Generally speaking, it can take 3 to 6 months to enforce a straightforward, unopposed foreign arbitration award.
It is extremely difficult to provide an approximate time to enforce a foreign arbitration award that is being opposed because it would depend on several factors such as the factual background, complexity of legal issues used to oppose, and so forth.
Court fees are minimal in Saudi Arabia. Legal fees would vary significantly depending on whether travel is necessary to attend hearings, duration of the proceeding, availability of enforceable assets, and complexity of underlying issues.
The cost would depend on several factors, including the complexity of the issues, the level of opposition.
Saudi courts will not enforce arbitration awards that are contrary to Sharia (Islamic law) or public policy.
Award of interest is prohibited under Sharia, and thus unenforceable. An award of interest is, however, severable and does not invalidate the enforcement of other portions of the award. The list of matters that would be deemed to contravene public policy is not well-defined and individual judges may reach conflicting results in similar cases. However, from our experience, enforcement judges tend to enforce an award unless it contravenes a fundamental principle of Sharia.