With the recent development going on in Saudi Arabia in line with its tourism and the Saudi Vision 2030, some rules and regulations are speculated to be in effect. It is hard to believe which is true and which isn't.
Thankfully, in our company, we were given a list of the new rules with the corresponding fines (although the provisions were not included which I searched and added in this post).
Here's the list in text form:
Violation to Saudi Arabia's Public Decency and Penalties
- Indecent behavior that includes on act of sexual nature.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 3000/6000 SAR
- Playing music in high volume inside a residential area and a complaint is made by one or more residents, without obtaining a prior approval.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 500/1000 SAR
- Playing music during prayer times.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 1000/2000 SAR
- Non-removal of pet feces by its owner.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 100/200 SAR
- Littering in non-designated areas and spitting.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 500/1000 SAR
- Occupying the seats and facilities designated for the elderly and disabled.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 200/400 SAR
- Bypassing barriers to access public places.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 500/1000 SAR
- Wearing improper clothing in public places. Dress code for visitors of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia shall be in accordance with the standards set for such purpose.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 100/200 SAR
- Wearing underwear and sleepwear.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 100/200 SAR
- Wearing in public places clothing that bear profane language or obscene images and symbols.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 100/200 SAR
- Wearing in public places clothing that bear language, images, or symbols that encourage discrimination or racism, or promote porn or drug use.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 500/1000 SAR
- Writing or drawing, or any similar act, on public transportation, vehicles and on public walls without authorization.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 100/200 SAR
- Placing slogans or images on public transportation vehicles that encourage racism or promote porn or drug use.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 100/200 SAR
- Placing commercial labels and distributing flyers in public places without permission.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 100/200 SAR
- Igniting fires in non-designated areas in park and public places.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 100/200 SAR
- Any act, whether physical or verbal, that may harm, frighten, or endanger any individual in a public place.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 100/200 SAR
- Skipping waiting lines in public places, unless permitted.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 50/100 SAR
- Exposing people in public places to harmful lighting, such as laser beams, that may harm, frighten, or endanger such people.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 100/200 SAR
- Taking pictures or videos, without permission, people, traffic accidents, crimes or other incidents.
- Penalty (First/Repeated Violation): 1000/2000 SAR
General Provisions
Provisions are a set of specific conditions that will protect the interest of one or both the parties, or in this case, the accused/offender or the Saudi police.
- Persons authorized for the identification and recording of violations and impostion of fines as provided for in these regulations are policemen.
- Penalties shall not be imposed on any behavior not provided for in the violations table.
- Each violator shall bear the costs of rectifying the violation.
- Any person harmed by the violation shall have the right to file a lawsuit.
- In case of multiple violators in a single violation, the prescribed fine shall be imposed on each violator.
- In case of multiple violations, the violator shall be subject to the fines prescribed for each violation, in accordance with these regulations.
- Any person against whom a penalty decision is issued, in accordance with these regulations, may file a grievance before the Public Decency Circuit at the Specialized Administrative Court (Board of Grievances).
Notice that the penalty is doubled after the first offense.
The skipping of lines seems absurd but it happens relatively often especially in supermarkets and remittance centers.
Here's for further reading: https://www.arabnews.com/node/1561206/saudi-arabia
