Saudi salary deduction cap calculator
- Art. 14 of SAMA Regulations for Consumer Financing: the 33.33% employed and 25% retiree deduction ceiling
- Read against the statuteSeptember 2026
Saudi Arabia
Art. 14 of SAMA Regulations for Consumer Financing: the 33.33% employed and 25% retiree deduction ceiling
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To check this, or for anything official:
The Saudi Central Bank's responsible lending principles for individual customerssama.gov.sa
The largest monthly instalment SAMA allows in your position, and which of the two ceilings is what binds you.
Work out the largest monthly instalment the Saudi Central Bank responsible-lending rules allow, from your salary after GOSI, your existing commitments and your income band.
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How is the deduction cap worked out?
- Deduction ceiling = salary after GOSI x 33.33% employed, or x 25% retired
- Total income = salary plus half of other verified income
- Ceiling excluding real estate = total income x 45% (up to 25,000 income)
- Room for a new instalment = the smaller ceiling, less what you already pay
Symbols
- Salary after GOSI
- Basic pay less GOSI and pension contributions, plus fixed allowances. That is SAMA’s own definition, not one chosen here
- Total income
- Salary plus half of other verified periodical income. Half, not all, and nothing the lender cannot verify
- Band
- Articles 15, 16 and 17 by total income. The rulebook’s boundaries at 15,000 and 25,000 overlap, and this calculator puts the boundary in the lower band, which is the more conservative reading
What can a 12,000 salary with 2,000 of commitments carry?
An employee whose salary after GOSI, including fixed allowances, is 12,000 SAR, with no other income, currently paying 2,000 SAR a month on personal finance and a credit card, and no mortgage.
- Total monthly income: 12,000 SAR, which falls in the up to 15,000 band under Article 15
- Salary deduction ceiling: 12,000 x 33.33% = 3,999.60 SAR, and the ceiling excluding real estate: 12,000 x 45% = 5,400 SAR. The smaller one binds, so 3,999.60
- Room for a new personal instalment: 3,999.60 minus 2,000 = 1,999.60 SAR
- All-obligations ceiling: 12,000 x 55% = 6,600 SAR, leaving 6,600 minus 2,000 = 4,600 SAR for a mortgage instalment
They can add a personal instalment of up to 1,999.60 SAR a month, or go for a mortgage instalment of up to 4,600 SAR. What binds them is the salary deduction ceiling rather than the income ratio, so proving extra income would not raise the personal instalment available to them.
What are the two ceilings, and how does SAMA define salary?
The Saudi Central Bank sets two ceilings, not one, and they work together. The first limits what may be deducted from the salary itself: 33.33% for someone employed, 25% of the pension for a retiree, under Article 14 of the Regulations for Consumer Financing. The second limits total obligations against total income and changes with the income band. Whichever is smaller decides.
The most misread word here is salary. SAMA defines it as basic pay less GOSI and pension contributions, plus fixed allowances. That is salary after the GOSI deduction, not before, and it is the same figure the salary-after-GOSI calculator on this site produces. Anyone taking 33.33% of full basic pay arrives at a number higher than a lender will accept.
There are three income bands. Up to 15,000 SAR: 45% for obligations other than real-estate finance and 55% for all obligations, rising to 65% with Ministry of Housing or Real Estate Development Fund support. Between 15,000 and 25,000: 45% and 65%. From 25,000 upward SAMA sets no debt-to-income ratio at all and leaves it to the lender, so only the 33.33% deduction ceiling remains a rule.
- Deduction ceiling = salary after GOSI x 33.33% employed, or pension x 25% retired
- Total income = salary plus half of other verified periodical income
- Room for a new instalment = the smaller ceiling, less what you already pay
- Real-estate finance sits outside the 33.33% and the 45%, and counts only in the all-obligations ceiling
Questions about the salary deduction cap
What deduction does the Saudi Central Bank allow?
The salary deduction ceiling is 33.33% for someone in work and 25% of the pension for a retiree, under Article 14 of the Regulations for Consumer Financing. It applies to your instalments across all lenders, not to any one of them.
Is the percentage taken before or after GOSI?
After. SAMA defines salary as basic pay less GOSI and pension contributions, plus fixed allowances, so the percentage is taken on that figure rather than on full basic pay. That gap is why people estimate a higher instalment than a lender will accept.
Does a mortgage instalment count inside the 33.33%?
No. The 33.33% applies to consumer financing, and the 45% ceiling is written as excluding real-estate finance. A mortgage instalment appears only in the all-obligations ceiling, which is 55% or 65% depending on your band and any housing support.
My income is over 25,000 SAR. What is my ceiling?
Article 17 keeps the 33.33% deduction ceiling but sets no debt-to-income ratio, leaving that to the lender’s credit policy. So any other percentage a bank quotes you in this band is its own policy, open to discussion, and not a rule.
When does the ceiling rise to 65%?
In the up to 15,000 SAR band, the all-obligations ceiling rises from 55% to 65% for borrowers supported by the Ministry of Housing or the Real Estate Development Fund, under an amendment of 23 May 2018. In the 15,000 to 25,000 band it is already 65% without any support.
Why would a bank refuse when this calculator says I have room?
Because the regulatory ceiling is an upper limit, not an obligation on the lender. A financier has its own credit policy, which may be tighter, and looks at your credit record, length of service and how your income is earned. This result is an estimate and not an offer of finance; only the lender can give you a binding one.
Sources
Read against the statuteReviewed September 2026- Responsible Lending Principles for Individual Customers: Saudi Central Bank (SAMA)
- Regulations for Consumer Financing: Saudi Central Bank (SAMA)
Statutory articles this calculator applies
- Art. 14 of SAMA Regulations for Consumer Financing: the 33.33% employed and 25% retiree deduction ceiling
- Art. 14(b) of SAMA's Responsible Lending Principles: how income other than salary is counted
- Art. 15 of SAMA Responsible Lending Principles: the income band up to SAR 15,000
- Art. 16 of SAMA Responsible Lending Principles: the income band from SAR 15,000 to 25,000
- Art. 17 of SAMA Responsible Lending Principles: income from SAR 25,000, where the lender policy governs
Saudi Labor Law: Royal Decree No. M/51 dated 23/8/1426H (27 Sep 2005), as amended (latest amendment Royal Decree No. M/44 of 1446H, in force 2025-02-19)