Enforcement Dispute in Saudi Arabia: Can You Stop Enforcement?

Enforcement has started on an instrument for SAR 50,000, and you know you paid SAR 20,000 of it a year ago. Or money was seized in your account that you say belongs to your partner and is held in trust. In both cases you think of "objecting to the enforcement".

The short answer: first decide whether your objection is an enforcement dispute for the enforcement judge, or a dispute about the underlying right that needs a lawsuit before the merits judge (the judge who decides the substance of the case). Filing a dispute does not stop enforcement by itself. You must ask for a stay, and even after a stay, seized money usually remains seized.

The new Enforcement Law comes into force 180 days after its publication in the Official Gazette on 14/11/1447H (1 May 2026), around the end of October 2026, and replaces the Enforcement Law of 1433H (Article 65). This guide is based on the law in force today. A separate section explains what changes.

What is an enforcement dispute?

Article 1 of the Enforcement Law defines enforcement disputes as claims that arise because of enforcement and relate to whether the conditions for its validity are met, raised by the parties to the enforcement or by others. Article 3 gives the enforcement judge jurisdiction to decide them whatever their value, under the rules for urgent matters. His rulings in these disputes can be appealed, and the appeal ruling is final (Article 6).

What does the enforcement judge decide, and what does he not?

The Implementing Regulations set this out in paragraphs 3/1 to 3/7:

So your SAR 20,000 payment after the instrument was issued goes to the enforcement judge. But if your argument is that the contractor did not finish the work for which you wrote the cheque, that is a dispute about the underlying right, and it belongs in a lawsuit on the merits.

Does filing a dispute stop enforcement?

Not by itself. The regulations (paragraph 6/6) state that an enforcement dispute, or a dispute about the substance of the instrument, does not prevent the enforcement proceedings unless the court hearing it decides to stay enforcement under the rules for urgent matters. So the notice that your dispute has been registered is not a stay order. Do not present it to the bank as one.

For cheques there is an extra condition: to stay enforcement, the debtor must deposit the cheque amount in the Enforcement Court's account, unless the court decides otherwise (paragraph 6/7). If you want a stay in a cheque dispute, be ready for this deposit.

Does a stay of enforcement release the seized money?

Not completely. The regulations (paragraph 6/8) state that a stay decision cancels all orders against the debtor, except the real estate or movable assets already seized, which stay seized to the extent needed to cover the instrument until a final judgment on the merits. So a travel ban may be lifted, for example, while the seized balance stays seized.

How do you build a dispute the court can examine?

• The full instrument, the enforcement order, and proof of the date you were served.
• A specific reason for the dispute: forgery, payment, excess seizure, or assets belonging to someone else.
• The document that proves the reason, arranged by date.
• A specific request: counting a payment, lifting seizure from the excess, or stopping a particular measure.

An instrument for SAR 50,000 is being enforced, and the debtor submits a transfer of SAR 20,000 made after the instrument's date.

Two things are examined: did the transfer really happen, and was it for this debt and received by the creditor?

The debtor asks for the payment to be counted, and may ask for a particular measure to be stopped. The creditor answers by showing the payment was allocated to another debt, if he can prove it.

If the seized money is registered in the debtor's name and someone else claims it, the seizure is lifted only after the other person's ownership is proven (paragraph 20/3 of the regulations). Beware of sham disputes: Article 88 punishes with imprisonment of up to seven years a debtor who files a claim intended to delay enforcement.

What changes under the new Enforcement Law?

The main changes for disputes and stays are:

• Article 45: anyone with an interest may file an enforcement dispute about the validity of the executive instrument, the conditions for enforcing it, or the court's jurisdiction. The court decides it under the rules for urgent cases. The Supreme Judicial Council will specify the disputes whose rulings cannot be appealed, and appeal rulings in these disputes cannot go to cassation except as the Council specifies.
• Article 4: the court checks that the instrument meets its legal conditions without looking into the underlying right.
• Article 46: a new route for grievances against orders and decisions on enforcement procedures, before the court president or whoever the Council designates, within ten working days. He may suspend the challenged order until he decides, and his decision is final.
• Article 47: a dispute, grievance or dispute about the underlying right does not stop enforcement unless the competent authority decides otherwise. A stay stops all related procedures and deadlines.
• Article 50: filing a claim to delay enforcement is punishable by up to three years in prison and a fine of up to SAR 1 million, or either penalty.
• The Royal Decree issuing the law (M/237, Clause Three): the new law does not apply to enforcement disputes in which final judgments were issued before it takes effect.

This is general information based on the official Arabic texts of Saudi laws, which prevail over any translation. It is not legal advice for your specific case.

Practical solutions for both sides

If you are the party enforcement is against:

• Decide whether your objection is about the validity of the enforcement or about the underlying right, and choose the forum accordingly.
• If your reason is payment after the instrument, present it to the enforcement judge with documents linked to the debt.
• If you need a stay, ask for it expressly and explain the urgency. Be ready to deposit the cheque amount if the instrument is a cheque.
• After a stay decision, read its scope. Seized money normally remains seized.
• Do not file a dispute just to gain time. It can turn against you as a criminal matter.

If you are the party requesting enforcement:

• Answer the dispute with documents showing the validity of the instrument, the balance and how payments were allocated.
• If the objection is about the underlying right, argue that it is outside the enforcement judge's jurisdiction.
• In a cheque dispute, insist on the deposit condition before any stay.
• If the dispute is proven to be in bad faith, you may ask for it to be referred for accountability and claim compensation for the delay (Article 95).

If you are considering an enforcement dispute, or you have received one, send the instrument, the enforcement order and the objection documents on WhatsApp and we will help you identify the competent forum and the right request.