If you are an expat currently working in Saudi Arabia and you want to find a new employer to whom you could work, you should be aware of one important thing before you can be formally released: the notice period.
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A lot of expats in this kingdom may have known already that when you decide to submit your resignation letter, you would be getting information about your notice period in response. It is true because one common part of the employment process here is serving a month or more before you can transfer to another employer. If you don’t know anything about this yet, here are the major things you should know about the notice period in KSA.
Provision on Notice Period in Saudi Arabia
Article 75
- If you have been working in Saudi prior to 2015, you should know by now that there has been amendments as to the length of the notice period. According to this article, those who are under unlimited contracts can terminate their employment provided they give a notice period of at least 60 days and with a valid reason for resignation or termination.
- In case the notice period is not 60 days, the employee and employer should follow what is written in their contract.
- If no information about the notice period is written in the contract, the length is therefore 60 days.
- Those who are not under the unlimited contract or receiving salary on an weekly, daily, or hourly basis, the notice period is 30 days with a valid reason for resignation.
Article 77
- If the employment contract gets terminated without a valid cause by either of the parties, they are allowed to specify the damages and in case of unlimited contracts, the harmed party should get a compensation equal to 15 days of wages of the employee.
- In case of fixed contract, the compensation is equal to the 2 months wages of the employee.
Article 78
- In case you get terminated without valid reasons, you are free to seek help from the Labor of Commission to reinstate your employment. This is if the commission proved that the reason is invalid.
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The provisions on notice period in Saudi Arabia are clearly stated in these articles. Because there are still workers who don’t think serving the notice period abroad is an important matter, expats who know about this should raise awareness in order to help others who are in the same position of transferring to another employer. Laws and regulations are there not to harm you but to protect you in case of breach of contract. Don’t let your money goes in to waste by paying your employer because you failed to serve the notice period. Become a responsible expat worker here in Saudi Arabia so you won’t get banned from working with new employers again. Don’t forget to share this information your colleagues!