Musaned 2024: Guide to Domestic Worker Insurance and Salary Transfers

The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development in Saudi Arabia continues its diligent efforts to regulate the recruitment sector by offering high-quality services through the “Musaned” platform. These steps are part of a comprehensive strategy aimed at protecting the rights of all parties, including employers and domestic workers, in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 goals of improving the work environment and enhancing the efficiency of the labor market.

Context of developing the recruitment sector in the Kingdom

The “Musaned” platform was not merely a fleeting online portal, but rather a strategic national initiative to eliminate the chaos that previously plagued the recruitment sector. The platform functions as an integrated ecosystem connecting recruitment agencies, employers, and workers to ensure transparency and reliability. These recent measures are of paramount importance both domestically and internationally, as they contribute to raising the Kingdom’s ranking in labor rights and wage protection indices, thereby enhancing the attractiveness of the Saudi market for skilled labor.

Securing domestic worker contracts: Dates and details

In a pivotal step that became effective on February 1, 2024, the Ministry launched the "Insurance for New Domestic Worker Contracts" service. This service aims to reduce the financial risks associated with the recruitment process and operates according to the following mechanism:

• Mandatory: Insurance service is mandatory for new domestic worker recruitment contracts for the first two years from the start of the contract.
• Optional: Insurance becomes optional for the employer after the first two years (upon contract renewal).

Insurance benefits and compensation

The insurance covers a wide range of situations that previously constituted a financial and legal burden, and compensation includes the following cases:

1. Employer compensation:

• Recruitment expenses in cases of (runaway, absence from work, refusal to work).
• Death or total disability of the worker, or his contraction of chronic diseases that prevent him from performing.
• Expenses for repatriating the body and personal belongings in the event of the worker's death.

2. Domestic worker compensation:

• Cases of total permanent disability or partial disability resulting from an accident.
• Compensation for delayed salaries and financial entitlements in the event of the employer's (total or partial) incapacity or death.

Labor rights and salary transfer mechanism

To ensure the stability of the contractual relationship, the Ministry, through “Musaned”, stressed the need to adhere to workers’ rights, which include:

• The worker is granted a weekly day off, and daily rest hours of no less than 8 consecutive hours.
• The worker has the right to keep his passport and personal documents.
• Obtaining paid sick leave (30 days) based on a medical report, and monthly leave after renewing the contract for two additional years with a travel ticket.

Steps to transfer salaries via digital wallets

The salary transfer service is part of the “Wage Protection” program, and can be completed through the following steps:

1. Create an account for the worker through one of the approved transfer channels on the Musaned platform.
2. Make sure there is a phone number registered in the worker's name and linked to his residence number.
3. Select the “Domestic Worker Salaries” service from the menu.
4. Log in to the employer's bank account or digital wallet and specify the employee's name to transfer the salary directly.

The Musaned platform also allows the worker to view the employment contract with complete transparency, submit and follow up on complaints, thus closing the door to any violations and achieving prompt justice for both parties to the contract.