Saudi cheques are written in riyals and halalas (two decimals) on bilingual Arabic/English stationery. They are commonly dated in the Gregorian calendar, which the banking sector uses for its transactions. Two things set Saudi Arabia apart from the UAE. A Saudi cheque is payable on sight, even if it carries a later date. And issuing a cheque without sufficient funds is still a criminal offence.
This guide covers dates, currency, post-dated cheques, clearing and bounce penalties, plus setting up ChequeMaster for Saudi banks.
How cheques are used in Saudi Arabia
Cheques in the Kingdom are mostly a business tool: paying suppliers, guarantees in contracts and tenders, and certified or manager's cheques for large purchases. Retail payments have largely moved to mada cards, SADAD and instant transfers. Business cheques are still common, though, and because of the criminal exposure they are taken seriously on both sides.
Dates on Saudi cheques: Hijri or Gregorian?
This question comes up a lot, and the answer has changed over time.
- SAMA circulars from 2006 and 2007 told banks to use the Hijri date in correspondence and on cheques, while allowing the Gregorian date alongside it.
- In November 2023 the Council of Ministers approved the Gregorian calendar for official dealings, except where Sharia rulings or a specific text require Hijri. Arab News reported that, according to a financial analyst it quoted, the Saudi banking sector was already using the Gregorian calendar for all its transactions.
In practice, a Gregorian date written as DD/MM/YYYY is the normal choice for business cheques. Whichever calendar you choose, use it for the whole date and do not mix the two. If your bank's stationery or a counterparty specifically wants a Hijri date, ask the bank first. We could not find a current SAMA rule saying a cheque must be rejected for using one calendar or the other.
Riyals, halalas and amount in words
The riyal has 100 halalas, so amounts use two decimals: SAR 48,250.50. In English words, use the international system: "Forty-Eight Thousand Two Hundred Fifty Riyals and Fifty Halalas Only". Do not use lakh and crore. Close the words with "Only" and start the figures right next to the currency box. See amount-in-words rules or the amount in words tool.
Post-dated cheques and presentment periods
In the UAE, a bank will not pay a cheque before its date. Saudi law works the other way. Under the Commercial Papers Law (Royal Decree No. M/37 of 1383H), Article 102 says a cheque is payable on sight, and if it is presented before the date written on it, it is payable on the day it is presented. Article 103 says a cheque issued and payable in the Kingdom must be presented within one month of its date, or within three months if it was issued abroad.
So a "post-dated" cheque in Saudi Arabia gives you no protection if the payee deposits it early. Funds must be in place from the day you hand it over. Banks may still pay a cheque after the presentment period, but a holder who misses it can lose some legal remedies. Treat the one-month window as the real deadline. These rules are not flexible, so confirm the details for your situation with your bank or a Saudi lawyer. More on dated cheques: what a post-dated cheque is.
Crossing, payee and signature
Write the payee's full registered name. For business payments, cross the cheque so it can only be paid into an account. Some Saudi stationery has the crossing printed already. Sign exactly as your specimen and mandate say. Do not alter a written cheque. Cancel it and write a new one. See crossed cheques and common writing mistakes.
Clearing
SAMA operates the interbank clearing systems. In December 2025 it added an Electronic Check Clearing System (ECCS) service to its e-services portal, which it says aims to complete cheque clearing within one business day. Your own bank's cut-off times decide which day a deposit enters clearing, so ask your branch.
Bounced cheque penalties in Saudi Arabia
General information, not legal advice. Laws and bank rules change; check with your bank or a qualified lawyer for your situation.
Under Article 118 of the Commercial Papers Law, issuing a cheque without sufficient funds is a crime. As reported by Gulf News, the penalties are:
- First offence. Up to three years in prison and a fine of up to SAR 50,000.
- Repeat offence within three years. Up to five years and SAR 100,000.
- Publication. Courts may order the offender's details to be published at their expense.
A dishonoured cheque is also an execution document under the Enforcement Law. The holder can apply to the enforcement court through the Ministry of Justice's Najiz platform, and if the drawer does not pay, measures such as travel bans and asset seizure can follow. As of October 2026 we found no announced decriminalisation in the Kingdom. Compare the region in bounced cheque laws across the GCC.
Pre-added Saudi bank layouts
ChequeMaster is not limited to these banks. It works with any bank's cheque, in any country. The layouts below are simply the Saudi bank layouts that come pre-added, so you can start printing without any setup. For any other bank, build a layout from a scan of a blank leaf in a few minutes, and add as many banks and layouts as you need.
- Al Rajhi Bank
- Alinma Bank
- Banque Saudi Fransi
Alinma and Banque Saudi Fransi use the same cheque size but print their fields in different places. That makes them the easiest pair to mix up. Put the bank's name in each cheque book's name ("Saudi Fransi Current 4471-4520", not "Book 2") so a wrong pick is obvious before you print. Al Rajhi is a different size and is the only one of the three whose layout prints a crossing block. On the other two, check whether your stationery already has a crossing printed.
Setting up ChequeMaster for Saudi Arabia
- Currency. Set SAR as the currency.
- Decimals and words. Use two decimals and million/billion words. If you also print Kuwaiti, Bahraini or Omani cheques, switch back to three decimals for those.
- Date format. Choose DD/MM/YYYY.
- Cheque book. Add the account under the correct bank and create a cheque book with that bank's layout and the leaf numbers from the book. See creating a cheque book.
- Test print. Print on plain A4 and compare against a real leaf. A uniform offset means you need to adjust the margins. Misplaced single fields mean the layout is wrong. See fixing alignment.
ChequeMaster prints the fields in English (it does not print Arabic) and records each cheque against its number, so you can see what is outstanding. Since Saudi cheques can be cashed early, that record matters even more. See the pricing page for licences.
