Mudad & Wage Protection System (WPS) Guide 2026 — Check Your Salary Status & Unpaid Wage Rights

What Is the Wage Protection System (WPS)?

The Wage Protection Program (WPP), commonly called WPS, is a Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (HRSD) initiative that requires private-sector employers to pay staff — Saudi and non-Saudi alike — through the banking system and to electronically report those payments. Its stated purpose is to reduce wage disputes and keep the private-sector labour market attractive and transparent by verifying that establishments are paying employees the agreed amount on the agreed date.

The Ministry rolled WPS out in stages, starting with the largest employers (3,000+ employees) and progressively extending it to smaller firms; by 2020 it covered establishments with as few as 1–5 employees. HRSD reports that the program now covers more than 900,000 establishments and protects the wages of over 8.5 million employees, with a private-sector compliance rate above 88%.

What Is Mudad, and How Is It Different From Qiwa?

Mudad (mudad.com.sa) is the payroll and wage-reporting platform employers use to meet their WPS obligations — uploading monthly wage files, managing payroll data pulled from GOSI, and paying salaries through supported banks. Qiwa is the broader labour-services platform where both employers and employees manage contracts, work permits, and — importantly for workers — where you can view your own wage payment history and your employer's WPS compliance standing. In practice, Mudad is where the employer's payroll data is submitted, and Qiwa is where that data becomes visible to you as an employee and feeds into other checks like Nitaqat (Saudization) status.

How Employers Must Use Mudad

Registered establishments upload a wage protection file to Mudad each pay cycle, confirming what each employee is owed and what was actually paid. Since 1 March 2025, HRSD reduced the permitted window for uploading a wage file from 60 days to 30 days after the due date, tightening how quickly payroll data must reflect reality. If a file isn't submitted, Mudad's notification sequence typically works as follows:

Accumulated, unresolved violations affect the establishment's WPS compliance percentage, which in turn can affect its Nitaqat (Saudization) band on Qiwa, restrict its ability to issue or renew work permits and other Qiwa services, and expose it to fines under the Labor Law.

How to Check Your Own WPS Status as an Employee

1. Log in to Qiwa Use your Absher/Nafath credentials to sign in to your individual Qiwa account.
2. Open your wage / salary information Qiwa shows whether your salary has been reported and paid on time by your employer through the Wage Protection System.
3. Compare it against your payslip and bank statement If the amount or date on Qiwa doesn't match what actually landed in your account, that discrepancy is useful evidence for a complaint.
4. Check your employer's establishment compliance where visible Repeated non-compliance flags on an employer's WPS record support a labour complaint and, where applicable, a Najiz enforcement request.

New in 2025–2026: Direct Wage Enforcement via Najiz

In October 2025, HRSD and the Ministry of Justice jointly announced a faster route for recovering unpaid wages, built on the idea that a wage clause in a Qiwa-documented employment contract can itself serve as an executive instrument — meaning it can be enforced directly, without a full labour court case. Under this mechanism:

• You must have an employment contract documented on Qiwa and hold an executive number issued by the Ministry of Justice's documentation centre.
• If your wages remain completely unpaid for 30 days past the due date, or only partially paid after 90 days, you can submit an enforcement request electronically through the Najiz portal.
• Non-payment is verified electronically against Mudad's wage records — the same due-date and amount data used for WPS compliance.
• The employer is notified via Najiz and has 5 days to object or settle the claim.
• If the employer does not object or settle, the claimed amount can be withdrawn directly from the employer's bank account and deposited into the employee's account — without a separate labour lawsuit or the standard Qiwa mediation step.

The rule is being phased in gradually: it applies to new and updated Qiwa contracts from 6 October 2025, extends to renewed fixed-term contracts from 6 March 2026, and covers indefinite-term contracts from 6 August 2026. If your contract falls outside the current phase, the standard Qiwa labour-complaint and Labour Court route (below) still applies.

What to Do If Your Salary Is Late — Step by Step

1. Raise it with HR/payroll in writing Many delays are administrative. A dated written request creates a paper trail you may need later.
2. Check your WPS status on Qiwa Confirm whether your employer has even reported the payment, and whether the reported amount matches your contract.
3. File a labour complaint on Qiwa if it isn't resolved See our step-by-step Qiwa labour complaint guide — mediation typically takes up to 21 days before a case can escalate to Labour Court.
4. Check whether direct Najiz enforcement applies to you If your wages have been unpaid for 30 days, or only partly paid after 90 days, and your contract is documented on Qiwa with an executive number, you may be able to request direct enforcement instead of waiting on a full case.
5. Keep your evidence organised Employment contract, payslips, bank statements, and any written communication with your employer all strengthen either a Qiwa complaint or a Najiz request.

Common Questions About Mudad & WPS

Related Tools & Guides

Sources: Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (hrsd.gov.sa) — Wage Protection Program announcement and Labor Law text (Royal Decree M/51, Article 90); Saudi Press Agency (spa.gov.sa) official release on the March 2025 Mudad file-upload window change; joint HRSD–Ministry of Justice announcement on direct wage enforcement via Najiz (October 2025), as reported by Saudi press and international legal commentary. Rules, thresholds, and rollout phases are set by the relevant authorities and may change — verify your specific situation via qiwa.sa, mudad.com.sa, or najiz.sa. Last reviewed: July 2026.