HomeReady-to-use templates and contractsFormation and governanceBasic Governance Policy
Basic Governance Policy: A Ready Template Certified by a Licensed Saudi Lawyer
- Category
- Formation and governance
- Language
- Arabic + English
- Format
- Editable DOCX
CERTIFICATION RECORD
This template was prepared and reviewed by a licensed Saudi lawyer and is kept current as the Kingdom's regulations change.
Where an Arabic and an English text exist, the Arabic text prevails
A short policy fixing the governing body, its meeting cadence, financial reporting, approval limits, and the split of responsibilities, bilingual.
Governance is not the preserve of large companies, and in a small business it is not a thick manual but a few pages answering everyday questions: who meets and when, which financial report is produced and how often, which decision needs a higher approval, and who is responsible for what. The absence of those answers does not show on a quiet day; it shows at the first contested decision or the first outside review. Sighaty template F-10 is a short policy you can actually apply, built on your own answers rather than on large-company boilerplate, in two parallel languages with the Arabic text prevailing on any difference.
Get the Basic Governance Policy TemplateF-10What this policy is and when you need it
The policy is an internal document that turns unwritten habits into stated rules: the governing body and its name, how often it meets, when financial reports are prepared and whether they are reviewed, where executive approval ends and a higher approval begins, how deviations from the approved budget are treated, and who carries which responsibility. Its practical value is that it shortens the argument: instead of negotiating the process every time, the process is written down and known in advance.
- A business that has grown so decisions pass through more than one person with no written rules.
- An incoming partner or investor asking about the management and reporting mechanism.
- Preparing for an outside review, or organizing the relationship between owners and management.
What the smart-fill asks and what you receive
The smart-fill here is deliberately short, because the policy itself is short. It asks for the governing body you adopt and what it is called in your company, how often it meets, and how often the financial statements are prepared and whether they are reviewed or audited where that is required or agreed.
It then asks for the financial limit above which a higher approval is required, the deviation from the approved annual budget beyond which approval must be obtained, the responsibilities and how they are assigned to roles in your business, and how often reports are submitted to the governing body. You set these figures and roles to suit your size, so the policy comes out matching your reality rather than another company's.
Within minutes you receive a formatted bilingual Word document, ready for approval and editable before signature, with a policy short enough to actually circulate and read in full in minutes. You move from implicit arrangements only the founder knows to written rules everyone shares.
Why a lawyer-certified template beats a free download
Free governance policies have the opposite problem: they are not deficient but excessive. Dozens of pages, committees, and oversight layers that do not exist in a business of a few people, so the policy is adopted and then ignored because it cannot be applied, and an ignored policy is worse than none because it puts a written breach on record. The Sighaty template is certified by a licensed Saudi lawyer and written to the scale of a small or medium business: few rules that are actually followed, consistent with the Companies Law, and updated as regulations change.
Frequently asked questions
Does a small business need a governance policy at all?
Governance exists in every business whether written or not; the difference is that the unwritten kind changes with whoever is in the room. Putting it in a few pages settles arguments about process, makes it easier for a new partner or employee to come in, and shows discipline to a bank or an investor. The template is designed to stay short so that it stays applicable.
Does the policy conflict with the articles of association or the shareholders agreement?
No, and it ranks below them. The articles of association and the shareholders agreement set the authority between the owners, while the policy organizes daily operations inside those limits: meetings, reports, approvals, and responsibilities. When setting the figures and roles in the policy, keep them consistent with what the partners agreed and with the manager's authority matrix.
Must the business's financial statements be audited?
The template drafts this flexibly: the statements are prepared at the cadence you set, and reviewed or audited where that is required by regulation, agreed by the partners, or stipulated by a party such as a bank or an investor. What applies to your business specifically depends on its form and activity, and the policy follows what you decide without assuming an obligation that does not apply to you.
The content is general guidance, not legal advice; consult a licensed lawyer for your specific case.