Sourced · dated 2026-09-16
What it costs to set up a company in Saudi Arabia
Every figure here comes from the ministry that charges it, with a link and the date we opened that page. Where a ministry publishes no amount, this site says so instead of filling the gap with a number.
The short version. The Ministry of Commerce side of a standard LLC comes to SAR 2,155 with an Arabic trade name, or SAR 2,455 with an English one, VAT included. The Ministry of Investment's own investor guide gives no registration fee: the amount is set by the ministry on approval, payable within 15 business days in one section of the guide and 30 days in another.
The fee schedule, tile by tile
These are the amounts the ministries publish for a company set up under an investment registration. Everything else a consultant charges is service, not government fee.
The Ministry of Commerce lists 15% VAT with the establishment and publication fees. The company is established within 72 hours once your investment certificate is valid for at least 30 days.
Add up your setup fees
Four choices. It adds up published fees only, and names the items no ministry prices.
Published government fees, first year
SAR 2,155
- Trade name reservation
- SAR 200
- Company establishment fee
- SAR 1,200
- Publication fee
- SAR 500
- VAT at 15%
- SAR 255
- From year two, each year
- SAR 1,200
Work licences and expat levy for foreign staff, per year (2)
SAR 17,000 to SAR 18,400
The lower figure uses SAR 700 a month per worker where foreign staff do not outnumber Saudi staff; the higher one uses SAR 800 a month where they do. Both add the SAR 100 a year work licence. The ministry's table prints the higher annual amount as SAR 9,100 a year, so that is the figure used. Source: Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development, rules for calculating the financial equivalent of work licences (PDF)
Section 5.1.1 of the investor guide sets minimum capital, a minimum Saudi share or extra conditions only for the activity types it lists.
Activity table: Ministry of Investment, Investor Guide (PDF, section 5.1.1)
Items no official page prices
- The Ministry of Investment's investor guide says the investment registration fee is determined by the ministry when it approves the application, and it publishes no fixed amount. Ministry of Investment, Investor Guide (PDF, section 3.1.1)
- The annual registration update with the Ministry of Investment carries a fee the ministry determines on approval; the guide publishes no amount. Ministry of Investment, Investor Guide (PDF, section 3.2.1)
Per foreign employee, ask for these in writing
- Residence permit (Iqama) issuance. Ministry of Investment, Investor Guide (PDF, services 04.02.04 and 04.02.07)
- Social insurance contribution. General Organization for Social Insurance, Social Insurance Law
- Medical report and health insurance. Ministry of Investment, Investor Guide (PDF, service 04.02.04)
A total of fees published as at 2026-09-16, not a quote. It leaves out consultant fees, translation, attestation and premises.
Three things to check before you pay
A fixed MISA fee
If a quote carries a fixed annual investment licence fee, ask which page it comes from. The ministry's guide says the amount is set by the ministry on approval. The updated Investment Law replaced licensing procedures with a registration mechanism.
How much must a Saudi partner own?
This is the first Saudization question, and it has nothing to do with hiring. Most activities are open to full foreign ownership; a few set a floor for the Saudi share of the company itself. Communications sits highest at 40%.
The second Saudization question, the Saudi share of your payroll, is set separately by the labour ministry through activity-specific localization decisions. It also decides your levy rate: SAR 700 a month per foreign worker where foreign staff do not outnumber Saudi staff, SAR 800 a month where they do.
Show the numbers
| Activity | Minimum Saudi share |
|---|---|
| Trading with a Saudi partner | 25% |
| Professional activities with a Saudi partner | 25% |
| Supportive communications activities | 30% |
| Communications activities | 40% |
Guides
- What MISA charges in 2026 Investment registration
The ministry's own investor guide prints no registration fee. It sets the amount on approval, gives two different payment deadlines, and explains why older fixed figures no longer describe the system.
- Commercial registration fees, line by line Commercial registration
The establishment fee for each company type, the publication fee, VAT, and a trade name that costs more in English than in Arabic, with a worked example for a first-time investor.
- Minimum capital for a foreign-owned company Ownership rules
Trading is the expensive door, and the capital figure is only the start of it. The ministry table also attaches a five-year investment commitment, training targets and market-presence tests.
- Iqama, work permit and expat levy costs Staff and visas
The labour ministry does publish the monthly levy and the work licence fee. What it costs per foreign employee, why the annual table does not add up, and which lines still have no official price.
- Saudization: ownership rules and payroll rules Staff and visas
Two separate things get called Saudization. One is the Saudi share of your company, fixed per activity. The other is the Saudi share of your payroll, and it now drives your levy bill too.
- GOSI for employers: which branch covers whom Staff and visas
Social insurance splits into branches, and nationality decides which ones apply. GOSI's public law pages describe who is covered, but print no contribution rate.
- What a Saudi company costs to keep each year Running costs
The annual confirmation repeats your establishment fee every year, per registration. Add the ministry update, the levy on foreign staff and the small fees that pile up in a busy year.
- How long company setup takes Process
Published service times at MISA and Commerce are short. What decides the calendar is document attestation, the payment window after approval and the certificate that must not run out.
- Setup consultant quote checklist Buying advice
How to split a proposal into government fees and service fees, the questions that expose a padded line, and what a good consultant is worth paying for.
- VAT registration for a new Saudi company Tax
What the VAT Law itself says about who must register, the fines ZATCA publishes for getting it wrong, and the questions to settle before your first invoice.
- Regional headquarters (RHQ) requirements Investment registration
The RHQ registration is its own category with its own obligations: start dates for its activities, a minimum headcount with senior executives, and a ban on ordinary trading income.
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