Promissory Note Without Due Date in Saudi Arabia: Is It Valid?

You hold a promissory note for SAR 18,000. It has the amount, the signature and your name as beneficiary, but the due date box is empty. The maker tells you: "There's no date, so I pay when I can." You think the blank means you can claim whenever you like, even after ten years. Both of you are wrong. The law settles what this blank means in a clear provision.

The short answer: a note with no due date is valid if its other details are complete. It is payable on sight, meaning on the day it is presented to the maker, and it must be presented for payment within one year of its date of issue.

Enforcement today is governed by the Enforcement Law of 1433H. The new Enforcement Law published on 14/11/1447H (1 May 2026) comes into force 180 days after publication, in late October 2026. To enforce a promissory note directly, it requires the note to be registered on the national electronic platforms.

Is a promissory note without a due date valid?

Yes, if its other details are complete. Article 88 of the Commercial Papers Law states that a note with no due date is payable on sight. The paper stays a promissory note, and the payment date becomes the day it is presented to the maker.

But this exception covers only the due date. The date and place of issue are among the details in Article 87, and Article 88 does not cure a missing date of issue. Do not confuse the two boxes: the date of issue is when the paper was written; the due date is when payment must be made. The same article cures only two other cases: if the place of payment or the maker's address is missing, the place of issue is used; and if the place of issue is missing, the place shown next to the maker's name is used.

This has a direct effect on enforcement. The Enforcement Law allows forced enforcement only with an instrument for a fixed amount that is already due (Article 9). Paragraph 9/6 of the Implementing Regulations settles the point: an executive instrument with no due date is treated as due immediately, and anyone who objects that the payment date has not arrived must file a claim before the merits judge.

What do "on sight" and "on demand" mean?

They mean the note is due as soon as it is presented to the maker. Council of Ministers Resolution No. 251 dated 23/4/1442H interpreted the phrase "on sight" in Article 38 as including "on demand" and "on presentation". So if your note says "payable on demand", it is treated as payable on sight.

This is different from a note payable "a period after sight", for example "payable 30 days after sight". In this case Article 90 requires the note to be presented to the maker, who writes a dated and signed acknowledgement of sight on it, and the period starts from that date. If the maker refuses, the refusal is proven by a protest, and the period starts from the protest date.

Is there a deadline to claim payment?

Yes, and this is the common mistake. Article 39 requires a paper payable on sight to be presented for payment within one year of its date. This period can be shortened or extended, or the paper can say it must not be presented before a certain date. This applies to promissory notes through Article 89.

What if the year passes? Article 83 removes the holder's rights against the other parties liable on the paper, such as endorsers, when presentation deadlines are missed, but it excludes the acceptor. The maker of a note is liable like the acceptor of a bill of exchange under Article 90. So the maker remains liable, but you may lose your right of recourse against anyone who endorsed or guaranteed the note. Then there is the limitation period for claims against the maker: three years from the due date under Article 84.

Fahd issues a note to Nayef for SAR 18,000 on 1 March 2025, with no due date. Their verbal understanding was that Fahd would pay after six months.

Legally, the note is payable on sight and must be presented for payment within one year of 1 March 2025.

If Nayef presents it in June 2025, the amount is due on the day of presentation. If Fahd wants to rely on the verbal six-month understanding, he must prove it before the merits judge.

If the note had been endorsed to a third party, Fahd's defence based on the verbal understanding would be weaker, because Article 17 prevents personal defences against the holder unless the holder intended to harm the debtor.

Does a verbal agreement stop an early claim?

The paper says it is payable on demand, and the verbal agreement says something else. The party relying on the verbal agreement must prove it, and paragraph 9/6 of the regulations sends that party to the merits judge. If the parties want a fixed date, they should write it in the note from the start, or document a written amendment that states what happens to the first note, without creating a second note that suggests two debts.

Never fill in the due date box yourself after signature without a written agreement. If it was not agreed, do not write it.

What changes under the new Enforcement Law?

Three points matter for notes without a due date:

• A promissory note is an executive instrument (a document enforceable directly at the Enforcement Court) only if it is registered on the national electronic platforms, and the regulations will set the registration conditions and procedure (Article 7, paragraph 1(d)).
• Paper notes issued before the law takes effect and meeting their conditions remain executive instruments for one year after it takes effect, even if not registered (Royal Decree M/237, Clause Five). If your note is a paper note without a due date, do not delay presenting it.
• An enforcement request is not accepted for an executive instrument whose due date passed more than ten years ago (Article 11). This does not cancel the shorter periods in the Commercial Papers Law.

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 beneficiary:

• Present the note for payment within one year of its date of issue, and record the presentation date by a message or an official step.
• Do not fill in the due date yourself.
• If the note has endorsers or a guarantor, the deadline matters even more, because missing it ends your recourse against them.
• Count the three-year period from the presentation date and do not let it come close.

If you are the maker:

• Do not sign a note without a due date if the agreement is to pay later.
• If you already signed one, ask the beneficiary for a signed paper stating the agreed payment date.
• Keep the messages that mention the date. They are your evidence before the merits judge.
• Pay by a transfer that mentions the note, and ask for a receipt or the return of the paper.

If you have a note with no due date and are not sure where its deadlines stand, send us a photo of it and its date on WhatsApp and we can work them out with you.