Article 102 of the Saudi Commercial Papers Law

المادة 102 من نظام الأوراق التجارية · الفصل الخامس: تقديم الشيك ووفاؤه

The Article makes a check payable on sight, voids any contrary statement, and requires payment on the day of presentment even if presented before the date written on it.

Official text (Arabic)

This article has not been amended since the law was issued.

الشيك مستحق الوفاء بمجرد الاطلاع عليه وكل بيان مخالف لذلك يعتبر كأن لم يكن، وإذا قدم الشيك للوفاء قبل اليوم المعين فيه كتاريخ لإصداره وجب وفاؤه في يوم تقديمه.

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 102 explained in plain English

This is one of the most important Articles on checks in everyday dealings, and it sets two rules:

A check is payable on sight. It is an instrument of immediate payment, not a deferred credit instrument. Any statement in the check to the contrary, such as the words "not to be cashed before such-and-such a date", is considered as if it had not been written.
If a check is presented for payment before the day written on it as its date of issue, meaning a postdated or deferred check, it must be paid on the day of presentment.

In practice, writing a future date on a check does not prevent its holder from presenting it before that date, and the drawee must pay it on the day of presentment. Anyone who gives a postdated check in the hope of providing funds later therefore bears the risk of its being presented early.

This Article is linked to Article 103, which sets the period for presenting a check for payment and counts it from the date stated in the check as its date of issue, and to Article 101 before it, on aval.

Anyone facing a situation involving a postdated check they handed over or received would do well to consult a lawyer who specializes in commercial matters and commercial papers.

Practical example

Majed gave a property owner in Dammam a check for six months' rent, dated two months later. The owner presented the check to the bank the next day. Under this Article, the bank must pay it on the day of presentment even though the date written on it has not yet arrived.

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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