Article 88 of the Saudi Officers Service Law
المادة 88 من نظام خدمة الضباط · الفصل الأول: الإجازة الاعتيادية
The Article gives an officer ordinary leave of 45 days a year, the first after one year from appointment with 15 days allowed after six months, and permits combining leave subject to a limit of 90 days taken in a year.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
1- يستحق الضابط إجازة اعتيادية مدتها خمسة وأربعون يوماً في السنة ويمنح الضابط أولى إجازاته بعد مضي سنة من بدء تعيينه، على أنه يمكن أن يحصل على مدة خمسة عشر يوماً من أصل أجازته السنوية بعد مضي ستة أشهر من بدء تعيينه.
2- يجوز ضم الإجازات الاعتيادية المستحقة لأكثر من سنة بشرط أن لا يزيد تمتع الضابط بها عن تسعين يوماً في السنة.
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 88 explained in plain English
This Article regulates an officer's ordinary leave, in two paragraphs:
(1) Duration and first leave:
- The officer is entitled to ordinary leave of 45 days a year.
- He is granted his first leave after one year from the start of his appointment.
- He may obtain 15 days of his annual leave after six months from the start of his appointment.
(2) Combining: ordinary leave due for more than one year may be combined, provided that the officer's enjoyment of it does not exceed 90 days in a year.
In practice, a new officer does not enjoy a full leave in his first year, but after six months he can take 15 days counted from his annual leave balance, not in addition to it.
Combining allows the officer to accumulate a balance from more than one year, but what he actually takes in a single year does not exceed 90 days. An officer who has accumulated a larger balance may not take all of it at once in the same year under this Article.
An officer with a dispute over his leave balance, or who is refused leave he is due, may consider consulting a lawyer specializing in administrative cases and military service matters.
Practical example
Second Lieutenant Rayan was appointed at the start of Muharram, and in Rajab he needed leave for a family circumstance. He can take 15 days of his annual leave because he has completed six months, and the remaining 30 days he enjoys after completing one year from appointment.
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 88 of the Saudi Officers Service Law
How long is an officer's ordinary leave?
45 days a year.
When does a new officer get his first leave?
After one year from the start of his appointment, and he may obtain 15 days of his leave after six months.
May an officer's leave be combined?
Yes, provided his enjoyment of it does not exceed 90 days in a year.
More articles on Officer Leave
- Article 87Amended by M/28
The Article lists the types of officers' leave: ordinary, casual, field, exceptional, sick and study-accompaniment leave.
الإجازات هي: اعتيادية، عرضية، ميدانية، استثنائية، مرضية، مرافقة دراسية
- Article 89
The article states who grants ordinary leave to officers: the Minister for leave outside the Kingdom, who may delegate this to the Chief of the General Staff, and heads of bodies, commanders and directors for leave inside it, with the Officers Affairs Department notified.
تعطى الإجازات الاعتيادية للضباط على الوجه الآتي : 1- خارج المملكة بموافقة الوزير ويجوز للوزير تخويل هذه الصلاحية لرئيس هيئة الأركان العامة. 2- داخل المملكة من ق
- Article 90
The article allows whoever has power to grant leave to shorten, postpone or cut it for service reasons, and compensates an officer whose leave is cut before he has taken two-thirds of it for his travel and his family's return, with the remainder preserved in both cases.
يجوز لمن يملك سلطة إعطاء الإجازة تقصيرها أو تأجيلها أو قطعها لأسباب تقتضيها ظروف الخدمة في القوات المسلحة ، وإذا اقتضت الظروف قطع إجازة الضابط الاعتيادية ولم يك
- Article 91
The article gives an officer on ordinary leave the right to a half-fare round-trip ticket for himself, his wife and his children on Saudi Arabian Airlines, within its network inside and outside the Kingdom, once a year.
يحق للضابط الذي يتمتع بإجازة اعتيادية أن يحصل على تذكرة إركاب مرجعاً بنصف الأجرة له ولزوجته وأولاده على طائرة مؤسسة الخطوط الجوية العربية السعودية وفي حدود ما ت
- Article 92
The article gives an officer casual leave of up to ten days a year for emergency reasons, granted as under Article 89, and the right to it lapses at the end of the year.
الإجازة العرضية 1- يمنح الضابط إجازة عرضية لمدة لا تزيد على عشرة أيام في السنة لأسباب طارئة وتمنح هذه الإجازة طبقاً لما هو محدد بالمادة (89). 2- يسقط الحق بهذه
- Article 93
The article entitles an officer serving in the field to field leave of up to 60 days with limited splitting, not combined with ordinary leave and lapsing on transfer from the field, with a domestic ticket for him alone according to his rank.
الإجازة الميدانية 1- يستحق الضابط العامل في الميدان إجازة ميدانية لا تتجاوز ستين يوماً في انتهاء السنة ولا يجوز تجزئتها إلا في حدود خمسة عشر يوماً بعد انتهاء كل
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.