Search Site

Trends banner

TikTok’s US future uncertain

It must find non-Chinese owner to avoid ban.

Tesla Q1 sales sink 13 percent

The dip occurred amid lower production during factory upgrades.

AD Ports Group 2024 revenue $4.70bn

The Group's EBITDA increased by 69 percent YOY.

Tesla sales tumble in Europe in Q1

The company suffered from boycotts against the policies of Elon Musk.

Ford’s US Q1 auto sales dip

But its Q1 figures exceed a forecast by Edmunds

Saudi e-invoicing scheme to come into force in three months

  • The shadow economy costs the Kingdom up to $107 billion annually
  • Under the new regulation, buyers and sellers will have a digitized system that allows the smooth exchange and processing of invoices, credit notes, and debit notes

Saudi Arabia’s e-invoicing project, Fatoorah, will come into force in a little under three months, according to Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA).

The project is seen as having major benefits for the Saudi economy, including addressing commercial concealment and the “shadow economy,” which costs the Kingdom up to SR400 billion ($107 billion) annually.

Under the new regulation, buyers and sellers will have a digitized system that allows the smooth exchange and processing of invoices, credit notes, and debit notes.

“It is expected that the project will have a tangible impact on the national economy by curtailing the shadow economy and tackling commercial concealment,” Saudi financial analyst Talat Zaki Hafiz said.

Project manager Abdullah Al-Funtukh said the e-invoicing scheme will be implemented in two phases, with the first one set to happen on Dec. 4 this year.

“The first phase entails generating and storing tax invoices and notes through compliant electronic systems containing the required tax data-fields,” he said.

The next phase will focus on integrating taxpayers into the system, allowing them to access relevant e-invoicing services, Al-Funtukh said.

“ZATCA aims to provide the taxpayers a non-technical overview of the e-invoicing (Fatoorah) and the requirements to facilitate their readiness for phase one,” he added.

The project is in line with an earlier government announcement to better regulate commercial transactions in the Kingdom, introducing strict penalties for violators.

But Hafiz said the scheme also has other benefits for businesses.

“E-invoicing also shortens payment cycles, improves accounts reconciliation, enhances compliance, and cuts the amount of physical storage space required,” he said.

It will also support fair competition in the small to medium enterprises (SME) sector.