Which rules apply to major-hazard chemical sites in Saudi Arabia?

Chapter 2 of Part VIII of the Labor Law, "prevention of major industrial accidents" (Articles 127 to 131), applies to major-hazard establishments: facilities that handle hazardous materials above permitted quantities. The ministry sets the criteria, employers must determine with the ministry whether they are covered, and the Minister is to issue the detailed rules; we found no published implementing regulation on the MHRSD or National Council for Occupational Safety and Health (NCOSH) websites. In practice, chemical and process sites also follow the requirements of their sector regulator, industrial security authorities and Civil Defence.

Short answer

• Legal basis: Labor Law (Royal Decree No. M/51 of 2005) Articles 127 to 131.
• Definitions (Article 128): major-hazard establishment, hazardous material (substance or mixture dangerous because of its chemical, physical or toxic properties) and major accident (sudden event such as a major release, fire or explosion involving hazardous materials that seriously endangers workers, the public or the environment).
• Criteria (Article 129): set by the ministry from lists of hazardous materials or categories.
• Employer duty (Article 130): determine, in coordination with the ministry, whether its facilities meet the criteria.
• Detailed rules (Article 131): to be issued by the Minister on site measures, employer duties, protection of the public and environment, and workers' rights and duties.
• Other layers: sector regulators, industrial security directives for designated facilities, Civil Defence fire rules and SASO product rules (for example Ex equipment).

What the law asks of a major-hazard employer

The Labor Law chapter is a framework, close in structure to ILO Convention No. 174 on the prevention of major industrial accidents (1993), but without quantities or a list of documents. Until detailed ministerial rules are confirmed, a site that could fall under it should:

1. Inventory the hazardous materials and maximum quantities on site and ask the ministry whether the site meets the criteria (Article 130).
2. Keep the general Part VIII duties: precautions against hazards (Article 122), information and PPE (Article 123), fire precautions and escape routes (Article 125), and liability for harm to non-employees on site (Article 126).
3. Apply the OSH Management Regulation (Decision No. 161238 of 2018) at least at the intermediate level, which already applies to establishments with 50 or more workers in petrochemicals, chemicals, oil and gas and other listed activities, including emergency planning, contractor control and accident investigation.
4. Ensure workers in high-risk occupations, including work in hazardous and explosive atmospheres and with chemicals, hold the training and licences required by the NCOSH high-risk occupations regulation (2025), which also defines a major-hazard establishment.
5. Report and investigate accidents through the NCOSH platform; the policy grades material-damage accidents by loss as a share of the establishment's capital, and the sector regulator may ask NCOSH to form an investigation team for serious events.

How this compares

In Türkiye the equivalent is the Regulation on the Prevention and Mitigation of the Effects of Major Industrial Accidents (Büyük Endüstriyel Kazaların Önlenmesi ve Etkilerinin Azaltılması Hakkında Yönetmelik, BEKRA), which requires a major-accident prevention policy document at lower-tier and a safety report at upper-tier establishments.

What we could not verify

We could not open the High Commission for Industrial Security website or ILO NORMLEX. Facilities designated by industrial security authorities, and those in industrial cities with their own regulators, must confirm their specific safety, fire and security directives with those bodies.

Related on excodex

• Occupational safety and health in Saudi Arabia: law, authorities and employer duties
• Seveso III: major-accident prevention, tiers and duties
• Process safety management: OSHA PSM 14 elements and CCPS RBPS
• How are explosive atmospheres and Ex equipment regulated in Saudi Arabia?

Standards and further reading

• Labor Law Articles 127 to 131 and 131 bis: hrsd.gov.sa
• NCOSH Regulation on Organising Work in High-Risk Occupations (2025): ncosh.gov.sa
• ILO Prevention of Major Industrial Accidents Convention, 1993 (No. 174) and the ILO code of practice on the prevention of major industrial accidents.
• Directive 2012/18/EU (Seveso III) on the control of major-accident hazards involving dangerous substances.
• Türkiye: Büyük Endüstriyel Kazaların Önlenmesi ve Etkilerinin Azaltılması Hakkında Yönetmelik, Official Gazette 2 March 2019.

This article is general occupational safety and health information prepared by the excodex editorial team. It does not replace the applicable legislation, standards, manufacturers' instructions or the assessment of a competent OSH professional or occupational physician.