End of Service After Resignation or Contract Expiry in Saudi Arabia

If you resign

When you resign, your award is reduced according to your length of service (Article 85):

The full award itself is calculated under Article 84: half a month's last wage for each of the first five years, then a full month's wage for each year after that. See End of Service Calculation.

Example: A technician worked 4 years and 3 months, and his last wage was SAR 6,000.

• Full award: 4.25 × 3,000 = SAR 12,750
• If he resigns (between 2 and 5 years of service), he receives one-third: SAR 4,250

If your fixed-term contract expires

A non-Saudi's contract is fixed-term (Article 37). When the term runs out, the employment ends because the contract expired, not because you resigned (Article 74).

Article 85's reductions apply to resignation. Where a fixed-term contract simply expires, the award is generally calculated under Article 84 without those reductions. If you declined a renewal or resigned close to expiry, the position can be disputed.

Same example: Suppose the technician's contract simply expired after 4 years and 3 months instead of him resigning. His award would generally be SAR 12,750, three times the resignation figure.

A practical point. If you declined your employer's offer to renew, or resigned shortly before the expiry date, get advice before you put anything in writing.

When resignation still gives the full award

• Force majeure. If you leave because of force majeure beyond your control, you receive the full award (Article 87).
• Female workers. A woman who resigns within 6 months of marriage, or within 3 months of giving birth, receives the full award (Article 87).
• The employer's breach. Article 81 lists the cases in which you may leave without notice. They include:
  • the employer failing to meet its essential contractual or statutory obligations;
  • harsh, unjust or humiliating treatment.

Where you can prove that your case fits Article 81, you keep all your statutory rights. Without that proof, the employer may say you resigned or abandoned the job. Non-payment of wages can amount to such a case. See Article 81.

Example: An electrician with 3 years of service has not been paid for four months.

• If he can prove the Article 81 ground, he keeps all his statutory rights. If he cannot, his departure may be treated as a resignation or absence.
• If he simply resigns, he receives one-third of his award.

The paper trail matters. Keep your written demands for salary, bank statements showing the missing wages, and a letter that states the reason you are leaving.

The 2025 resignation procedure

The 2025 amendments introduced a formal resignation procedure for fixed-term contracts (Article 79 bis):

• If the employer does not respond within 30 days of submission, the resignation is treated as accepted.
• If the work requires it, the employer may postpone acceptance for up to 60 days, counted from a reasoned written notice given before day 30.
• You may withdraw your resignation within 7 days, unless it has already been accepted.
• A resignation cannot name a deferred date, and the contract stays in force while it is pending.

For indefinite contracts with monthly pay, an employee must give at least 30 days' written notice (Article 75). See Resignation Rules After 2025.

Leaving a fixed-term contract early

If you plan to leave a fixed-term contract before it ends, check the contract's termination clause and get advice first. An early exit can have financial consequences beyond a smaller end-of-service award.

Payment deadline

If you resign, your employer must pay your wages and entitlements within two weeks of the end of the employment relationship (Article 88).

For employers

Record in writing whether the employment ended by resignation, expiry or termination, and calculate the award to match. Applying the resignation fractions where a contract simply expired is an avoidable error. See Labor Law Support for Employers.