Succession Commission Law

The Succession Commission Law is a governmental law in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia responsible for pledging allegiance to the king and selecting the crown prince, in accordance with its articles and the Basic Law of Governance. Established in 2006, the law's Implementing Regulations were issued in 2007.

The Succession Commission Law stipulates that the members of the Succession Commission are appointed by Royal Order. These members are the sons of the Founding King Abdulaziz Bin Abdulrahman Al Saud and a son of every deceased, declining, or incapacitated (as per a medical report) appointed by the King from among the sons of the Founding King Abdulaziz, provided that he is known for his righteousness and competence.

The King also appoints two members, one from among his sons and the other from the sons of the Crown Prince, provided that they are known for their righteousness and competence. If the place of any member of the Succession Commission becomes vacant, the King appoints a substitute.

The Succession Commission must adhere to the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him (PBUH), maintain the state’s entity, uphold the solidarity and cooperation of the royal family, and guard against its dissension, and preserve national unity and the interests of the people.

The Succession Commission is headquartered in Riyadh City and conducts its meetings in strict secrecy at the Royal Court. With the King's consent, these meetings may also take place at any of the Royal Court’s locations within the Kingdom or at any other site designated by the King. Attendees are limited to the Chairman of the commission, the Secretary General, its members, and the individual responsible for recording the proceedings. All members of the Succession Council are required to attend unless a valid reason arises, in which case they must notify the chairman. A meeting is only considered official if at least two-thirds of the members, including the chairman or his representative, are present. Members may not leave before the meeting concludes without the chairman’s permission.

As per the law, the Succession Commission is presided over by the eldest member of the sons of the Founding King Abdulaziz Bin Abdulrahman Al Saud and he is represented by the second eldest of his brothers, and in their absence, the meeting is presided over by the eldest of the sons of the sons in the commission.

The chairman of the meeting opens meetings and announces their end, controls discussions, gives permission to talk, determines the topic of discussion, ends discussions, and puts issues for voting.

The King appoints a secretary general for the commission who is responsible for convening the commission, supervising the drafting of minutes and resolutions, and releasing information relating to its meetings in accordance with the decisions of the chairman of the commission. The King appoints a deputy for the secretary general to carry out the duties of the secretary general in his absence.

The law stipulates that commission members peruse the agenda and enclosures at the place of the meeting, but are not entitled to take the documents of the commission outside the place of meeting. Moreover, voting related to the commission's resolutions is conducted by secret ballot.

Minutes are prepared for each meeting to record the following information: place of the meeting, date of the meeting, time of opening the meeting, name of the meeting chairman, names of members present, names of members absent and reasons for absence, if any, name of secretary general, summary of discussions, number of consenting and dissenting votes, result of voting, texts of the resolutions, matters related to postponement or suspension of the meeting, and the time at which the meeting ended. The minutes are signed by the chairman of the meeting, attending members, and the secretary general.

The commission’s chairman, members, and secretary general take the following oath before the King and prior to assuming their duties in the commission: “I swear to Allah Almighty to be loyal to my religion, then to my king and country. I swear not to reveal any of the state’s secrets, to protect its interests and laws, to safeguard the solidarity and cooperation of the royal family and national unity, and to discharge my duties with honesty, integrity, sincerity, and fairness.”

The Succession Commission Law stipulates that upon the king’s death, the Succession Commission calls for the pledge of allegiance to the crown prince as king of the country in accordance with this law and the Basic Law of Governance. After receiving the pledge of allegiance and after consultation with members of the Succession Commission, the king nominates one, two, or three candidates from among those he deems fit to be crown prince. Such nomination is brought before the commission, which exerts effort to agree on one nominee to be named crown prince.

In case the commission does not nominate any of them, then it nominates whomever it deems fit to be crown prince. The king may at any time ask the commission to nominate whom it deems fit to be crown prince. In case the king does not approve the commission’s nominee, the commission must vote on its nominee and another chosen by the king, and the one with the majority of votes is named crown prince. The crown prince is chosen within a period not exceeding thirty days from the date of the pledge of allegiance to the King.

The commission forms a provisional council for governance from five of its members. The council runs the state’s affairs temporarily, in case the king and his crown prince are incapable of exercising their powers for health reasons, whether temporarily or permanently, or in case of the death of both the king and the crown prince at the same time

However, the provisional council does not have the power to amend the Basic Law of Governance, the Succession Commission Law, the Law of the Council of Ministers, the Law of the Shura Council, the Law of Provinces, the Law of the National Security Council, or any other law relating to governance, nor to dissolve or reconstitute the Council of Ministers or the Shura Council. The council must, during the transitional period, safeguard the unity of the state, its internal and external interests, and its laws.