Article 8 of the Saudi Voluntary Service Law
المادة 8 من نظام العمل التطوعي
The article allows volunteers to carry out voluntary work through a volunteer team, provided it is registered and approved by the beneficiary body.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
يجوز للمتطوعين ممارسة العمل التطوعي عن طريق تشكيل فريق تطوعي، بعد تسجيله واعتماده لدى الجهة المستفيدة.
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 8 explained in plain English
This article opens to volunteers a collective way to volunteer, which is forming a volunteer team, instead of volunteering only individually.
A volunteer team, according to Article 1, is a group of individuals who carry out voluntary work under unified leadership, to achieve common and specific objectives, and on the basis of legal frameworks consisting of described policies and procedures under the supervision of the beneficiary body.
The article sets a basic condition for volunteering through a team, which is that it be done after it is registered and approved by the beneficiary body. In practice this means:
- Forming a team is permitted, not required; a volunteer may volunteer alone or within a team.
- The team carries out voluntary work after registration and approval, not before.
- The beneficiary body is the body of registration and approval, and it is a non-profit body, public or civil.
The article does not set the registration procedures, documents or conditions of approval, so reference is made to the beneficiary body and any regulatory mechanisms issued.
The article is linked to Article 9, which creates in the beneficiary body the register of volunteers and volunteer teams, in which are recorded the names of volunteers, their volunteering hours and their work. It is also linked to Article 7, which obliges the beneficiary body to activate voluntary work.
Practical example
Khaled and a number of his colleagues in Abha agreed to organize tree-planting campaigns. To volunteer as a volunteer team, they must first register the team and have it approved by a non-profit beneficiary body, such as an environmental association, then work under unified leadership and that body's supervision.
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 8 of the Saudi Voluntary Service Law
Am I entitled to form a volunteer team?
Yes. The article allows volunteers to carry out voluntary work through a volunteer team after it is registered and approved by the beneficiary body.
Where is a volunteer team registered?
With the beneficiary body, which is a non-profit body, public or civil.
More articles on Beneficiary Bodies and Volunteer Teams
- Article 7
The article requires the beneficiary body to do everything that activates voluntary work, in particular receiving volunteering applications, recruiting volunteers, designing programs, training volunteers and following up their performance.
تلتزم الجهة المستفيدة -وفقاً لأحكام النظام- بكل ما من شأنه تفعيل العمل التطوعي، وبالأخص القيام بالمهمات الآتية: 1- استقبال طلبات الراغبين في العمل التطوعي، ودرا
- Article 9
The article requires a register to be created in the beneficiary body called the register of volunteers and volunteer teams, recording the names of volunteers, their volunteering hours and the work they performed.
يُنشأ في الجهة المستفيدة سجل يسمى (سجل المتطوعين والفرق التطوعية)، تقيد فيه أسماء المتطوعين وعدد ساعات التطوع والأعمال التطوعية التي قاموا بها لدى الجهة.
- Article 13
The article allows the beneficiary body to honor volunteers annually on national or international occasions, and its head to give the volunteer whatever moral incentives he sees fit.
للجهة المستفيدة تكريم المتطوعين سنويًّا في المناسبات الوطنية أو الدولية، ولرئيس الجهة المستفيدة منح المتطوع ما يراه مناسباً من حوافز معنوية.
- Article 16
The article requires the beneficiary body to consider volunteers' grievances, verify them and take what is needed in response.
على الجهة المستفيدة النظر في تظلمات المتطوعين، والتحقق منها، واتخاذ ما يلزم حيالها.
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.