The Protection from Abuse Law issued by royal decree covers all forms of domestic violence: physical, verbal, psychological, and even economic, and guarantees the harmed party the right to report and receive immediate protection. The domestic violence reporting center (unified number 1919) fully guarantees the reporter's confidentiality, an essential guarantee to encourage victims to report without fear of social consequences.
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Social protection units and the Public Prosecution conduct an immediate investigation, summoning parties and hearing their statements in complete confidentiality. In critical cases, the Prosecution issues an urgent order temporarily stopping the abuser pending investigation, and social protection units' authority may extend to entering the home in coordination with police if immediately rescuing the victim requires it.
The basic penalty is imprisonment from one month to a year and a fine from SAR 5,000 to 50,000, doubling on repeat offense. If the abuse is combined with aggravating circumstances (abuse of people with disabilities, the elderly, or a pregnant woman where the abuse caused her to lose her pregnancy, or committed by someone responsible for enforcing the law), the penalty rises to one to five years and a fine from SAR 50,000 to 300,000.
The law allows combining the criminal track with the Sharia track in a single file: issuing immediate protection orders (no-approach orders, removing the abuser from the family home), alongside the possibility of transferring custody, and marriage annulment for abuse, while fully preserving the victim's financial rights (dowry, maintenance, arrears). This combination saves the victim from filing multiple separate lawsuits to achieve comprehensive protection.
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