In force
Saudi Employee Discipline Law
نظام الانضباط الوظيفي
The Employee Discipline Law of Saudi Arabia. This page presents the official Arabic text of each article with plain-English explanations for residents and businesses.
- Articles
- 25
- In force
- 25
- Amended
- 0
- Issued
- 8/2/1443 AH
Issued by: مرسوم ملكي رقم (م/18) وتاريخ 1443/2/8هـ · قرار مجلس الوزراء رقم (85) وتاريخ 1443/1/30هـ
Each article shows the official Arabic text, which is the only legally binding version, followed by our plain-English explanation.
Browse Employee Discipline Law by topic
Scope of the Employee Discipline Law6 articlesEmployee Disciplinary Violations4 articlesDisciplinary Penalties for Employees7 articlesAdministrative Investigation of an Employee8 articlesDisciplinary Dismissal from Service5 articlesReferral to the Anti-Corruption Authority4 articlesSuspension from Duty and Precautionary Detention3 articlesLapse of a Disciplinary Violation2 articles
Articles of the Saudi Employee Discipline Law
- Article 1The article defines the key terms of the Employee Discipline Law, such as public employee, disciplinary violation, penalty, suspension from duty and closing an investigation.
- Article 2The article explains that the Employee Discipline Law aims to protect the public job, ensure the regular functioning of the public service, and secure the employee's proper performance of his work.
- Article 3The article provides that the Employee Discipline Law applies to all employees, except those whose laws regulate penalties with special rules, who are treated under those rules.
- Article 4The article requires the employee to be investigated, confronted and heard in writing before any penalty, with a reasoned decision, and bars filling the dismissed employee's job before the decision becomes unchallengeable or the judgment final.
- Article 5The article provides that an employee proved to have committed a financial, administrative or conduct violation that breaches his duties is subject to the legal penalty, without prejudice to public-right or private-right claims.
- Article 6The article sets the disciplinary penalties for an employee: a written warning, a salary deduction within limits, forfeiting an annual increment, not considering promotion for up to two years, and dismissal.
- Article 7The article relieves the employee of the penalty if it is proved that he committed the violation in executing his superior's order despite alerting his superior to it in writing or by any means recognized by law.
- Article 8The article provides that the end of an employee's service does not prevent disciplinary proceedings except in death or total health incapacity, and the penalty is a fine of up to 3 times the last net salary.
- Article 9The article provides for forming, by decision of the Minister, one or more committees in each government body to consider and investigate employee violations, chaired by a legal specialist.
- Article 10The article regulates referring the employee to the committee and the Minister's approval of its recommendations, considering dismissal in a special committee, proportionality and non-duplication of penalties, and the Minister's right to refer to the Authority.
- Article 11The article provides that a recommendation to dismiss an employee at grade 14 or 15 or their equivalents is referred to the Authority, which considers the dismissal before the competent court or returns it to the body with a proposal for another penalty.
- Article 12The article sets the cases in which employee violations are referred to the Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority, which files the claim before the competent court, and that court may impose any penalty provided for in the Law.
- Article 13The article requires the Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority to give the Ministry of Human Resources and the employee's body, if he is still a government employee, a copy of the final judgment issued against him.
- Article 14The article allows the body employing an employee finally sentenced to a criminal penalty that does not require dismissal by operation of law to refer him to the committee if it considers his act breaches his job duties.
- Article 15The article allows the Authority, in the cases it considers, to close the investigation or propose a penalty specifying the acts attributed, and to refer the file to the employee's body to issue the penalty decision as it sees fit.
- Article 16The article requires the government body to give the Ministry of Human Resources, the Authority, the General Court of Audit and the employee a copy of the penalty decision, with the Regulations setting the procedures.
- Article 17The article lets the government body, the Authority or the court suspend an employee from duty for a period or periods not exceeding two years, and treats a dismissed employee's service as ended from the date of suspension or detention, whichever is earlier.
- Article 18The article requires the arresting authority to notify the employing body of an employee held in pretrial detention immediately, and requires the body to allow him to work on his release unless the interest requires suspending him.
- Article 19The article suspends administrative proceedings on the violation and violations connected with it if the employee is referred to criminal investigation or trial over it, until those proceedings end.
- Article 20The article sets the cases in which a violation or claim lapses: death, total health incapacity established by the General Medical Authority, and the passing of two years without any investigation or trial step.
- Article 21The article provides that disciplinary penalties imposed on an employee are erased two years after they are issued, unless another penalty is issued in that period, in which case the period runs from the last penalty, subject to other laws.
- Article 22The article allows the Minister, by written decision, to delegate whomever he sees fit among the entity's personnel with some of his powers under the Law, except for imposing the penalty of dismissal.
- Article 23The article tasks the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development with preparing the Regulations in coordination with the Authority and the Board of Grievances, and issuing them by its minister's decision within 90 days of publication of the Law, to take effect when the Law does.
- Article 24The article repeals Articles 31 to 46 and Article 48 of the Employees Disciplinary Law issued by Royal Decree No. M/7 dated 1/2/1391 AH, and every provision that conflicts with the Law.
- Article 25The article provides that the Employee Discipline Law takes effect 180 days after its publication in the Official Gazette.