Mandate information

The Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA), formerly known as the General Authority of Zakat and Tax (GAZT) serves as the primary regulatory body in Saudi Arabia responsible for overseeing customs and tax matters. On December 4, 2020 ZATCA officially approved e-invoicing through the release of the E-Invoicing Regulation, enforcing resident taxpayers to issue and store electronic invoices by December 4, 2021 (phase one). On May 28, 2021, ZATCA published the final guidelines of the controls, requirements, technical specifications and procedural rules for implementing the provisions of the E-Invoicing Regulation.

The E-Invoicing Regulation should be considered in conjunction with the Unified VAT Agreement (the Agreement), the VAT Law published on 4/11/1438H and its amendments (the VAT Law), the VAT Implementing Regulation (VAT Implementing Regulation) and the resolutions stemming from the Electronic Invoicing Regulation, which includes the resolution on the Controls, Requirements, Technical Specifications and Procedural Rules.

The aim of the initiative is to digitalise the issuing of paper invoices, credit and debit notes into a structured electronic format between the buyer and the seller, whilst providing greater visibility and controls for reducing the VAT gap in Saudi Arabia.

Phase One - Generation Phase

Phase one launched December 4 2021 and involves the following considerations:

• Involves the generation of electronic invoices, debit and credit notes.
• XML generation is optional.
• Electronic invoices must contain the mandatory fields defined by ZATCA.
• The cryptographic stamp, hash and UUID are all also optional features.
• Integrating with ZATCA systems is not possible. Instead, invoices are issued by the supplier to the buyer.

Phase Two - Integration Phase

Phase two launched January 1 2023 and involves the following considerations:

• Involves the generation of tax invoices, debit and credit notes in a structured XML format.
• UBL 2.1 is the approved syntax.
• Electronic invoices must conform with the KSA CIUS which is based on the EN 16931.
• Integrate billing software with ZATCA’s FATOORA e-invoicing platform.
• The cryptographic stamp, hash and UUID are mandatory features.
• The cleared invoice is returned from FATOORA to the billing software to send to the buyer.
• Continuous roll-out based on taxpayer turnover.
• Target groups will receive notifications at least six months in advance.

Details

Restrictions

• Vertex e-Invoicing does not support B2C in Saudi Arabia.

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