📅 June 2026 · 8 min read · Source: hrsd.gov.sa, Saudi Labour Law Articles 109–116
Saudi Arabia Annual Leave 2026 — Encashment, Carry Forward & Your Full Rights
Everything employees and HR managers need to know about annual leave entitlement under Saudi Labour Law: how many days you get, when you can take them, what happens to unused leave, and how to claim your rights if your employer is non-compliant.
Quick answer: Employees with less than 5 years of service are entitled to 21 days of paid annual leave per year. Employees with 5 or more years of service receive 30 days per year. Leave accrues from your first day of employment, but in most cases you cannot actually take it until you have completed your first year of service.
What Saudi Labour Law Says About Annual Leave
Annual leave in Saudi Arabia is governed primarily by Articles 109 to 116 of the Saudi Labour Law (Royal Decree M/51, as amended). These articles set out the minimum entitlements, the rules for scheduling leave, and the conditions under which leave can be carried forward or encashed. No employment contract, internal policy, or verbal agreement may reduce an employee's rights below what the law specifies — any clause that attempts to do so is legally void.
Article 109 establishes the core entitlement: a minimum of 21 days of paid annual leave per year for employees with less than five years of continuous service with the same employer, rising to a minimum of 30 days once the employee reaches five full years of service. Article 111 makes clear that while the employer has the right to determine when leave is taken, it must consult the employee and is obliged to give reasonable advance notice. The employer must also ensure that the employee is not denied leave for more than two consecutive years against the employee's will. Article 116 covers leave encashment: any leave days remaining at the end of employment — whether through resignation, termination, or expiry of a fixed-term contract — must be compensated in cash at the employee's basic daily wage rate.
Years of Service
Annual Leave Days
Legal Basis
Under 5 years
21 days (minimum)
Article 109 – Saudi Labour Law
5 years or more
30 days (minimum)
Article 109 – Saudi Labour Law
Hajj leave (once per employment)
10 days
Article 113 – Saudi Labour Law
Many employers offer more than the legal minimum — 25 or 30 days from day one is common in large multinationals and government-linked entities. However, the figures above represent the floor that all employers in the private sector must meet. Public sector employees are subject to separate civil service regulations and typically enjoy more generous entitlements.
What Your Employer CAN Do
Saudi Labour Law gives employers a meaningful degree of flexibility in managing annual leave, recognising that leave scheduling must be balanced against operational needs. Specifically, your employer is legally permitted to:
Decide when you take your leave — Article 111 grants this right, subject to consulting the employee in advance and giving adequate notice of the proposed leave dates.
Split annual leave into two separate periods — the employer can divide the leave entitlement, as long as at least one period is continuous and the employee's total entitlement is not reduced.
Carry over unused leave to the following year — this is permissible provided the employee gives written consent. Without consent, the leave must either be taken or compensated in the same leave year.
Set a company-wide leave schedule — for operational reasons (e.g. factory shutdown periods, business cycles, or seasonal peaks), the employer may define fixed leave windows for the whole workforce, provided all employees receive at least their minimum entitlement.
Postpone approved leave in urgent circumstances — if a genuine operational emergency arises, an employer may request postponement even after leave has been approved, but any unused balance remains to the employee's credit and cannot be forfeited.
What Your Employer CANNOT Do
While employers have flexibility over timing, there are firm limits on what they can do with your leave entitlement. Violations of these rules are subject to penalties under the Labour Law and can be reported to the Ministry of Human Resources.
Force you to forfeit leave without compensation — unused leave days cannot simply be wiped from your record. They must either be taken or paid out.
Reduce your leave entitlement below the legal minimum — any contractual clause setting annual leave below 21 days (or 30 days for employees with 5+ years) is void and unenforceable.
Deny leave encashment on final settlement — when your employment ends, all accrued and unused leave must be paid to you in cash, regardless of the reason for separation.
Deny you leave for more than 2 consecutive years without compensation — if you were unable to take leave for two full years and you did not consent to this carry-over, the employer must compensate you financially for the unused leave.
Require you to work during approved leave without extra pay — if an employee is recalled to work while on approved annual leave, any days cut short must be rescheduled or compensated.
⚠️ Important: If your employer has denied you annual leave for two or more consecutive years and you did not provide written consent to carry it forward, you are legally entitled to receive cash compensation for that leave — even while you are still employed. This is a firm right under Article 111 of the Saudi Labour Law. Document your leave requests in writing to protect yourself.
Step-by-Step: How to Apply for Annual Leave
Following the right process protects your entitlement and creates a paper trail if a dispute arises later.
Calculate your accrued leave days. The formula is: (days worked ÷ 365) × annual entitlement. For example, an employee who has worked 200 days on a 21-day entitlement has accrued (200 ÷ 365) × 21 = approximately 11.5 days. Many HR systems and the Qiwa portal display this automatically.
Submit a written leave request to HR. Email is sufficient and creates an automatic record. Submit at least 2–4 weeks in advance for standard leave, or as far ahead as possible for longer periods. State the requested start date, return date, and total number of leave days.
Obtain written confirmation or approval. Do not treat verbal approval as binding. Request a written response — even a reply email — and keep a copy in your own records outside the company system.
If your request is denied, ask for written reasons and an alternative date. The employer must either grant leave or provide a specific alternative date. A blanket refusal with no alternative date is not lawful under Article 111.
If leave is consistently denied, file a complaint on Qiwa (qiwa.sa). The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development operates a labour dispute resolution service through the Qiwa portal. Initial mediation is free and typically completed within a few weeks. Unresolved cases are escalated to the Labour Courts.
✅ Quick calculation tip: To estimate your current leave balance, divide your months worked by 12, then multiply by your annual entitlement. Example: worked 8 months on a 21-day entitlement = (8 ÷ 12) × 21 = 14 days accrued. You can also check your exact balance through the Qiwa portal if your employer has enrolled in the platform.
Worked Example: Leave Calculation
The following two examples show how to apply the Saudi Labour Law leave rules to real scenarios.
Example 1 — Employee with 3.5 years of service (under 5 years, 21 days/year)
Tariq joined his company on 1 January 2023. As of 1 July 2026, he has worked 3.5 years (1,277 days). He is still below the 5-year threshold so his entitlement is 21 days per year. He has taken 10 days of leave so far this year.
Item
Calculation
Result
Days worked (total)
3.5 years × 365
1,277 days
Total leave accrued (lifetime)
(1,277 ÷ 365) × 21
73.5 days
Leave taken (lifetime)
Recorded in HR system
63 days
Current leave balance
73.5 − 63
10.5 days remaining
Example 2 — Employee with 6 years of service who has not taken leave in 18 months
Fatima has worked for 6 years (entitlement: 30 days/year). She has not taken any leave in the last 18 months due to workload pressure. Her daily basic wage is SAR 400. She wants to know what cash entitlement she can claim for the denied leave.
Item
Calculation
Result
Leave entitlement (per year)
5+ years service
30 days/year
Leave accrued over 18 months
1.5 × 30
45 days
Leave taken in 18 months
None
0 days
Unused leave days
45 − 0
45 days
Daily basic wage
Monthly basic ÷ 30
SAR 400/day
Cash entitlement (encashment on separation)
45 × SAR 400
SAR 18,000
Note: Fatima cannot demand immediate cash for this leave while still employed. However, she can demand that she be given the leave, and on separation the full SAR 18,000 must be paid out as part of her final settlement.
Annual Leave Encashment — Can You Get Paid Instead?
⚠️ Key rule: You cannot exchange annual leave for cash while you are still employed, unless a specific written agreement exists and it is permitted under your contract. The purpose of annual leave is rest — Saudi Labour Law is designed to ensure you actually take it. Employers who routinely pay out leave in lieu of granting it are in violation of the law.
Annual leave encashment is permitted — and legally mandatory — in the following situations:
Resignation: All accrued, unused leave days must be paid out in cash as part of the final settlement.
Termination (with or without notice): Same rule applies — the employer cannot deduct or forfeit leave on termination.
Expiry of a fixed-term contract: Any unused leave from the contract period must be compensated at settlement.
Death of the employee: Unused leave is paid to the employee's heirs as part of the estate settlement.
Encashment formula: Daily basic wage × number of unused leave days. The daily basic wage is calculated as: monthly basic salary ÷ 30. Note that allowances (housing, transport, etc.) are generally not included in the encashment calculation unless your contract or company policy specifies otherwise.
Example: If your monthly basic salary is SAR 6,000 and you have 14 unused leave days at resignation: Daily rate = SAR 6,000 ÷ 30 = SAR 200/day. Encashment = 14 × SAR 200 = SAR 2,800.
Special Leave Types — Beyond Annual Leave
Saudi Labour Law recognises several categories of paid and unpaid leave in addition to annual leave. These do not count against your annual leave balance.
Leave Type
Duration
Paid?
Notes
Sick leave
30 days full pay, then 60 days half pay, then 30 days unpaid
Partial
Requires a medical certificate from an approved physician. Article 117.
Hajj leave
10 days
Yes
Granted once per employment period. Employee must not have performed Hajj before. Article 113.
Maternity leave
10 weeks (70 days)
Yes (full pay)
Can begin up to 4 weeks before the expected due date. Extended unpaid leave available in some cases. Article 151.
Paternity leave
3 days
Yes
For the birth of a child. Must be taken within 7 days of birth. Article 151.
Bereavement leave
3 days
Yes
For the death of a first-degree relative (parent, spouse, child, sibling). Article 113.
Study / exam leave
As agreed (usually exam days)
Varies
Not mandated by law for all employees; depends on contract or collective agreement. Many employers grant it as policy.
Quick Reference — Annual Leave Rules
Question
Answer
Minimum leave entitlement (<5 years service)?
21 days per year
Minimum leave entitlement (5+ years service)?
30 days per year
When does leave start accruing?
From the first day of employment
When can leave first be taken?
After completing 1 year of service (in most cases)
Can the employer decide when you take leave?
Yes, but must consult the employee (Article 111)
Can unused leave be carried forward?
Yes, with the employee's written consent
What happens to leave if you resign?
All unused leave must be paid in cash (Article 116)
Where to complain about leave violations?
Qiwa portal (qiwa.sa) or HRSD (hrsd.gov.sa)
Frequently Asked Questions
How many annual leave days am I entitled to in Saudi Arabia? ▼
Under Article 109 of the Saudi Labour Law, employees with less than 5 years of service are entitled to a minimum of 21 days of paid annual leave per year. Once you complete 5 full years with the same employer, this increases to a minimum of 30 days per year. Your employer may offer more than this, but cannot offer less.
Can my employer force me to take leave at a specific time? ▼
Yes. Article 111 gives the employer the right to decide the timing of annual leave, taking into account business needs. However, the employer must consult the employee in advance and give adequate notice. The employer cannot deny leave for more than two consecutive years without the employee's consent, and cannot simply refuse to grant leave with no alternative date offered.
Can I get paid cash instead of taking my annual leave? ▼
Generally, no — not while you are still employed. Saudi Labour Law requires that annual leave actually be taken as rest. The only time leave can be legally encashed is at the end of employment (resignation, termination, or end of contract). At that point, all unused leave must be compensated in cash under Article 116.
What happens to my unused leave when I resign? ▼
Under Article 116, your employer is legally obliged to pay you the cash equivalent of all accrued and unused annual leave days as part of your final settlement. The payment is calculated as your daily basic wage multiplied by the number of unused leave days. This applies regardless of whether you resigned or were terminated.
Can my employer cancel my annual leave after approving it? ▼
In exceptional business circumstances, an employer may request to postpone or cancel leave before it begins. However, any leave that has already started can only be interrupted in genuinely urgent and rare situations. In all cases, any unused leave days resulting from an employer-imposed cancellation remain to your credit and cannot be forfeited.
Where do I complain if my employer denies my annual leave? ▼
File a labour complaint through the Qiwa portal at qiwa.sa. The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (HRSD) will attempt to mediate the dispute. If mediation fails, the case is escalated to the Labour Courts. Always document your leave requests in writing (email is sufficient) so you have evidence of the denial.
Leaving soon? Know exactly what you're owed before you go.
Sources: Saudi Labor Law (Royal Decree M/51), Articles 109–119 annual leave provisions. Figures and rules are set by the issuing authority and may change — verify current details on the official portal before relying on them. Last reviewed: June 2026.
⚠️ Disclaimer: All information is based on publicly available Saudi Labour Law regulations (Royal Decree M/51) and HRSD guidance as of June 2026. This article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Always verify your specific situation with your employer, an HR professional, or the relevant Saudi authority (Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development — hrsd.gov.sa).
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