد.
ج - إلغاء الوظيفة.
د - بلوغ السن النظامية للتقاعد ما لم تمدد خدمته بقرار من السلطة المختصة.
هـ - العجز الصحي.
و- عدم تنفيذ قرار النقل دون عذر مشروع خلال خمسة عشر يوماً من تاريخ إبلاغ الموظف بالقرار
ز - الفصل لأسباب تأديبية.
ح - الفصل بأمر ملكي أو بقرار من مجلس الوزراء.
ط- الانقطاع عن العمل دون عذر مشروع مدة خمسة عشر يوماً متصلة أو ثلاثين يوماً متفرقة خلال السنة السابقة لإصدار قرار إنهاء الخدمة.
ي- سحب الجنسية أو إسقاطها.
ك- فقد الموظف بعد مضي مدة يحددها مجلس الوزراء.
ل- عدم الصلاحية لشاغلي الوظائف المستثناة من المسابقة والمؤهل.
م- عدم الكفاية لحصوله على تقويم أداء وظيفي بدرجة غير مرضٍ ثلاث مرات متتالية وفقاً لما تحدده اللائحة.
ن- الوفاة
This is the official Arabic wording, the only legally binding version. We do not translate the law itself; the explanation below is ours. Official source: Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers
Article 30 explained in plain English
This article brings together the cases in which an employee's relationship with the public post ends. It begins with the phrase "subject to the grounds for termination of service provided by the laws", meaning this list does not cancel the grounds for termination established by other laws.
The grounds stated in the article are:
- Resignation.
- A request for early retirement before reaching the legal age, under the Retirement Law.
- Abolition of the post.
- Reaching retirement age, unless the service is extended by decision of the competent authority.
- Health incapacity.
- Failure to carry out a transfer decision without a legitimate excuse within 15 days of the date the employee is notified of the decision.
- Dismissal on disciplinary grounds, or dismissal by royal order or by decision of the Council of Ministers.
- Absence from work without a legitimate excuse for 15 consecutive days or 30 non-consecutive days during the year preceding the issuance of the decision to end service.
- Withdrawal or forfeiture of nationality.
- The employee being missing, after a period set by the Council of Ministers has passed.
- Unsuitability, a ground specific to holders of posts exempted from the competition and the qualification requirement.
- Inefficiency, if the employee receives a performance rating of "unsatisfactory" three consecutive times, as the Regulation specifies.
- Death.
Note that some grounds are limited by clear conditions: refusing a transfer and absence do not end the service if the employee has a legitimate excuse, the period of absence is counted over the year preceding the termination decision, and the performance rating must be unsatisfactory three times consecutively. As for the details of some cases, such as the period of being missing and the procedures for inefficiency, the text leaves them to the Council of Ministers and the Regulation.
Anyone against whom a termination decision has been issued who believes the ground does not apply to him would do well to consult a lawyer specializing in administrative and civil service cases.
Practical example
An employee at a government entity in Riyadh is absent from work on 10 non-consecutive days, then on another 12 non-consecutive days over the following months, without presenting a legitimate excuse. If the total of his non-consecutive days of absence reaches 30 days during the year preceding the issuance of the decision to end service, he falls within the case of absence provided for in the article. If he had a legitimate excuse for those days, however, this ground does not apply according to the text.
Translated from our Arabic explanation with machine assistance. For guidance only; it does not replace advice from a lawyer on your situation.
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Frequently asked questions about Article 30 of the Saudi Civil Service Law
After how many days of absence is a government employee dismissed?
The article provides for termination of service on absence from work without a legitimate excuse for 15 consecutive days or 30 non-consecutive days during the year preceding the issuance of the decision to end service.
Does refusing a transfer decision end an employee's service?
Service ends if the employee does not carry out the transfer decision without a legitimate excuse within 15 days of the date he is notified of the decision.
Is a poor performance rating a ground for ending service?
Yes, if the employee receives a performance rating of "unsatisfactory" three consecutive times, as the Regulation specifies.
Does service necessarily end on reaching retirement age?
It ends on reaching the legal retirement age unless the employee's service is extended by decision of the competent authority.
Amendment history
Amendment
Official amendment text (Arabic)
* عُدلت الفقرة (و) من المادة (30) لتكون بالنص الآتي:
"و- عدم تنفيذ قرار النقل دون عذر مشروع خلال خمسة عشر يوماً من تاريخ إبلاغ الموظف بالقرار".
* أُضيفت ست فقرات جديدة إلى المادة (30) بالنص الآتي:
"ط- الانقطاع عن العمل دون عذر مشروع مدة خمسة عشر يوماً متصلة أو ثلاثين يوماً متفرقة خلال السنة السابقة لإصدار قرار إنهاء الخدمة.
ي- سحب الجنسية أو إسقاطها.
ك- فقد الموظف بعد مضي مدة يحددها مجلس الوزراء.
ل- عدم الصلاحية لشاغلي الوظائف المستثناة من المسابقة والمؤهل.
م- عدم الكفاية لحصوله على تقويم أداء وظيفي بدرجة غير مرضٍ ثلاث مرات متتالية وفقاً لما تحدده اللائحة.
ن- الوفاة".
Original text before the amendments (Arabic)
مع مراعاة أسباب إنهاء الخدمة التي تنص عليها الأنظمة تنهى خدمة الموظف لأحد الأسباب الآتية:
أ - الاستقالة.
ب - طلب الإحالة على التقاعد قبل بلوغ السن النظامية حسب نظام التقاعد.
ج - إلغاء الوظيفة.
د - بلوغ السن النظامية للتقاعد ما لم تمدد خدمته بقرار من السلطة المختصة.
هـ - العجز الصحي.
و - الغياب بغير عذر مشروع أو عدم تنفيذ قرار النقل.
ز - الفصل لأسباب تأديبية.
ح - الفصل بأمر ملكي أو بقرار من مجلس الوزراء.
The texts are reproduced from the official website of the Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers for reference; where they differ, the officially published Arabic text prevails. This content is not legal advice.