VAT Registration Thresholds (ZATCA)

The short answer

Per the June 2026 baseline, the mandatory VAT registration threshold in Saudi Arabia is SAR 375,000 of taxable supplies over a 12-month period, and the voluntary threshold is SAR 187,500. Registration is filed on the ZATCA portal at no fee, and the standard VAT rate is 15%. Non-resident entities providing digital services to Saudi consumers face a zero threshold and must register from their first taxable transaction. Fees and thresholds change with subsequent decisions.

3 min read

Saudi Arabia applies a standard Value Added Tax rate of 15%, administered by the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA). For a new establishment, the first question is not whether VAT exists but when registration becomes mandatory — and the answer turns on specific numeric thresholds for taxable supplies. This page sets out the thresholds, steps, and connected obligations as stated in the sources, as part of the business section on Hala Law.

Registration thresholds: when mandatory, when voluntary?

Threshold	Value	Effect
Mandatory threshold	SAR 375,000	Exceeding it in taxable supplies over 12 months triggers mandatory registration
Voluntary threshold	SAR 187,500	Allows voluntary registration before reaching the mandatory line
Non-residents (digital services)	Zero threshold	Registration required from the first taxable transaction, under deemed supplier rules

The threshold is measured against taxable supplies over a 12-month trailing or forward period — an establishment projecting that it will cross the line within the next twelve months is also within scope. The thresholds above are ZATCA's registration service page figures; fees and thresholds change by subsequent decisions.

Required documents

The registration application needs:

Financial records validating actual or projected taxable supplies over a 12-month trailing or forward period.
The commercial registration — if you do not yet hold one, see issue a commercial registration.
The establishment's corporate IBAN details.

Registration steps: the portal sequence

Access the ZATCA portal (zatca.gov.sa) and file the core VAT registration application.
Attach the financial records, commercial registration data, and IBAN details.
Receive the registration certificate. ZATCA publishes no processing time for this step in the sources we checked, so we state none.
Where integration applies: complete the technical linkage through the Fatoora developer portal to connect billing systems to ZATCA's systems.

The steps above reflect the last verification as of June 2026; labels and names may change as the platforms are updated.

E-invoicing: Phase 2 and the waves

Registration alone is no longer the end of the obligation. Phase 2 of the Fatoora e-invoicing initiative — the integration phase — is rolled out in waves by targeted taxpayer group, and ZATCA notifies each taxpayer of their wave at least six months in advance. The two most recently announced waves as of July 2026: Wave 24 covers establishments whose VAT-taxable revenues exceeded SAR 375,000 during 2022, 2023 or 2024 — the qualifying years matter, and a business that first crossed the threshold later is not in it — with integration due no later than 30 June 2026, a deadline that has already passed; Wave 25 covers revenues above SAR 187,500 during 2022 through 2025, with integration due no later than 1 February 2027. Integration means the establishment's billing and ERP systems connect directly to ZATCA's servers, giving the authority real-time visibility into commercial transactions — typically weeks of software development and testing, unlike the portal registration itself, for which ZATCA publishes no issuance time.

E-store owners and non-residents

Businesses selling online are subject to the same thresholds, and this track pairs with verifying the storefront itself — see e-store registration. Non-resident entities providing digital services to Saudi consumers face a zero threshold: registration is required from the first taxable transaction, applying the deemed supplier rules.

Fees

ZATCA's registration service page lists registration through the portal as free of charge — SAR 0; fees and thresholds change by subsequent decisions. The real cost of compliance sits in preparing accounting and invoicing systems, not in government fees.

When do you need a licensed lawyer or advisor?

The information above is a general framework, not an assessment of any specific case. The source classifies this transaction as one requiring a tax or accounting firm, because questions such as:

distinguishing zero-rated from exempt supplies,
calculating input VAT reclaims,
and the highly technical API requirements of Fatoora Phase 2 integration,

turn on the establishment's specific activity and records. Where a disagreement arises with the authority over supply classification or penalties, the position becomes a matter of facts and documents best presented by a licensed specialist, not a single general rule.

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Frequently asked questions

What is the mandatory VAT registration threshold?

ZATCA's registration service page puts the mandatory threshold at SAR 375,000 of taxable supplies over a 12-month trailing or forward period. Fees and thresholds change by subsequent decisions.

What is the voluntary registration threshold?

ZATCA's registration service page puts the voluntary threshold at SAR 187,500, allowing smaller establishments to register before reaching the mandatory line. Thresholds change by subsequent decisions.

How much does VAT registration cost?

ZATCA's registration service page lists registration through the portal as free of charge — SAR 0. The real cost of compliance sits in preparing accounting and e-invoicing systems.

I am a non-resident digital services provider — does the threshold apply to me?

Non-resident entities providing digital services to Saudi consumers face a zero-riyal threshold: they must register from their first taxable transaction, applying the deemed supplier rules.

What is Phase 2 of e-invoicing (Fatoora)?

Phase 2 is the integration phase: businesses link their billing systems to ZATCA's Fatoora system. It is rolled out **in waves by targeted taxpayer group**, and **ZATCA notifies a taxpayer of their wave at least six months in advance** — it is not left to the business to watch for. The two most recently announced waves as of July 2026: **Wave 24**, VAT-taxable revenues above SAR 375,000 **during 2022, 2023 or 2024**, integration due **no later than 30 June 2026** — a deadline that has already passed; and **Wave 25**, revenues above SAR 187,500 during 2022 through 2025, integration due **no later than 1 February 2027**.

How long does certificate issuance take?

ZATCA publishes no standard issuance time for the registration certificate, so we state none. The technical integration for Phase 2 e-invoicing is a separate and larger effort that can require weeks of software development and testing.

Official sources

Source	Article / reference	As of
E-invoicing roll-out phases — Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority	Phase 2 (Integration) is rolled out in waves by targeted taxpayer group, and ZATCA notifies taxpayers of their wave at least six months in advance	2026-07-26
VAT Registration — Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA)	Official registration service page: the mandatory registration threshold is SAR 375,000 in annual taxable supplies and the voluntary threshold SAR 187,500, with registration through the portal free of charge	2026-07-26
ZATCA news — criteria for Wave 24 of the E-invoicing Integration Phase	Wave 24 includes all taxpayers whose revenues subject to VAT exceeded SAR 375,000 during 2022, 2023 or 2024; ZATCA will notify all targeted taxpayers in Wave 24 to integrate their e-invoicing solutions with the Fatoora platform by no later than 30 June 2026	2026-07-27
ZATCA news — criteria for Wave 25 of the E-invoicing Integration Phase	Wave 25 includes all taxpayers whose revenues subject to VAT exceeded SAR 187,500 during 2022, 2023, 2024 or 2025; ZATCA will notify all targeted taxpayers in Wave 25 to integrate their e-invoicing solutions with the Fatoora platform by no later than 1 February 2027	2026-07-27

Change log

2026-07-27Completed on this locale the attribution correction yesterday's entry recorded but which only reached the Arabic page: five statements still credited a date — the June 2026 baseline — instead of ZATCA, and a lowercase per-the-sources survived the sweep. All now name the authority. Updated the e-invoicing waves from ZATCA's own announcements, added to the sources: Wave 24's integration deadline of 30 June 2026 has passed, and Wave 25 — revenues above SAR 187,500 during 2022 through 2025 — is due no later than 1 February 2027. Withdrew the commonly-reported-as-a-few-business-days issuance duration, which hung a figure on an unnamed reporter in the same sentence that says ZATCA publishes none, and the within-days claim in the body that contradicted the steps section's pledge to state none.
2026-07-26Replaced the unnamed collective attribution with an explicit one: the SAR 375,000 and 187,500 thresholds and the absence of a registration fee are now attributed to ZATCA's registration service page already cited here, and both thresholds were verified as present on it. Withdrew the 1-to-5-business-day certificate issuance time, since ZATCA publishes no standard duration for it.
2026-07-26Replaced a consultancy compliance guide with ZATCA's own roll-out-phases page, and corrected the Wave 24 criterion: the test is VAT-taxable revenues exceeding SAR 375,000 during 2022, 2023 or 2024, not simply being VAT-registered today, so a business that first crossed the threshold later is not in this wave. Added the fact the page most needed and did not have: Phase 2 is rolled out in waves by targeted taxpayer group and ZATCA notifies each taxpayer of their wave at least six months in advance, so the deadline is not something a business must self-police.
2026-07-06First edition

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