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Labor Law

Resignation Provisions – 1/5/2025

Saudi Arabia’s Labor Law underwent substantial amendments effective 1 May 2025.

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First: What is resignation

Article (2) defines it as:

"An employee’s written disclosure of his desire, without coercion, to terminate a fixed-term employment contract, without being subject to any condition or restriction, and the employer’s acceptance thereof."

Conditions for a valid resignation:

  • It must relate to a fixed-term contract. Although not stated explicitly, it is understood from the law that resignation applies only to fixed-term contracts.
  • It must be submitted by the employee by his unilateral will.
  • It must be written and explicit. Oral or unwritten resignation is not accepted even if there are witnesses.
  • It must be submitted by the employee himself or by his legal representative.
  • Its wording must be decisive and clear in ending the employment relationship with no ambiguity or conditionality.
  • It must be free of any coercion by the employer.
  • It must not be conditional or deferred in effect.
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Second: Types of resignation

  1. 1.
    Express resignation

A written resignation using clear and explicit wording to end the employment relationship.

  1. 2.
    Implied resignation

Inferred from the employee’s conduct, such as:

  • Absence for a long period without justification.
  • Refusing to perform essential duties.
  • Leaving the workplace permanently.
  • Ignoring the employer’s communications.
  • Conduct evidencing unwillingness to continue, such as handing over work tools.
  • *Note:** The law does not recognize implied or oral resignation and requires it to be written and explicit only.
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Third: Acceptance of resignation

The employer’s acceptance is not a condition for validity but a condition for effectiveness.

  • The employer may defer its effectiveness for no more than 60 days for reasons related to business interest.
  • If the employer does not respond within 30 days from submission, the resignation is deemed accepted by operation of law.
  • The deferral decision must be written, reasoned, and issued within 30 days of submission.

Conditions for deferring the effectiveness of resignation:

  • The decision must be in writing.
  • It must be issued within 30 days from the resignation date.
  • The deferral period must not exceed 60 days.
  • The deferral must be clearly reasoned and tied to business necessity.
  • The employee may challenge the deferral before the Labor Court if the reason is unlawful or the period is excessive.
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Fourth: The rule during the period between submission and acceptance

During this period (until 30 days pass or it is accepted), the employee must continue working normally.

  • The resignation produces legal effect only after acceptance or after 30 days pass without an employer response.
5

Fifth: Resignation rules for an indefinite-term contract

The legislator did not label unilateral termination of an indefinite-term contract as "resignation" but as unilateral termination. Each party (employee or employer) may terminate as follows:

If wages are paid monthly:

  • The employee must give the employer at least 30 days’ written notice.
  • The employer must give the employee at least 60 days’ written notice.

If wages are not paid monthly:

  • The other party must be notified at least 30 days in advance based on a legitimate reason.

Penalty for failing to observe the notice period:

The termination remains valid, but the non-complying party pays the other party wages in lieu of the unobserved notice period.

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Sixth: Legal effects of resignation

No compensation is due to the employer (such as under Article 77) because resignation is a legitimate cause to end the contract.

End-of-Service Award per Article (85):

  • If service is less than two years → no award is due.
  • If two years to less than five years → one-third of the award.
  • If five to less than ten years → two-thirds of the award.
  • If ten years or more → the full award.
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Seventh: General rules

  • A resignation resulting from physical or moral coercion (such as threats to withhold dues) is not recognized.
  • Conditional or deferred resignation is invalid.
  • The employee may challenge the deferral decision or its reasons before the Labor Court.
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The information provided in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute formal legal advice. For specialized legal counsel tailored to your specific situation, please contact our expert legal team directly.

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