Saudi Arabia has distinct regulatory frameworks: for the public sector and for the private sector. How BIMCO defines “holiday” BIMCO follows a long-established legal definition derived from a 1979 London arbitration award. Under this, a “holiday” is any day formally declared or decreed as such by a competent authority, irrespective of whether work is actually carried out. For the purposes of laytime, the decisive factor is therefore the declaration, not operational practice. This is where the uncertainty occurs for holidays in Saudi Arabia, and we are receiving an increasing number of enquiries about what constitutes a holiday for laytime and demurrage purposes. We have updated our Laytime Guide with the details. If you are a BIMCO member, you can log in to access the guide, which is in our Contractual Advice library. BIMCO Laytime Guide (member login required)