Fired in Saudi Arabia? Article 77 vs Article 80 Explained

Article 77 is about price: it sets what an employer owes when a contract is ended for an unlawful reason. Article 80 is about grounds: a closed list of serious situations where the employer may terminate with no award, no compensation and no notice — and the burden of proving the ground sits with the employer, not with you.

This post explains both from the employee side, with a worked riyal example of the Article 77 calculation, what the employer actually has to show to stand behind Article 80, the evidence to collect in the first 48 hours, and the route through Qiwa to a labor dispute. It sits inside the Saudi labor law guide.

Quick answer

• Article 77 = compensation for unlawful termination. Indefinite contract: 15 days of wage per year of service. Fixed-term: the wage for the remaining period. Never less than two months of wage.
• Article 80 = termination without award, compensation or notice, but only on one of the listed serious grounds, and only if the employer proves it.
• Your end-of-service award is separate. Article 77 compensation is on top of it, not instead of it.
• A termination letter naming Article 80 is a claim, not a verdict. It has to survive scrutiny.
• The clock is real: twelve months from the end of the relationship under Article 222, and 90 days to register for SANED.

What is the difference between Article 77 and Article 80?

The two articles answer different questions. Article 77 answers “the reason was not valid — how much is owed?” Article 80 answers “was the reason serious enough to end the contract with nothing owed?” In everyday Saudi HR language, “terminated under Article 77” usually means the employer is ending the contract and paying the statutory compensation, while “terminated under Article 80” means the employer is claiming you did something that forfeits it.

	Article 77	Article 80
Trigger	Termination for an unlawful reason	One of the listed serious grounds
Notice period	Due, or paid in lieu	Not due
End-of-service award	Due in full	Employer claims it is forfeited
Extra compensation	15 days per year, or remaining term; min. 2 months	None
Who must prove	The party claiming the loss	The employer
Practical effect on you	A payout and a clean exit	A disputed exit and no payout unless you challenge it

Definition pair. Unlawful reason means a reason the law does not accept as a basis for ending the contract — including reasons tied to a complaint you filed or to a protected circumstance. Valid ground means one of the specific situations in Article 80 that the employer can evidence.

What Article 77 compensation actually pays

For an indefinite contract, compensation is 15 days of wage for each year of service. For a fixed-term contract, it is the wage for the remaining period of the contract. Either way, the compensation is not less than two months of wage — and if the contract itself specifies a compensation amount, that agreed figure governs instead.

Worked example, indefinite contract. Monthly wage SAR 14,000 (basic plus regular allowances, per the Article 2 definition), 6 completed years, terminated without a valid ground and without notice.

• Article 77 compensation: 15 days × 6 years = 90 days = 3 months = SAR 42,000. The two-month floor (SAR 28,000) is below that, so the calculated figure applies.
• End-of-service award: half a month for each of the first 5 years (2.5 months) plus a full month for year 6 = 3.5 months = SAR 49,000. The method is in end of service calculation.
• Pay in lieu of a 60-day notice period, if no notice was served: SAR 28,000.
• Accrued unused annual leave, paid in cash.

Worked example, fixed-term contract. A two-year contract ended in month 8 without a valid ground: compensation is the wage for the 16 remaining months, which on the same SAR 14,000 wage is SAR 224,000 — a reminder that fixed-term contracts are not the weaker option people assume.

Two things people get wrong. First, Article 77 compensation is additional to the end-of-service award, not a substitute for it. Second, the “wage” used in these calculations is the Article 2 definition — basic plus the regular allowances paid with it — not your basic salary alone. If your payslip splits a large housing allowance out of a small basic, see basic vs total salary before you accept anyone’s arithmetic.

What must an employer prove to invoke Article 80?

Article 80 is a closed list of serious grounds, and the employer carries the burden of proof. Broadly, they cover: assault on the employer, the manager or a superior; failure to perform essential contractual duties or to obey lawful instructions; proven misconduct or an act of dishonesty; deliberately causing material loss to the employer; forgery to obtain the job; being within the probation period; long unexcused absence; exploiting the position for personal gain; and disclosing work-related secrets.

Two procedural points matter more than the list itself:

• The absence ground has thresholds and a warning step. It applies to absence without valid reason exceeding 30 days in one year, or exceeding 15 consecutive days — and the dismissal must be preceded by a written warning after 20 days in the first case and after 10 days of interruption in the second. An employer who fires on day 6 of an absence and cites Article 80 has skipped a required step.
• You must be given the chance to state your case. Article 80 requires the employer to allow the worker to present his reasons for objecting. A dismissal executed by a WhatsApp message with no hearing is procedurally weak, whatever the alleged ground.

If the ground cannot be proven, the termination is treated as an unlawful termination and lands back in Article 77 territory, with the award and the compensation both live again.

The first 48 hours: what to collect before access is cut

The most common reason a strong case gets weak is that the evidence lived on a work laptop that was collected the same afternoon. Do this immediately, calmly, and only with material you are entitled to hold.

1. The termination document itself — the letter, the email, or a screenshot of the message, with the date visible. If nothing was given in writing, send one line asking for the reason and the article relied on in writing, and save the reply or the silence.
2. Your contract and any amendments, plus the version documented on Qiwa.
3. Payslips for the last 12 months and your bank credits, which establish the wage figure the calculations run on.
4. Your GOSI record, which independently proves your start date and continuous service.
5. Performance evidence — appraisals, written praise, targets met. An Article 80 dismissal alleging failure to perform sits badly next to a recent positive appraisal.
6. Warning letters, if any. Their absence is itself evidence when the alleged ground requires a warning.
7. The exit date and the handover record, including when your access was revoked.

Store all of it in a personal account. Do not take confidential company material — that is a separate problem you do not need.

SANED, and what the reason for leaving does to it

SANED is the unemployment insurance run by GOSI for Saudi nationals, funded by contributions split between employer and employee. The core eligibility idea: the job must have ended for reasons outside your control. Resignation and dismissal for your own fault are excluded, which is exactly why the Article 77 versus Article 80 classification is not just about money.

The published mechanics: compensation is 60% of your average wage for the first three months and 50% afterwards, subject to monthly caps, with the payment period limited per claim. Registration with the ministry within 90 days of the job ending is a condition, and you must be genuinely available for work and comply with the job-search and training requirements. Because rates and caps are updated, confirm the current figures on the GOSI platform. The full process is in SANED unemployment insurance.

How to challenge a termination

The route starts on Qiwa, where you file a labor complaint and the case enters an amicable settlement stage before it can move to the labor court. That stage is time-boxed by regulation, so it is a genuine step rather than an open-ended delay — check current durations on Qiwa for employees.

The hard limit is Article 222: a claim for rights under the Labor Law is not heard after twelve months from the end of the employment relationship. Twelve months feels long while you are job hunting and then disappears.

Weak reply to a termination letter: “This is unfair, I gave this company everything and I will take you to court.”

Strong reply: “Thank you for the letter dated 14/06. Please confirm in writing the article relied on for the termination and the calculation of my final settlement, including end-of-service, unused annual leave and notice. I would like to review it before signing anything.”

The second version does three things: it fixes the date, it forces the employer to commit to a legal basis on paper, and it stops you signing a clearance form that waives claims you have not yet valued. Never sign a “full and final settlement” release before you have done the arithmetic.

Also worth saying plainly: a termination under Article 80 is not a criminal record and does not follow you around the market. Recruiters ask why you left; they do not ask which article was cited. Prepare the honest, short version of the story — the pattern in why you left your job works here.

Then restart the search deliberately rather than reactively. In TrueSira, your Master Profile keeps your real history and results in one place, so when the settlement conversation is still running you can paste a job description and generate a tailored, ATS-ready CV without rebuilding it from memory — with you approving every line. Get started free.

FAQ

What is the difference between Article 77 and Article 80?

Article 77 sets the compensation owed when a contract is ended for an unlawful reason. Article 80 lists specific serious grounds — assault, dishonesty, forgery, deliberate loss, disclosing secrets, long unexcused absence and others — that allow termination with no award, no compensation and no notice. The employer must prove the Article 80 ground; if it fails, the case falls back to Article 77.

How much compensation do I get for unfair dismissal?

For an indefinite contract, 15 days of wage for each year of service. For a fixed-term contract, the wage for the remaining term. In both cases the compensation is not less than two months of wage, unless the contract specifies its own amount. This is on top of the end-of-service award, unused leave and notice pay, not instead of them.

Can I claim SANED after being terminated?

SANED covers Saudi nationals who lost work for reasons outside their control, so resignation and dismissal for the worker’s own fault are excluded. You must register with the ministry within 90 days of the job ending, be capable of and available for work, and follow the job-search and training requirements. Confirm the current rates and caps on the GOSI platform.

What counts as a valid reason under Article 80?

A closed list, including assault on the employer or a superior, failure to perform essential duties or obey lawful orders, proven dishonesty, deliberately causing material loss, forgery to obtain the job, exploiting the position for personal gain, disclosing work secrets, and unexcused absence beyond the stated thresholds after a written warning. General dissatisfaction or restructuring is not on the list.

How long do I have to file a labor complaint?

Article 222 bars claims for Labor Law rights after twelve months from the end of the employment relationship. Start on Qiwa, which routes you through an amicable settlement stage before the labor court. File early even if you expect to settle — filing preserves the claim while negotiations continue.

Does Article 80 termination cancel my end-of-service benefit?

That is what Article 80 permits when the ground is proven. It is not automatic: naming the article in a letter does not establish the facts behind it, and procedural requirements such as the written warning for absence and the opportunity to respond still apply. If the employer cannot prove the ground, the award and Article 77 compensation both come back.