Hiring your first employee in Saudi Arabia

Before the first hire

• Your establishment file on Qiwa, the Ministry of Human Resources platform, linked to your Commercial Registration.
• Registration with GOSI, the General Organization for Social Insurance.
• A Mudad account for payroll under the Wage Protection System.
• Internal work regulations and an HR policy that follow the Saudi Labor Law.

Hiring a Saudi national

• An employment contract documented on Qiwa.
• Registration of the employee with GOSI from their start date.
• Salary paid through Mudad each month.
• A check for HRDF (Hadaf) support programmes that may contribute to training or salary costs.

Hiring an expatriate

• Work visa issued through Qiwa, within the quota your Nitaqat band allows.
• Visa stamping abroad, then arrival in the Kingdom.
• Medical insurance in place before the residency is issued.
• Iqama (residency) issued, and the work permit and contract documented on Qiwa.
• Registration with GOSI and inclusion in Mudad payroll.

Common mistakes

• Contracts signed on paper but never documented on Qiwa.
• Expatriate hires made without checking the Nitaqat impact first.
• Salaries paid outside Mudad, which breaks Wage Protection compliance.
• No one tracking iqama and insurance expiry dates after the first year.

How we run it

We set up the files before the first hire, prepare the contract and documentation, handle the visa and residency steps for expatriates, and run payroll from the first month.