The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) extends over 2,149,690 square kms across most of the northern and central Arabian Peninsula. It is the world’s largest producer and exporter of oil. Petroleum is an integral part of the country’s economy, although in recent decades it has increasingly diversified its economy to produce and export a variety of industrial goods. Expatriates are estimated to account for 75% of Saudi Arabia’s workforce.
*Please note that the official currency is the currency of remuneration when employed through WorkMotion in Saudi Arabia.
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The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) extends over 2,149,690 square kms across most of the northern and central Arabian Peninsula. It is the world’s largest producer and exporter of oil. Petroleum is an integral part of the country’s economy, although in recent decades it has increasingly diversified its economy to produce and export a variety of industrial goods. Expatriates are estimated to account for 75% of Saudi Arabia’s workforce.
*Please note that the official currency is the currency of remuneration when employed through WorkMotion in Saudi Arabia.
The national holidays mentioned below are valid for the year 2026 and are critical for hiring in Saudi Arabia planning:
If a public holiday falls on a weekend, a day in lieu is granted either on a day preceding or following the weekend.
The national holidays mentioned below are valid for the year 2026.
*These holidays are determined according to local sightings of various phases of the moon, so the dates given above are only approximations. The exact dates are to be determined by the government and specified as it gets closer to the holiday.
| February 22 | Founding Day | |
| March 19 - 22* | Eid al-Fitr | Movable - 4 days effective from the day after the 29th Ramadan per Um al-Qura calendar |
| May 26 - 29* | Eid al-Adha | Movable - 4 days effective from the day of Arafat |
| September 23 | National Day | The day of the unification of the Kingdom |
The approximate time for sharing the contract with an employee in Saudi Arabia is 14 business days assuming no special requests or changes to our standard employment contract. Any such requests or changes would need to undergo internal and external review, directly leading to a time delay.
NOTE: This number is subject to change and is only an estimation of the Contract Sharing Time. The estimated Contract Sharing Time begins from the moment that WorkMotion has received all required information from both the client and the employee.
The social security system in Saudi Arabia includes social insurance, occupational hazard, and unemployment insurance.
Employers contribute a total of 12% to Saudi nationals’ social security and 2% to non-Saudi nationals’ social security. The breakdown of the total contributions is as follows:
|
Employee Citizenship |
Benefits |
Employer Rates |
Employee Rates |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saudi nationals | Social Insurance | 9% | 9% |
| Occupational Hazard | 2% | – | |
| Unemployment insurance | 1% | 1% | |
| Total | 12% | 10% | |
| non-Saudi nationals | Occupational Hazard | 2% | – |
| Total | 2% | – |
Working hours cannot exceed eight hours per day or 48 hours per week. The worker cannot work for more than five consecutive hours without a period of rest, prayer, and food for at least half an hour, and the worker must not remain in the workplace for more than 12 hours per day.
The actual working hours must not exceed 10 hours per day or 60 hours per week. Work on holidays is paid at 150% of the employees’ normal wages.
The probation period cannot exceed 90 days and may be extended for a maximum of 180 days with the written consent of the worker.
The fixed-term contract of employment must terminate at the end of its term. If the contract is indefinite, either party must notify the other party by a written notice of at least 60 days if the worker’s wage is paid monthly, or 30 days for all other cases. A party that terminates a contract without giving due notice is liable to pay cash in lieu of notice.
Working hours cannot exceed eight hours per day or 48 hours per week. The worker cannot work for more than five consecutive hours without a period of rest, prayer, and food for at least half an hour, and the worker must not remain in the workplace for more than 12 hours per day.
The actual working hours must not exceed 10 hours per day or 60 hours per week. Work on holidays is paid at 150% of the employees’ normal wages.
The probation period cannot exceed 90 days and may be extended for a maximum of 180 days with the written consent of the worker.
The fixed-term contract of employment must terminate at the end of its term. If the contract is indefinite, either party must notify the other party by a written notice of at least 60 days if the worker’s wage is paid monthly, or 30 days for all other cases. A party that terminates a contract without giving due notice is liable to pay cash in lieu of notice.
The social security system in Saudi Arabia includes social insurance, occupational hazard, and unemployment insurance.
Employers contribute a total of 12% to Saudi nationals’ social security and 2% to non-Saudi nationals’ social security. The breakdown of the total contributions is as follows:
|
Employee Citizenship |
Benefits |
Employer Rates |
Employee Rates |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saudi nationals | Social Insurance | 9% | 9% |
| Occupational Hazard | 2% | – | |
| Unemployment insurance | 1% | 1% | |
| Total | 12% | 10% | |
| non-Saudi nationals | Occupational Hazard | 2% | – |
| Total | 2% | – |
Hiring in Saudi Arabia involves more regulatory layers than most foreign employers anticipate.
The process runs across multiple government platforms – Qiwa for contract authentication, Mudad for salary compliance, and GOSI for social insurance – and each step has its own timeline and documentation requirements.
WorkMotion’s partner network in Saudi Arabia manages this process end to end, so your team focuses on the hire, not the paperwork.
WorkMotion generates a locally compliant employment contract aligned with Saudi Labour Law (Royal Decree M/51).
Arabic is the official language in Saudi Arabia, and all official employment documentation must be in Arabic.
Contracts are drafted bilingually where required, covering all mandatory terms:
Qiwa is the Ministry of Human Resources platform used to authenticate employment contracts, and all contracts must be registered and authenticated through Qiwa to carry full legal enforceability.
Before payroll can begin, the employment relationship must be registered across Saudi Arabia’s interconnected compliance platforms.
Contract registration on Qiwa is a prerequisite for work permit issuance, and any mismatch between the Qiwa-registered contract and the visa application is grounds for rejection.
For expatriate hires, WorkMotion’s partner network manages the Iqama (residency permit) and work visa process. All expatriates need valid Iqamas, work visas, and a local sponsor – either the employer or an authorised Employer of Record.
Every employee must be registered with the General Organization for Social Insurance (GOSI) before their first payslip is issued.
Non-Saudi employees are covered only under the Occupational Hazards branch at 2%, paid entirely by the employer. They are not eligible for the Annuity or SANED branches, meaning they do not receive retirement pensions from GOSI but are covered for workplace injuries and occupational diseases.
Saudi national employees are subject to additional contribution branches. The 2024 Social Insurance Law amendments introduced phased changes to GOSI contribution rates for Saudi national employees, with the first adjustment taking effect from July 2025 – employers and EOR providers should confirm the applicable rate at each new engagement.
WorkMotion’s partner network handles GOSI registration and ensures contributions are calculated on the correct base.
Mandatory benefits in Saudi Arabia include:
WorkMotion’s partner network administers each of these obligations, including the end-of-service gratuity accrual, which is calculated on basic salary and represents a significant liability that must be tracked from day one.
The Wage Protection System is Saudi Arabia’s electronic salary monitoring mechanism.
Administered through the Mudad platform, WPS requires all private sector employers to pay salaries through approved financial channels and submit a monthly Salary Information File (SIF).
Payroll data must be uploaded and salaries paid via registered Saudi bank accounts. Delays, unauthorised deductions, or wage disparities lead to fines and visa suspensions.
WorkMotion’s partner network processes monthly payroll in Saudi Riyals (SAR) and submits the required WPS files on schedule.
Saudi Arabia’s regulatory environment is actively evolving.
Labour law penalties have increased under recent amendments, and the Ministry of Human Resources has expanded its enforcement capacity – digital monitoring through Mudad, Qiwa, and Nitaqat systems allows for real-time identification of non-compliance.
WorkMotion monitors regulatory changes across all active jurisdictions and updates employment terms, contribution rates, and statutory entitlements as requirements change.
For most SMEs hiring one to ten employees in Saudi Arabia, entity setup creates more cost and delay than the hire justifies. Here is how the two paths compare.
| WorkMotion EOR | Saudi Arabia Entity Setup | |
|---|---|---|
| Setup cost | Per-employee monthly fee – no capital outlay | A significant capital outlay covering licensing, registration, legal fees, and operational setup |
| Time to first hire | Days from signed contract | Typically several weeks to a few months, depending on entity type and sector |
| Ongoing legal exposure | Managed by WorkMotion’s partner network – compliance monitoring, platform filings, and regulatory updates handled centrally | Requires in-house or retained legal and HR capability to manage Qiwa, Mudad, GOSI, and Nitaqat obligations continuously |
| Ongoing admin burden | Single platform for contracts, payroll, and benefits; WPS filing and GOSI remittance handled by WorkMotion | Monthly WPS submissions, GOSI filings, Qiwa contract management, Nitaqat tracking, and annual licence renewals managed internally |
| Exit flexibility | Offboard an employee without entity wind-down costs or regulatory residue | Closing a Saudi entity involves formal deregistration across multiple government platforms and can take months |
EOR in Saudi Arabia fits companies that need to hire quickly, test a market, or maintain a small team without the overhead of a permanent legal structure. Entity setup becomes worth evaluating when you are building a large local team, pursuing government contracts that require a registered Saudi entity, or planning a long-term operational presence in the Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia’s compliance framework is more layered than most foreign employers expect. The rules are enforced digitally, in real time, across interconnected government platforms. These are the areas where companies most commonly run into problems.
Qiwa is the Ministry of Human Resources platform used to authenticate employment contracts. All employment contracts must be registered and authenticated through Qiwa to carry full legal enforceability – and contract registration on Qiwa is a prerequisite for work permit issuance.
Foreign employers who issue contracts outside this system find them unenforceable and face work permit rejections.
WorkMotion’s partner network registers every contract through Qiwa as a standard step in onboarding.
Saudization is a central compliance issue for companies operating in Saudi Arabia. Under the Nitaqat system, companies are classified according to their level of Saudi national employment.
These categories affect an employer’s ability to access labour market services. A Red rating can restrict a company’s ability to recruit foreign employees, renew work permits, or transfer foreign workers.
Foreign employers entering Saudi Arabia often focus on the immediate hire and miss the Nitaqat implications for their broader workforce strategy.
WorkMotion’s partner network advises on Nitaqat status as part of the onboarding process.
GOSI contributions are calculated based only on basic salary plus housing allowance, up to a SAR 45,000 monthly ceiling.
Excluded components include:
Correctly classifying salary components is essential for accurate GOSI compliance and avoiding underpayment or overpayment issues.
Employers who calculate GOSI on total compensation rather than the correct base create ongoing payroll errors. WorkMotion’s partner network applies the correct contribution base from the first payroll run.
The New Social Insurance Law effective July 3, 2025 applies only to new workforce entrants without prior GOSI contribution history. For new system participants, the retirement age is 65 years. Existing contributors maintain their previous retirement age calculations.
Employers should clearly identify which system applies to each employee and ensure proper GOSI registrations reflecting the correct pension scheme.
Applying the wrong rate to the wrong employee is one of the most common payroll errors in Saudi Arabia right now.
Timely salary payments are mandatory to avoid penalties and service suspensions.
WPS requires monthly Salary Information File submissions through Mudad. Late or incomplete submissions trigger fines and can result in work permit suspensions – affecting every foreign national on the payroll, not just the employee whose payment was delayed.
WorkMotion’s partner network submits WPS files on schedule as part of standard monthly payroll processing.
Maternity leave is 12 weeks under the February 2025 amendments, with at least six weeks postnatal leave being mandatory regardless of any agreement between the parties.
Employment contracts drafted before this amendment and not updated are now non-compliant.
WorkMotion monitors legislative changes and updates contract templates accordingly.
A B2B SaaS or fintech company headquartered in Germany, the Netherlands, or the UK that wants to hire a sales lead or solutions engineer in Riyadh – without committing to a Saudi entity – is a common WorkMotion use case.
The hire is typically a senior specialist role, and the company needs them onboarded in weeks, not months. WorkMotion’s partner network handles the full employment structure so the company can focus on the commercial relationship.
US technology and e-commerce companies entering the GCC often start with one or two hires in Saudi Arabia to validate demand before committing to a regional structure.
EOR services in Saudi Arabia give them a compliant employment path without the MISA licence process, entity setup, or ongoing platform management.
WorkMotion supports this use case through its partner network, with transparent per-employee pricing and no long-term entity commitment required.
Saudi Arabia represents the biggest consumer market in the Gulf, with strong government focus on Vision 2030. The country has the Middle East’s largest economy.
Companies in green tech, healthtech, and digital infrastructure are increasingly hiring Saudi-based specialists to support projects tied to Vision 2030 diversification.
For SMEs with 50–300 employees that don’t have a regional HR infrastructure, WorkMotion’s EOR model provides the compliance layer they need without building it internally.
Some WorkMotion clients have employees who relocate to Saudi Arabia independently – for personal reasons or to be closer to a client base.
Rather than lose the employee or scramble to establish a local entity, these companies use EOR Saudi Arabia services to maintain a compliant employment relationship. WorkMotion’s partner network manages the Iqama sponsorship and payroll transition so the employment relationship continues without interruption.
Saudi Arabia’s compliance framework – Qiwa contract authentication, WPS salary monitoring, GOSI social insurance, and Nitaqat Saudization requirements – is actively enforced and changes frequently. Getting it right from the first hire matters.
WorkMotion gives you access to an established partner network in Saudi Arabia that manages every layer of this process, from bilingual contract generation to monthly payroll remittance in SAR, so your team can hire with confidence rather than spend months building local compliance infrastructure.
If you want to understand the full employment cost before committing, use the employment cost calculator to model salary, employer contributions, and EOR fees for Saudi Arabia.
When you’re ready to move forward, Book a Demo and our team will walk you through exactly how hiring in Saudi Arabia works through WorkMotion.
WorkMotion provides EOR services in Saudi Arabia through an established partner network rather than a directly owned entity. This partner network manages the full employment lifecycle on your behalf, including Qiwa contract authentication, GOSI registration, WPS payroll submissions, and Iqama sponsorship for expatriate hires. The compliance obligations are handled end to end, so your team does not need to build local infrastructure or navigate Saudi Arabia’s interconnected government platforms independently.
Under the Nitaqat system, private sector employers in Saudi Arabia are classified by the percentage of Saudi nationals in their workforce, and that classification directly affects their ability to recruit foreign employees and renew work permits. Companies that fall into a Red or Yellow band face restrictions on labour market services, including the ability to sponsor new Iqamas or transfer existing ones. When you hire through an employer of record in Saudi Arabia, WorkMotion’s partner network advises on Nitaqat implications as part of the onboarding process, so your workforce strategy accounts for Saudization requirements from the outset rather than after a compliance issue has already emerged.
Under Saudi Labour Law, employees who complete at least two years of service are entitled to an end-of-service gratuity calculated on basic salary: half a month’s basic salary per year for the first five years, and one month’s basic salary per year thereafter. This liability accrues from the first day of employment and must be tracked accurately throughout the employment relationship, as errors in the calculation base or accrual method create financial exposure at termination. WorkMotion’s partner network manages gratuity accrual from day one, ensuring the correct salary components are used and the liability is properly accounted for across the employment period.
Onboarding timelines in Saudi Arabia depend on whether the hire is a Saudi national or an expatriate. Saudi nationals can typically be onboarded within a few days once the contract is authenticated through Qiwa and GOSI registration is complete. Expatriate hires require additional steps, including Iqama issuance, work visa processing, and sponsor registration, which extend the timeline and are subject to government processing speeds. WorkMotion’s partner network manages each of these steps and will give you a realistic timeline based on the specific hire’s nationality and circumstances before you commit.
Saudi Arabia operates the Wage Protection System (WPS), which requires all private sector employers to pay salaries through approved financial channels and submit a monthly Salary Information File through the Mudad platform. Late or incomplete submissions trigger fines and can result in work permit suspensions affecting every foreign national on the payroll, not just the employee whose payment was delayed. This makes payroll accuracy and on-time submission a compliance issue with consequences that extend well beyond a single employee. EOR Saudi Arabia services through WorkMotion include monthly WPS filing and payroll processing in Saudi Riyals (SAR) as a standard part of the service.
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