Saudi 500 Riyal Allowance Explained: Who Gets It and the 2027 Bill Changes

Saudi ArabiaSun 25 Oct 2026, 19:00 AST

The Saudi 500 riyal allowance is the headline of a royal order issued on Sunday 25 October 2026. It pays SAR 500 more a month to state employees, retirees and social security families, and it comes alongside new electricity and water tariffs from 1 January 2027. Below we explain who gets the money, how much your bills could change, and what the new Nitaqat wage rule means for private-sector workers. Bills carry 15% VAT on top of the prices quoted here, so our Saudi VAT calculator helps you see the final amount. If you work in the private sector, our end of service calculator for Saudi Arabia shows how a higher salary also lifts your end-of-service award.

Quick answer

A royal order of 25 October 2026 adds SAR 500 a month for civil and military state employees, retirees and eligible survivors, plus SAR 500 a month for social security families. It offsets new power and water tariffs from 1 January 2027 and raises the Nitaqat wage floor for Saudis to SAR 5,000, then SAR 6,000.

Key facts at a glance

Measure	What changes	Who it affects
Monthly allowance	+SAR 500 a month	Civil and military state employees, retirees, family members of a deceased contributor or retiree under social insurance
Social security support	SAR 500 a month	Families receiving social security, under its existing rules
Nitaqat wage floor	SAR 4,000 today, then SAR 5,000, then SAR 6,000	Saudi workers in private companies and their employers
Home electricity	18 to 21 halalas per kWh (up to 6,000 kWh), 30 to 33 above that, plus a fixed monthly charge of SAR 70 to 100	Every residential account
Home water	Four tiers from SAR 1 to SAR 6 per cubic metre, sewage at half the water rate, plus a fixed charge	Every residential account

The royal order was published by the Saudi Press Agency at 15:30 AST on 25 October 2026.
Saudi Energy and the National Water Company announced their new tariffs five minutes later. Both take effect on 1 January 2027.
All prices quoted below exclude 15% VAT.

What the Saudi 500 riyal allowance royal order says

According to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), King Salman issued the order on the proposal of Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman. The official text presents it as a set of measures to support citizens, timed with the tariff announcements from Saudi Energy (formerly the Saudi Electricity Company) and the National Water Company (NWC). The stated aim is to ease the impact of the electricity and water changes.

The order has three parts. The first two are cash payments: an allowance increase for people paid by the state or by the pension system, and a separate monthly payment for low-income families. The third is not cash from the state. It is a rule that pushes private employers to pay Saudi staff more.

Who gets the extra SAR 500 a month

The SPA text lists civil and military employees on civil service pay scales and on operating-programme items, retirees, and family members of a deceased contributor or retiree covered by the social insurance system. The wording describes an allowance for each employee or retiree, so a household with two state employees would, on that reading, receive two increases. The detailed rules, including the first payment date, will come from the agencies that run each payroll. The order itself does not give a payment date.

The separate SAR 500 for social security families

Families who already receive social security payments get their own SAR 500 a month. This payment is per family, not per person, and SPA says it follows the existing mechanisms and controls of the programme. The order does not mention the Citizen Account programme, so nothing has been announced about it as part of this package.

Who is not covered by the cash payments

Saudis who work in private companies do not receive the SAR 500 from the state. Their support comes through the Nitaqat change described below. The package is described as support for citizens, and the announcement says nothing about non-Saudi residents, who will pay the same new tariffs.

How the 2027 electricity tariff changes your bill

For homes, Saudi Energy keeps the two consumption bands that have been in place since January 2018 and adds 3 halalas to each. Details of the official tariff tables were reported by Ajel and Sabq:

Up to 6,000 kWh a month: 21 halalas per kWh, up from 18.
Above 6,000 kWh: 33 halalas per kWh, up from 30.
A new fixed monthly charge replaces the old meter reading, maintenance and billing fee. It depends on your breaker capacity: SAR 70 for 20 to under 100 amps, SAR 80 for 100 to under 200 amps, SAR 90 for 200 to under 300 amps, and SAR 100 for 300 amps or more.

The fixed charge is prorated by the length of the bill (charge × bill days ÷ 30). Power used before 1 January 2027 is billed at the old prices, so the first bill of the new year may mix both rates. Commercial accounts, which now include private health and education facilities, move to 25 and 35 halalas. Industrial accounts pay 23 halalas and government accounts 35, with fixed charges from SAR 350 to SAR 900.

Worked examples (before VAT)

These are our own calculations from the published rates. A flat that uses 1,000 kWh in a 30-day month with a breaker under 100 amps pays SAR 210 for energy plus SAR 70 fixed, or SAR 280. At the old rate the same energy cost SAR 180, so the energy part rises by SAR 30. In summer, a home using 3,000 kWh pays SAR 630 for energy instead of SAR 540, an increase of SAR 90 before the fixed charge. A large villa using 7,000 kWh pays SAR 1,590 instead of SAR 1,380, an extra SAR 210.

The new water and sewage tariff

NWC is moving homes to four consumption tiers per cubic metre, with sewage always charged at half the water rate:

0 to 15 m³: SAR 1 water, SAR 0.50 sewage.
Over 15 to 30 m³: SAR 2 water, SAR 1 sewage.
Over 30 to 45 m³: SAR 4 water, SAR 2 sewage.
Over 45 m³: SAR 6 water, SAR 3 sewage.

A fixed monthly charge is added according to meter size. It starts at SAR 20 for water and SAR 10 for sewage for meters up to 20 mm, and rises to SAR 100 and SAR 50 for meters over 100 mm. On our maths, a family using 30 m³ a month with a standard 20 mm meter would pay SAR 45 for water, SAR 22.50 for sewage and SAR 30 in fixed charges, about SAR 97.50 before VAT. At 50 m³ the total climbs to about SAR 232.50, because every cubic metre above 45 costs SAR 6 plus SAR 3 for sewage. Non-residential customers pay a single rate of SAR 8 for water and SAR 4 for sewage per cubic metre.

What the Nitaqat change means for private-sector workers

Nitaqat is the Saudization programme that rates companies by the share of Saudis they employ. Under the Human Resources ministry decision in force since April 2021, a Saudi earning SAR 4,000 or more, as registered with social insurance, counts as one full employee. A Saudi earning SAR 3,000 to under 4,000 counts as half, and below SAR 3,000 does not count.

The royal order lifts the full-count threshold to SAR 5,000, applied six months after the measure starts, and then to SAR 6,000 twelve months after that first rise. This is not a legal minimum wage: an employer can still pay less, but that worker will no longer count fully towards the company's quota. The order does not say whether the half-count band will also move. Ministry rules will settle that.

Analysis: does SAR 500 cover the higher bills?

For most state-sector households, yes, at least on the published numbers. The energy part of a typical 1,000 kWh bill rises by SAR 30, and even a heavy 3,000 kWh summer month adds SAR 90. Add the new fixed charges and VAT, and a mid-sized home's combined increase still looks well below SAR 500. That is our estimate, not an official figure, because the old meter fees and old water prices varied by account.

The bigger story is who sits outside the cash support. A private-sector employee earning SAR 4,500 gets nothing extra in January. Their protection is indirect and delayed: from the first Nitaqat step their employer has a reason to raise them to SAR 5,000, and a stronger reason later to reach SAR 6,000. For employers, the cost is real. A company with many Saudi staff between SAR 4,000 and SAR 5,999 will face a choice between raising pay and losing quota credit. The design links lower energy subsidies with higher wages for nationals, which fits the wider aim of making private jobs more attractive to Saudis.

What to do now

Check your breaker capacity in the Saudi Energy app or on your bill, so you know whether your fixed charge will be SAR 70, 80, 90 or 100.
Check your water meter size and your average monthly use. Staying under 30 m³ keeps you in the two cheapest tiers.
Expect a mixed first bill in January 2027 if your billing period straddles the start date.
If you are a state employee or retiree, wait for your employer or pension agency to confirm the payment date. Ignore messages asking you to register or pay to receive the allowance; the order sets no new sign-up step.
Use the NWC helpline (8004411110) or Saudi Energy's official channels for questions about a specific account.

How we checked this

We read the royal order in full on the Saudi Press Agency, in Arabic, with its official time stamp, and the two SPA notices from Saudi Energy and NWC. Tariff tables were checked against reporting by Ajel and Sabq, which quote the companies' published schedules, and international coverage from The National. The current Nitaqat thresholds come from the Human Resources ministry's own decision document. All bill examples are our own arithmetic, before VAT, and may differ from your real bill.

FAQ

When will the SAR 500 allowance be paid?

The royal order does not state a first payment date. It is linked to tariffs that start on 1 January 2027, and the paying agencies are expected to publish the details.

Do private-sector employees get the 500 riyals?

No. Their support is the higher Nitaqat wage floor: SAR 5,000 six months after the measure starts, then SAR 6,000 a year after that.

Is the new electricity price including VAT?

No. The 21 and 33 halala rates and the fixed charges exclude 15% VAT, which is added to the bill.

Do I need to apply for the allowance?

The order describes no application. Payments follow the existing payroll, pension and social security systems, so be wary of anyone asking you to register.

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