Overtime Pay in Saudi Arabia: How to Work It Out Under Article 107
On a SAR 6,000 basic and SAR 8,000 actual wage, each overtime hour is worth SAR 45.83. The right way to work it out, including Ramadan, rest days and holidays.
By the HesabSA team · Updated October 16, 2026 · 4 min read
Plenty of people work overtime every week without knowing what they're really owed for it. The most common mistake is paying overtime on basic salary only, or at the normal hourly rate with no premium. The law is clear on this, and the maths is simpler than you'd think.
The rule: Article 107 of the Labor Law
For every overtime hour, the employer pays your actual hourly wage plus 50% of your basic hourly wage. The hourly wage is usually the monthly wage divided by 30 days and then by 8 hours.
A worked example
An employee with a basic salary of SAR 6,000 and an actual wage with allowances of SAR 8,000 a month:
- Actual hourly wage: SAR 8,000 ÷ 30 ÷ 8 = SAR 33.33.
- Basic hourly wage: SAR 6,000 ÷ 30 ÷ 8 = SAR 25.00; half of it is SAR 12.50.
- Overtime hour = SAR 33.33 + SAR 12.50 = SAR 45.83.
| Overtime hours a month | Pay owed |
|---|---|
| 10 | SAR 458 |
| 20 | SAR 917 |
| 30 | SAR 1,375 |
| 40 | SAR 1,833 |
Twenty overtime hours a month means about SAR 917 extra, or more than SAR 11,000 a year. That's not small money.
When do hours count as overtime?
- Anything over 8 hours a day or 48 hours a week.
- In Ramadan, normal hours for Muslim workers drop to 6 a day or 36 a week, so anything above that is overtime.
- Work on your weekly rest day or on official holidays (the two Eids, Founding Day, National Day) is paid as overtime.