Article 30 of the Saudi Mental Health Law

المادة 30 من نظام الرعاية الصحية النفسية

The Mental Health Care Law takes effect 90 days after its publication in the Official Gazette.

Official text (Arabic)

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

يعمل بهذا النظام بعد (تسعين) يوماً من تاريخ نشره في الجريدة الرسمية.

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 is the last Article of the Law, and it sets when it takes effect: it applies 90 days after the date of its publication in the Official Gazette.

Practical consequences follow:

The provisions of the Law, including patients' rights, the controls on compulsory admission and the penalties, apply from the date it takes effect.
The Implementing Regulations, under Article 29, apply from the date the Law takes effect, so the Law and its Regulations apply together.

Note that the starting point differs between the two Articles: Article 29 counts the period for issuing the Regulations from the date the Law was issued, while this Article counts taking effect from the date of its publication in the Official Gazette.

The usual purpose of such a period is to give mental treatment facilities and the bodies concerned time to prepare to apply the new provisions.

The text of the Article does not state the actual date of publication, so knowing exactly when the Law began to apply requires checking the date the Law was published in the Official Gazette.

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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