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KSA Business Setup FAQs

Business Setup in Saudi Arabia, one of the largest business hub among GCC countries, is the best option to grow your business power or enhance your business. And you all may be confused about the procedures and the steps for KSA business setup – SAGIA. So many question may disturb you if you start to plan for it. Here is the solution for this. Go through the frequently asked questions for business setup in KSA.

How can I start a business in SAGIA Saudi Arabia?
You can set up your branch company in SAGIA if only you have an established existing company with more than one year old.
The Saudi General Investment Authority provides a range of legal forms for companies in Saudi Arabia from which investors can choose. Legal forms in Saudi Arabia are:
  • Limited Liability Companies
  • Foreign Company Branch
  • Joint Stock Companies (JSC)
  • Public Partnership
  • Office of Technical and Scientific Services
  • Foundation
  • Regional Headquarters
The structure of the company and the requirements of paid capital will vary depending on the business activity and legal form.
Concerning trading activity, the corporate regulations in Saudi necessitate that business owners show their proof of capital of 30 million in one of the Saudi banks, and it can be utilized in trading. Also, the regulation necessitates providing three (existing) branch licenses from three different regions.
The representative office does not demand capital proof. Therefore, you can set up a representative office that requires the business owner to trade their goods through a distributor. Business Link will provide you with a distribution service.
Yes, it’s possible
This type of legal entity is possible when the partners on the trade license are two or more foreign companies or foreign companies with Saudi national or Saudi national with GCC national individual or corporate entity.
The entity type will be LLC. The KSA license regulation requires the name of the local partner to be mentioned in the license as a 100% shareholder and the actual investor as a manager. Once the manager becomes a KSA resident upon getting his residence visa stamped on the passport, he will get the entitlement to run the business including bank account transactions. The rights of the actual business owners can be protected through a side agreement where it will be mentioned that the company is owned by the (actual investor) and local will act as a service provider with a yearly fee.
No, foreign investors can enter the KSA market only by establishing a branch of their existing business, or they should come under GCC or Saudi national sponsorship.
Yes, it will remain the same as the above legal entity (Branch of a Foreign company). For the industrial license, industrial land or warehouse should be rented out to meet the business requirement. Industrial licenses will require additional approval from different government entities like municipalities, civil defense, and police. Business Link team will handle all the SAGIA approvals on your behalf.

The person who intends to obtain an Industrial license must be a holder of an already existing license that is one year old.
To comply with this first requirement of holding an existing license, you must register the industrial license in the Ministry of Economy following the necessary approval from SAGIA.
After the registration in the Ministry of Economy, the owner will choose his preferred location to have his factory built, whether it be a land or warehouse. This process requires numerous approvals, from the Municipality, Civil defiance, and police to ensure the product manufacturing process.
You can choose either to import your raw materials from outside KSA after getting approval from the Ministry of Economics to import, or you can buy from the local market if available. Once the final product is ready to trade, you can start distributing it in KSA Market through local distributors.
The company should be occupied by 20% Saudi nationals When it comes to manpower. This rule applies to other activities as well.
Business Link team of experts can assist you throughout the KSA business setup including hiring your candidates, finding a warehouse, staff accommodation, and transportation.

Yes, it’s mandatory. We can provide you with numerous options to have this requirement fulfilled. We can provide a virtual office, an actual office, or a business centre. We also provide P.O. Box no for bank account opening requirements.
Some business activity restrictions apply to foreigners. Restricted business activities include consulting (non-applicable to certain management consulting activities) medical, military sector, recruitment, oil exploration, drilling and production, and real estate investment in Makkah and Madina.
It will take up to 10 to 15 working days to complete all the formalities from the day we receive all the required original documents.

Please note that all the below documents must be translated into Arabic and attested from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Saudi Consulate.

  • Company registration certificate (License)
  • Memorandum of association
  • A Year audit report
  • Shareholders’ passports copy plus national ID
  • Board of directors
  • Appointed Manager passport copy
  • Power of attorney to business link team in KSA
The investment for establishing a Saudi entity will vary according to the license type, shareholding structure, and business activities. For a free no commitment consultation for Saudi business setup, contact us via email at info@businesslink.sa or call +966 54 568 1491 UAE +971 50 205 2735 and a member of our team will guide you on the options available, processes, and investment criteria.
  • Provide legal advice and answer all client’s inquiries during the process.
  • Ensure the correct legal type and business activity according to the information provided by the client.
  • Provide all original notarized documents to SAGIA for the final license.
  • Draft and notaries Memorandum of Association for LLC Company.
  • Provide local address plus P.O.BOX.
  • Pay all fees to get the final business license.
  • Get the Commercial Registration Certificate.
  • Get a Chamber of Commerce Certificate.
  • Register the company in the Ministry of Labor.
  • Register the company with the Tax Authority (Zakat).
  • Register the company social insurance (GOSI).
  • Assist in opening a Bank Account.
  • If the number of employees in the company is less than 5, you may pay via cash or bank cheque.
  • If the number of employees in the company is more than 5, you may pay via bank transfer from the company account to the employee account to reflect in the WPS (Workers Protection System) portal.
  • Office rent, if applicable fit out plus transportation.
  • Operation cost.
  • Staff benefits as per the offer letter and labour law.
  • Social insurance of each staff must be paid monthly, 21.5% for Saudi locals and 2% for non-Saudi employees.
  • VAT – Every three months if your company is registered. For more info information visit the General Authority for Zakat and Tax.
  • End of the year company’s net profit tax is 20%.
  • License Renewal
At Business Link we are providing complete guidance for business setup in Saudi Arabia without any delay. You can get a free consultation from our consultants that gives you a clear understanding about the procedures and cost of setting up a company. Please feel free to contact us.

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Business Link UAE was established in 1999, with the aim to help individuals of all ages achieve their entrepreneurial dreams.

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Office #304, Al Mas Tower, Al Olaya, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
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