The Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA) (earlier known as GAZT) is the tax regulating authority in Saudi Arabia (SA). In 2020, ZATCA announced implementing e-invoicing in two phases. Accordingly, it implemented phase 1 of e-invoicing from 4th December 2021.
After that, ZATCA is set to implement phase 2 of e-invoicing from 1st January 2023. It clarified that phase 2 would be implemented in waves by dividing applicable taxpayers into targeted taxpayer groups and will notify them six months before their wave.
Accordingly, ZATCA announced the below waves:
Wave Number | VAT Turnover Criterial | Effective date |
Wave 1 under phase 2 | More than 3 billion in 2021 | 1st January 2023 |
Wave 2 under phase 2 | More than SAR 500 million and less than SAR 3 billion in 2021 | 1st July 2023 |
Wave 3 under phase 2 | More than SAR 250 million and less than SAR 500 million in 2021 or 2022 | 1st October 2023 |
Wave 4 under phase 2 | More than SAR 150 million and less than SAR 250 million in 2021 or 2022 | 1st November 2023 |
Wave 5 under phase 2 | More than SAR 100 million and less than SAR 150 million in 2021 or 2022 | 1st December 2023 |
Wave 6 under phase 2 | More than SAR 70 million and less than SAR 100 million in 2021 or 2022 | 1st January 2024 |
Wave 7 under phase 2 | More than SAR 50 million and less than SAR 70 million in 2021 or 2022 | 1st Febraury 2024 |
Wave 8 under phase 2 | More than SAR 40 million and less than SAR 50 million in 2021 or 2022 | 1st March 2024 |
Also, ZATCA issued e-invoicing guidelines for giving more understanding to taxpayers and smoothly implementing e-invoicing in Saudi Arabia.
The simplified guidelines for e-invoicing aim to provide taxpayers with a non-technical overview of the e-invoicing implementation in SA. It also contains requirements to facilitate their readiness for phase 1, i.e., the generation phase and phase 2, i.e., the integration phase.
The detailed e-invoicing guidelines contain requirements for e-Invoicing (Fatoorah) and technical and security requirements for taxpayers and e-invoicing solution providers. Also, it includes detailed technical requirements such as invoice specifications, security specifications and the data dictionary.
This guideline provides more information and the impact of e-invoicing on certain transactions, scenarios and industries. Also, this guideline contains several examples of various invoices to be issued based on the types of transactions.
This guideline addresses all persons covered by Article (3) of the e-Invoicing Regulation, i.e.,
Also, this guideline gives an understanding of the end-to-end taxpayer journey on e-invoicing, obligations, and the solution requirements to comply with e-invoicing regulations.
The e-invoicing detailed technical guideline includes the technical requirements for the e-invoicing solutions. Also, after reading this guideline, you should be able to:
This guideline guides users to understand the taxpayer’s journey in onboarding their e-Invoice Generation Solution (EGS) units and monitoring their compliance with the e-invoicing regulations.
This guideline covers the following specific processes and functionalities:
This document is intended to be used by taxpayers and other persons such as service providers and EGS providers conducting e-invoicing activities on behalf of taxpayers.
The fatoora portal user manual explains how to: