Article 26 of the Saudi Finance Lease Law

This is the Law's penalty article, and it protects the lessor's ownership of an asset that is in someone else's possession.

The acts that are punished, covering "anyone" who commits them:

• Obliterating the data marked on the leased asset.
• Altering the features of the asset or its descriptions recorded in the relevant register.
• Selling the leased asset without the lessor's written consent.
• Mortgaging the leased asset without the lessor's written consent.

The penalty, according to the seriousness of the violation:

• A fine of up to a quarter of the value of the leased asset, or
• Imprisonment for up to 3 months, or
• Both penalties together.

The article begins with the phrase "without prejudice to any harsher penalty provided in another law", so if the act is punishable by a harsher penalty in another law, this article does not prevent that from being applied.

Note that the fine is tied to the value of the asset itself, so the higher its value, the higher the maximum. The text also uses the words "anyone", so it does not limit the penalty to the lessee.

This article is linked to Article 25, which regulates the application for delivery of leased fixed assets and recovery of movable assets, and to Article 27, which provides for issuing the Implementing Regulations of the Law. Anyone accused of one of these acts, or harmed by them, would do well to consult a lawyer specializing in criminal or finance cases.