Article 52 of the Saudi Criminal Procedure Law
المادة 52 من نظام الإجراءات الجزائية · الفصل الرابع: تفتيش الأشخاص والمساكن
The article requires a search to take place by day from sunrise to sunset, allows it to continue at night if continuous, and bars entering homes at night except in a flagrant crime.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
يجب أن يكون التفتيش نهارًا من شروق الشمس إلى غروبها في حدود السلطة التي يخولها النظام، ويمكن أن يستمر التفتيش إلى الليل ما دام إجراؤه متصلًا. ولا يجوز دخول المساكن ليلًا إلا في حال التلبس بالجريمة.
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 52 explained in plain English
This article regulates the timing of a search, and sets three rules:
- The rule: a search must take place by day, from sunrise to sunset, within the limits of the authority the Law grants.
- Continuation: a search may continue into the night as long as its conduct is continuous, meaning it began by day and was not interrupted.
- Entering homes at night: homes may not be entered at night except in a flagrant crime.
In practice, this means that starting to enter a home after sunset is not permitted except in a flagrant crime. But if the search began by day and continued without interruption until night fell, it may be completed.
The phrase "within the limits of the authority the Law grants" means that timing alone is not enough; the search itself must be permitted under the Law's other provisions. These include Article 53, which requires a woman to be with those carrying out the search if there is only the female accused in the home to be searched. It is also linked to Article 51, which allows the seals placed on seized items to be broken only in the presence of the accused, his agent or the person from whom they were seized, or after they have been invited and notified and have not attended.
Anyone whose home was entered at night and who wants to know whether that was lawful may consult a lawyer specialized in criminal cases.
Practical example
Judicial police officers began searching a house in Hail at four in the afternoon, and the work continued without a stop even after sunset, so it may be completed because the search is continuous. But if they came for the first time in the middle of the night to enter the house with no flagrant crime, that is not permitted.
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 52 of the Saudi Criminal Procedure Law
Can a house be searched at night?
The rule is that a search takes place by day from sunrise to sunset; it may continue into the night as long as it is continuous, and homes may not be entered at night except in a flagrant crime.
If the search began by day, must it stop at sunset?
No. The search may continue into the night as long as its conduct is continuous.
When may a house be entered at night?
Homes may not be entered at night except in a flagrant crime.
More articles on Search and Seizure
- Article 41
The article establishes the inviolability of persons, their homes, offices and vehicles, and clarifies that a person's inviolability covers his body, clothing, property and belongings, and that a home includes any enclosed or fenced place or one prepared as shelter.
للأشخاص ومساكنهم ومكاتبهم ومراكبهم حرمة تجب صيانتها. وحرمة الشخص تحمي جسده وملابسه وماله وما معه من أمتعة. وتشمل حرمة المسكن كل مكان مسوّر أو محاط بأي حاجز، أو
- Article 42
The article bars entering or searching homes except in cases provided by law and under a reasoned order from the Investigation and Public Prosecution, accepts a reasoned permit from the investigator for other places, and sets specific cases of necessity.
لا يجوز لرجل الضبط الجنائي الدخول إلى أي مكان مسكون أو تفتيشه إلا في الأحوال المنصوص عليها نظامًا، وبأمر مسبب من هيئة التحقيق والادعاء العام، وما عدا المساكن في
- Article 43
The article allows the judicial police officer to search the accused in cases in which he may lawfully be arrested, covering his body, clothing and belongings, and requires a woman to be searched by a woman whom the officer assigns.
يجوز لرجل الضبط الجنائي - في الأحوال التي يجوز فيها نظامًا القبض على المتهم - أن يفتشه. ويشمل التفتيش جسده وملابسه وأمتعته. وإذا كان المتهم امرأة وجب أن يكون ال
- Article 44
The article allows the judicial police officer, in a flagrant crime, to search the accused's home and seize what helps reveal the truth, if strong indications show that such items are in the home.
يجوز لرجل الضبط الجنائي في حال التلبس بالجريمة أن يفتش مسكن المتهم ويضبط ما فيه من الموجودات التي تفيد في كشف الحقيقة؛ إذا اتضح من أمارات قوية أنها موجودة في ال
- Article 45
The article allows the judicial police officer to search the accused or any person in his home during the search, if indications arise that he is hiding something that helps reveal the truth.
إذا قامت أثناء تفتيش مسكن متهم قرائن ضده، أو ضد أي شخص موجود فيه - على أنه يخفي معه شيئًا يفيد في كشف الحقيقة - جاز لرجل الضبط الجنائي أن يفتشه.
- Article 46
The article limits a search to looking for things relating to the crime under investigation, and requires the judicial police officer to seize what appears incidentally that it is a crime to possess or that helps in another crime, and record it.
لا يجوز التفتيش إلا للبحث عن الأشياء الخاصة بالجريمة الجاري جمع المعلومات عنها، أو التحقيق في شأنها. ومع ذلك، إذا ظهر عرضًا أثناء التفتيش وجود أشياء تعد حيازتها
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.