Working Hours and Overtime in Sudan

In Sudan, your company must comply with working hour and overtime laws – including daily limits, overtime thresholds, and rest requirements – to stay compliant and build a strong employee experience.

As regulations continue to evolve toward 2026, employers should expect closer scrutiny of working-time records, overtime practices, and rest-period arrangements. You should maintain clear written policies, accurate timekeeping systems, and transparent payslips that distinguish normal hours from overtime and show how premiums are calculated. Proactively reviewing schedules, shift patterns, and on-call arrangements will help you adapt to any new guidance or amendments while safeguarding employee wellbeing and productivity.

• Standard Working Hours
• Overtime Thresholds
• Overtime Pay Rates
• Daily And Weekly Rest Requirements
• Night Work Restrictions
• Penalties For Non-Compliance

What Are The Standard Working Hours In Sudan?

An employee whose age is 15 or younger has a maximum of 6 hours per day and 36 hours per week. An employee whose age is 16 or older is allowed to work 48 hours per week. A minimum meal interval of 30 minutes must be observed by employees who work more than 5 consecutive hours in a day. In typical working hours, Monday through Friday, the hours are 8:00 to 16:00.

Maximum Working Hours In Sudan

Under Sudanese labour practice, the standard limit for adult employees is generally 8 hours per day and 48 hours per week, excluding unpaid meal breaks. Employers should structure work schedules so that daily hours do not regularly exceed this threshold, except where overtime is lawfully authorized and properly compensated. Working time includes all periods during which the employee is at the employer’s disposal and performing duties, whether on the employer’s premises, at a client site, or remotely.

Employers should also monitor weekly totals carefully. Even when daily hours appear reasonable, irregular scheduling, split shifts, or frequent weekend work can push employees beyond the weekly ceiling. Where shift systems are used, you should ensure that the average weekly hours over the reference period do not exceed 48 hours and that employees still receive the required daily and weekly rest.

Industry-Specific Exceptions

• Continuous Process Industries – Such As Oil, Energy, And Certain Manufacturing
• Healthcare Services – Hospitals, Clinics, And Emergency Medical Units
• Hospitality And Tourism – Hotels, Restaurants, And Catering
• Transport And Logistics – Road Transport, Aviation, And Port Operations
• Agriculture And Seasonal Work – Harvesting And Peak Farming Periods

Managerial And Exempt Employees

Senior managers and employees in positions of trust often have broader flexibility in their working hours. While they are generally covered by core health and safety protections, they may not be subject to the same strict tracking of daily hours as rank-and-file staff. Employers sometimes agree on output-based or responsibility-based arrangements for such roles, but you should still define expected working patterns in the employment contract and avoid excessive workloads that could compromise health or performance.

Even where local practice treats certain managerial staff as exempt from some working-time rules, it is prudent to maintain internal policies on reasonable limits, rest periods, and time off in lieu. Clear documentation of expectations, availability outside normal hours, and any additional compensation or benefits for extended availability helps reduce disputes and demonstrates good-faith compliance.

Statutory Full-Time Working Hours In Sudan

Full-time employment in Sudan is typically based on a 48-hour workweek for adult employees, usually spread over six 8-hour days or five slightly longer days depending on the sector and internal policy. When designing full-time roles, employers should align contractual hours with this standard, specify normal working days and start–end times, and indicate how work on rest days or public holidays will be handled.

Part-time and flexible arrangements should be expressed as a proportion of the full-time schedule, with clear rules on when additional hours become overtime. Written contracts, accurate timekeeping systems, and transparent communication with employees are essential to demonstrate that full-time hours remain within legal limits and that any deviations are properly authorized and compensated.

Overtime Regulations In Sudan

What Counts As Overtime In Sudan?

In Sudan, overtime generally refers to any working time performed by an employee in excess of the standard daily or weekly limits established for their role, typically more than 8 hours per day or 48 hours per week for adult employees. Overtime can arise from extended shifts, work performed before or after the normal schedule, work on weekly rest days, or work on public holidays.

For overtime to be lawful, it should be requested or approved by the employer, recorded accurately, and not used as a routine substitute for proper staffing. Employers should implement clear policies that define when overtime is permitted, how employees request or are assigned overtime, and how such hours are tracked and compensated. Unrecorded or informal extra hours still count as working time and may expose the employer to back-pay claims.

Maximum Overtime In Sudan

Sudanese labour practice generally expects overtime to be exceptional and limited so that total working hours do not endanger employee health or safety. Employers should avoid scheduling patterns that regularly push employees far beyond the 48-hour weekly standard. As a good-governance benchmark, many employers cap overtime at a modest number of hours per week and per month, and require managerial approval for any excess.

When business needs require extended hours – for example, during peak seasons, urgent repairs, or emergencies – you should rotate overtime among qualified staff where possible, ensure that employees still receive minimum daily and weekly rest, and provide additional rest or time off in lieu if workloads remain high over several weeks. Documenting the reasons for exceptional overtime and the measures taken to mitigate fatigue is advisable from a compliance and risk-management perspective.

Overtime Payout Rates In Sudan

Overtime work in Sudan is typically compensated at a premium above the employee’s normal hourly rate. Common practice is to pay a higher rate for hours worked beyond the standard daily or weekly limits, with even higher premiums for work performed at night, on weekly rest days, or on public holidays. The exact rates and conditions should be clearly set out in employment contracts, collective agreements, or internal policies, provided they meet or exceed any statutory minimums.

To calculate overtime pay, employers should first determine the employee’s regular hourly rate based on their basic wage and any regularly paid allowances that are treated as part of normal remuneration. Overtime premiums are then applied to this rate for each qualifying hour. Transparent payslips that itemize normal hours, overtime hours, applicable rates, and total overtime pay help employees understand their compensation and reduce disputes, while also providing evidence of compliance in the event of an inspection or audit.

Rest Periods And Breaks In Sudan

In Sudan, employees typically work around 8 hours per day and 48 hours per week, and rest periods and breaks are designed to protect their health within these limits. Employers must ensure that workers receive at least one meal break when they work more than a set number of consecutive hours, as well as sufficient daily and weekly rest between shifts. Proper scheduling of breaks, rest days, and recovery time is essential to keep total working hours within legal boundaries and to prevent fatigue, especially where overtime or shift work is involved.

• Meal Break Requirements
• Daily Rest
• Weekly Rest
• Minors
• Employer Duties