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GOSI in Saudi Arabia: Everything you need to know

The Government Organization for Social Insurance (GOSI) is a premium government institution in Saudi Arabia that deals with social insurance in the country. Headquartered in Riyadh, GOSI is a financially and administratively independent organization that is supervised by a board of thirteen directors. The board of directors consists of insured persons, employers as well as officials from government departments. Since its inception in 1973, GOSI has constantly worked towards improving social insurance benefits meted out to the contributors and their family members. 

The primary focus of GOSI in Saudi Arabia is to collect contributions—12% from employers and 10% from employees—acquire an open data report released by GOSI for the second quarter of 2020 shows that about 498,000 employees from micro establishments, 48,000 employees from small establishments and 8,000 employees from medium establishments are registered with GOSI. 

In this blog, we will walk you through the intricate details of the GOSI insurance, its benefits, and how it is impacting the employees working in the KSA (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) region.  

What is the structure of GOSI KSA? 

GOSI functions and exercises all its activities from its head office in Riyadh. It also has 21 other field offices spread across several locations in the KSA region. Presided over by a board of thirteen directors, the board comprises the Minister of Finance (Chairman), GOSI Governor (Vice-Chairman), a representative of the Council of Economic and Development Affairs, Governor of the Public Pension Agency, three representative members from the Ministries of Human Resource and Social Development, Finance and Health, three members of employers and three highly qualified contributors.  

GOSI Calculation methods 

GOSI is a government establishment that offers services for a varied section of people, including employees, employers, retired personnel, medical providers, and more. These services are applicable under the Social Insurance Law of Saudi Arabia.   

The GOSI calculation is based on the earning of an employee and is categorized into two types: 

  • GOSI for Saudi nationals, and; 
  • GOSI for Non-Saudi nationals (or Saudi expats). 

The part of the earning of an employee that the calculation is based on includes only the basic salary and the housing allowance. 

Let’s delve deeper into the GOSI calculation methods. 

 For Saudi nationals, working in either the private or public sector, GOSI is calculated as mentioned below:  

  • The total contribution made on behalf of the individual amounts to 22% of the maximum monthly applicable earnings. 
  • The breakup of the contribution: 9% is contributed by the employee for an annuity (pension), another 9% is the employer’s contribution share towards annuity (pension), 1% is paid by the employee, and 1% by the employer as part of the unemployment contribution and another 2% share is contributed by the employer for occupational hazard. 

For Saudi non-nationals (expats), the calculation for GOSI is as follows: 

The employer pays 2% of the maximum monthly applicable earnings, the value of which is between SAR400 and SAR45,000, as part of the unemployment contribution.  

The calculation of GOSI varies across the different regions of GCC. Here is a detailed idea of the GOSI calculation for GCC nationals. 

What are the benefits of GOSI for Saudi nationals? 

The General Organization for Social Insurance was set up with the aim of helping contributors and their families acquire world-class social insurance benefits. In fact, GOSI has been a top-tier government insurance provider in the KSA region for almost five decades. A data report from Argaam released to showcase the statistics of GOSI stated that about 8.32 million private-sector employees were registered with the organization in Q2 of 2020. Here is a list of benefits that Saudi nationals receive upon registering with GOSI:

  • Medical care benefits: GOSI has contracts with several hospitals across the KSA region, wherein individuals who have suffered an occupational hazard are given comprehensive treatment until the individual has recovered completely. In the event of an injury during the course of employment, the medical treatment offered by these hospitals would include several facilities, including diagnoses, medical supplies, medicines, prosthetics as well as top-class medical treatment 
  • Daily allowance benefits: In the event of an injury during the course of employment that has caused the individual to become temporarily disabled, the individual would be eligible for a daily allowance. This daily allowance can go up to 100% of the daily wage of the injured for each day of disability. If the individual in question is under treatment at the expense of GOSI, the daily allowance offered is 75% of the daily wage of the injured for each day of disability. This allowance is only applicable if the injured individual is an in-patient or on sick leave.  
  • Total permanent disability benefits: If an occupational hazard leads to the total permanent disability of an individual, then they are entitled to a monthly compensation of 100% of the average wage of the last three months, immediately before the month of the injury. The eligibility of the individual to receive the total permanent disability benefits is examined at regular intervals, for a total period of five years, by a qualified board of medical professionals. Five years after the date of benefit payment, the eligibility of the injured individual to receive the total permanent disability benefit is re-evaluated and a decision is made about the payment of the benefit. If the medical board concludes that the injured individual requires the assistance of others, then the individual will receive corresponding compensation for that as well. The injured individual is medically evaluated at regular intervals for 10 years to assess the eligibility of the Assistance of Others allowance. If, after 10 years, the medical board deems it necessary for the injured individual to have the assistance of others, then this allowance is made permanent. 
  • Partial permanent disability benefits: In the event of an injury during the course of employment that leads to a partial disability by 50% to 90%, then the individual is eligible for compensation that equals the percentage of their disability. If the medical board concludes that the injured individual requires the assistance of others, then the individual will receive corresponding compensation for that as well. 
  • Unemployment benefits: The unemployment insurance scheme offered by GOSI is called “Saned”. Unemployed individuals can opt for this benefit within 90 days of quitting their job. Individuals, however, can only opt for this benefit if:
    • They are Saudi citizens;
    • They are registered under the Social Insurance Law;
    • They have been forced to quit their job for reasons beyond their control. 

This unemployment scheme provides social protection to Saudi nationalists working in the government and private sector. Apart from offering a monthly compensation for the transitionary period between two jobs, GOSI also compensates the individual with a maximum amount of SAR 9000 for the first three months of employment. For every consecutive month after this period, GOSI compensates the individual with a maximum amount of SAR 7500. An individual can only avail this compensation, continuously or intermittently, only for a maximum period of 12 months 

  • Benefits after the death of the contributor: All the eligible family members of the deceased are entitled to equal compensation, in the event of the death of an individual caused by an occupational hazard. Family members are eligible for a total compensation amounting to a minimum of SAR 345 and a maximum of SAR 1,750 or the average wage taken by the deceased, whichever is greater. A family member of the deceased is eligible for benefits if: 
    • The deceased was a retired employee and suffered from a non-occupational disability, partial or total permanent disability; 
    • The deceased was an active contributor and died owing to an occupational hazard; 
    • The deceased was a contributor who was under GOSI’s employment scheme at the time of death and must have contributed to the scheme for a minimum of three consecutive months or six non-consecutive months; 
    • The deceased was a contributor after leaving employment and must have contributed for a minimum period of 120 months. 
  • Voluntary Contribution benefits: Under this section of GOSI insurance, social insurance benefits are offered to individuals for old-age retirement pension, early retirement pension, non-occupational disability pension, and death pension.

What are the benefits of GOSI for expats in Saudi Arabia? 

The General Organization for Social Insurance ensures that the expatriates working in the KSA region are also offered benefits under the Social Insurance Laws. To get a vivid understanding of GOSI for expats in Sauditake a look at the following section. 

  • Occupational hazard benefits: In the event of the injury of an expat at work in Saudi, GOSI offers an amount equivalent to 50% of the insurance claim, with a ceiling amount of SAR 3,500 per month. The individual, however, is only eligible for the benefit if they agree to present a preliminary medical report.  
  • Permanent disability benefits: In the case of permanent disability caused to an individual during the course of employment, GOSI will bear the entire travel expense of the individual to their home country. The expat employee will be compensated for the amount before they leave Saudi Arabia for their home country.  
  • Traffic accident injury to Saudi expat: Under the GOSI insurance policy, an expat working in Saudi Arabia will be eligible for compensation, if:
    •      The worker is injured in a traffic accident on the way to or back from work;
    •      The worker is injured in a traffic accident on the way to have food or to pray in a mosque during work hours. 

GOSI Calculation examples for Saudi nationals 

  • Total permanent disability 

If the injured Saudi national earns a wage of SAR 10,000, the calculation for GOSI would be as follows: 

Monthly benefit: 10,000 x 100% = SAR 10,000 per month 

Assistance of Others benefit (if eligible): 10,000 x 50% = SAR 5,000 per month 

Total benefit: 10,000 + 5,000 = SAR 15,000 per month 

  • Partial permanent disability 

If the disability of the injured Saudi national is 70% from total disability and he/she earns SAR 10,000, the calculation for GOSI would be as follows: 

Monthly benefit: 10,000 x 70% = SAR 7,000 per month 

Assistance of Others benefit (if eligible): 7,000 x 50% = SAR 3,500 per month 

Total benefit: 7,000 + 3,500 = SAR 10,500 per month 

What is a GOSI certificate? 

The GOSI Contribution Certificate is a document that can be obtained from GOSI’s e-service portal. This document includes the contributor’s wages and period of contribution. This information is subject to the establishment’s system.  

How to get the GOSI certificate? 

To obtain a GOSI certificate, please follow the below-mentioned steps: 

Step 1: Log in to the e-service portal of GOSI 

Step 2: Enter the contributor account 

Step 3: Click on “Issue of certificates” 

Step 4: Click on the type of certificate you want, i.e., “Contributor insurance terms and wages”  

GOSI services 

The e-service portal offered by the General Organization for Social Insurance is a one-stop solution platform. It offers a range of services, to help employees and employers access the portal without any hindrance. Some of the e-channels offered by GOSI are SMS, direct link service, online service, GOSI-phone and e-payment service. GOSI also launched an employment contract authentication portal in 2018. 

GOSI insurance is not only for the benefit of the employees but also the employers. In fact, employers in the KSA region also enjoy the perks offered through the various GOSI services. 

Keep following us for more interesting updates and information.  

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India

Phone: +966 11 411 1127
E-mail: [email protected]

India

Phone: +966 11 411 1127
E-mail: [email protected]

India

Phone: +966 11 411 1127
E-mail: [email protected]

India

Phone: +966 11 411 1127
E-mail: [email protected]

India

Phone: +966 11 411 1127
E-mail: [email protected]

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