Labor Complaint in Saudi Arabia: From Settlement to Labor Court

Your contract ended two months ago, and the company has not paid your last month's salary or your end-of-service award, about SAR 40,000 in total. You search for how to “file a case against the company” and find Najiz and the Ministry's platform, and do not know where to start.

The direct answer: you start with an online amicable settlement request at the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (HRSD). This stage is mandatory and lasts 21 working days from the first session. If the dispute does not end in a settlement, a record of failed settlement is issued and the case moves to the Labor Court, which you follow on Najiz (the Ministry of Justice e-portal). All of this must start within 12 months of the end of the employment relationship (Article 234).

Can you file a labor case directly in court?

Many people search for a “labor office complaint” and then discover that a dispute over rights does not go straight to a judge. Any dispute between you and your employer about wages, an award or compensation first goes through amicable settlement at HRSD, and the Labor Court does not accept the case until this stage ends without a settlement.

Many disputes end at this stage with a quick agreement. The settlement record issued at this stage is an “executive instrument” (sanad tanfidhi, a document enforceable directly at the Enforcement Court), so it can be enforced through the Enforcement Court if the other party does not comply.

How do you file an amicable settlement request?

1. Log in to the HRSD e-services portal and choose the amicable settlement service.
2. Fill in your details, the details of the establishment you are claiming against, and your work information, such as your wage and the start and end dates of your work.
3. Set out what you are claiming, such as unpaid wages, end-of-service award or compensation, and attach your documents.
4. Confirm that your claim is not malicious, then send the request for review by the officer in charge.
5. You receive a notice of the session date, so follow your messages and your account on the portal.

The request goes to the settlement office for the region where your workplace is, and the portal asks you to choose it. This stage lasts 21 working days at most from the date of the first session. If you, as the claimant, do not attend, the request is closed, and it can be reopened within the same period. The service is free of charge.

How do you prepare for the settlement session?

The settlement session is a real chance to end the dispute, but what you sign there becomes binding. So go in prepared:

• Calculate your claim item by item before the session: wages, award, leave and compensation.
• Put your documents together in one file that is easy to present.
• Decide in advance the minimum you would accept if a partial settlement is offered.
• Do not sign a settlement record unless you understand all its terms, because it can be enforced once signed.

What happens if there is no settlement?

At the end of the settlement stage, a record is issued confirming that settlement failed. Keep a copy, because the court does not hear the dispute before the settlement stage is complete. The case then moves to the competent Labor Court, and you follow it and file your documents through Najiz. Watch the notices you receive to know whether your case was referred to the court directly or whether you need to file the statement of claim yourself.

Write your requests in the statement of claim with exact figures: how much unpaid wage, how much award, and on what basis you calculated compensation. A vague request makes the dispute longer and weakens your position before the judge.

What happens in the Labor Court?

After the case is registered, a hearing is set and the employer is notified. You present your requests and documents, and the employer presents his defence; he may also file counterclaims against you. The judgment is issued after the case has been fully heard, and if it is not carried out voluntarily, enforcement is requested from the Enforcement Court. The court may ask for more documents or for an explanation of how you calculated your figures, so be ready to explain every number in your requests.

Documents that strengthen your position

• The employment contract, or proof of the relationship such as registration with the General Organization for Social Insurance (GOSI).
• Bank statements showing your wage and the date of the last transfer.
• The dismissal letter, resignation or termination notice.
• Correspondence with the company, warnings and investigation records, if any.
• Proof of overtime hours or allowances if you are claiming them.

Can you file a labor case one year after leaving work?

Article 234 of the Labor Law provides that a case about rights under the Labor Law or arising from the employment contract is not accepted by the labor courts more than 12 months after the employment relationship ended, unless you give an excuse the court accepts or the employer admits the right. This is why people often ask whether they can file a labor case after a year. Delay here is a real risk; do not rely on your excuse being accepted.

Your employment does not have to end before you can claim. You can request settlement for a late wage while you are still working.

A complaint about a violation, or a claim for your right?

It helps to separate two things that are often mixed up. A claim for your personal right, such as a late salary, an award or compensation, goes through amicable settlement and then the court, as explained above. Reporting the company's breach of the law, such as ignoring safety requirements, is a report to the Ministry so it can take supervisory action against the company; it does not pay you money by itself. In some cases you need both routes.

Cases with a different route

Domestic workers are governed by the Regulations for Domestic Workers and Similar Categories issued in 1445H: the Ministry receives complaints and settles them amicably (Article 32), and a case before the competent court is not accepted more than twelve months after the contract ends, unless there is an accepted excuse or an admission (Article 5). Social insurance disputes have their own objection route at GOSI, so start with the competent department there. If your problem is a general violation, such as your employer keeping your passport, report it to the Ministry alongside claiming your right.

Keep the settlement request number and the case number on Najiz, and follow messages and notices as they arrive. If you are the claimant and miss the settlement session, the request is closed, and this may cost you time you need.

What changes with the new Enforcement Law?

The new Enforcement Law (published on 14/11/1447H, 1 May 2026) comes into force 180 days after publication, around 28 October 2026, and replaces the Enforcement Law of 1433H.

• Final judgments of the Labor Court, and settlement agreements and reconciliation documents issued by the authorities empowered by law, are all executive instruments (Article 7).
• If five working days pass after the employer is notified of the enforcement order without payment, forced enforcement starts at once: credit information companies (such as SIMAH, the Saudi credit bureau) are notified, his assets and future income are seized, and the court may impose a fine of up to SAR 5,000 per day (Article 18).
• An enforcement request is not accepted on an instrument more than ten years after its due date (Article 11).

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 employee making the claim:

• Write your claim as clear items: each item, its amount and its basis.
• File the amicable settlement request at the office for your workplace, follow the sessions and do not miss any.
• If settlement does not solve the dispute, follow the referral of the case to the Labor Court and do not wait.
• The case is not accepted more than 12 months after the relationship ends, unless there is an excuse the court accepts or the employer admits the right.

If you are the employer being claimed against:

• Attend the settlement session with your documents: the contract, salaries, attendance and releases.
• Review the claim item by item, and pay what is truly due to reduce the dispute.
• The settlement record is an executive instrument, so do not sign an obligation you cannot carry out.

How a claim is written affects its result. Send us on WhatsApp the items of your claim, your contract and your salary statements, and we will organise them with you before the session.