Maroof Is Gone: How to Authenticate Your Store on the Saudi Business Center

Looking for Maroof? It's gone, because in March 2023 the Ministry of Commerce moved e-store authentication to the Saudi Business Center's Business Platform.

The new process is free and fully online, and you need a valid CR (commercial registration) or Freelance Document, plus a commercial bank account linked to it.

Get it done and your store carries the state's own seal, which any shopper can check in seconds.

Below you'll find who needs it, the exact steps, where to show the certificate and how to avoid the usual rejections.

What happened to Maroof?

Maroof was the Ministry's free store-verification site, launched in 2016. Its job moved to the Business Platform at business.sa, which is now the only approved platform for e-store authentication.

Many shoppers still say "Maroof" out of habit, but quite a lot has changed:

Since September 2023, the 1900 line and the Balagh Tijari app have handled complaints about authenticated stores. So shoppers know a real channel stands behind your badge.

Do you need to authenticate your store?

If you run your own online store from inside Saudi Arabia, yes. The E-Commerce Regulations say authenticated sellers must display the certificate, and both Salla and Zid walk you through the process.

Here's who needs it and who doesn't:

• CR holders with their own store. Yes, so authenticate once the store is live and added to your CR.
• Freelance Document holders. Yes, if you sell from your own site within your approved activity.
• Marketplace-only sellers. No, because noon and Amazon.sa check your CR at registration.
• Foreign sellers without a Saudi entity. You can't apply, but the notes below show your options.

There's a bonus, too: authenticated sellers can leave their name and address off their adverts.

What you need before you apply

Gather these first, and the application takes one sitting:

• A valid document in your name. A CR or Freelance Document that hasn't expired.
• A commercial bank account linked to that document. A personal account won't pass.
• An IBAN certificate downloaded from your bank's app, in the same name and ID as the document.
• A working store link. Your own domain or a platform subdomain, not a social media page.
• Domain ownership. You'll prove it with a DNS TXT record, a meta tag or a file on your site.
• Matching products. Everything you sell must fit the activity on your CR or Freelance Document.
• Store basics. Your CR number, privacy policy, returns policy, shipping terms and contact details, visible on the site.
• Nafath access. An active Absher account, and you must be 18 or over.

If your brand is registered, have the trademark certificate ready. If not, you'll sign a pledge not to infringe anyone else's mark.

How to authenticate your store, step by step

The flow is the same whether you're on Salla, Zid or Shopify:

1

Log in to the Business Platform

Go to business.sa and sign in through Nafath with your Absher details.

2

Open the authentication service

Under Doing Business, choose the Saudi Business Center, then E-commerce Authentication, then New Request.

3

Pick your document

Choose CR or Freelance Document, select the right one and accept the terms.

4

Add store and contact details

Enter the store name, store link, phone, email and any social accounts as contact channels.

5

Add your bank account

Select the bank and enter the IBAN of the commercial account linked to your document.

6

Verify your domain

Copy the code the platform gives you and add it as a TXT record in your domain's DNS settings. Then return and click verify.

7

Submit and track

Submit the request and track it on the platform until the certificate is issued.

On Zid, the TXT record lives under Settings, then Store, then the store URL. Root-file verification isn't supported there, so use DNS.

Building on Shopify? Add the TXT record wherever your domain is managed. Our Shopify GCC setup guide covers domains and payments for Saudi stores.

Show the certificate on your store

Your certificate shows your store name, certificate number and CR or Freelance Document number. Shoppers use that number to check you.

Put it where Saudi shoppers look:

• Footer. The Business Platform logo with your certificate number, on every page.
• About page. The certificate number next to your CR and VAT numbers.
• Platform settings. On Zid, add the number under Store Identity. Salla has a similar field.

Remove the old Maroof badge

An old Maroof logo now points to a dead service. Swap it for the Business Platform logo and number, and check your theme files, email footers and invoice templates too. A Saudi-ready product page needs the same clean-up.

Why requests get rejected, and how to fix them

Most rejections are paperwork mismatches. Each one has a quick fix:

For example, picture a Jeddah abaya brand on Zid applying with the owner's personal IBAN. The request bounces.

The owner opens a business account under the CR, exports the IBAN certificate from the bank app and resubmits. The certificate arrives on the second try.

Renewing and updating your certificate

Your certificate is valid for as long as your CR or Freelance Document is. When you renew the document, log in to the Business Platform and renew the certificate too.

Changed your address, store link or bank? Update the record within 30 days, as the E-Commerce Regulations require. Our Saudi E-Commerce Law guide covers the other ongoing duties.

Notes for Freelance Document holders

The Freelance Document is free and issued to Saudi citizens through freelance.sa. It works for authentication, but only within approved activities:

• Services and home-made goods. Approved activities include design, IT and app development, handicrafts and productive families.
• Not general retail. Reselling imported goods needs a CR.

Gateways such as Moyasar accept it, but noon no longer accepts freelance certificates for new sellers. Compare both routes in Freelance Document vs CR.

Notes for non-Saudi sellers

Authentication needs a Saudi CR or Freelance Document, so a company abroad can't apply directly.

• Living in the Kingdom? Register with MISA, get your own CR, then authenticate. Start with Saudi business registration.
• Selling from abroad? Show your home company details and lean on marketplaces until you open a Saudi entity.
• Never borrow a Saudi's CR or document. That's concealment (tasattur), with fines up to SAR 5 million.

Notes for marketplace sellers

Selling only on noon or Amazon.sa? You don't need your own certificate. Both check your CR at sign-up, and the platform's brand carries the trust.

Authenticate when you add your own Salla, Zid or Shopify store. It's free, so do it the week you launch.

Your authentication checklist

Once you're authenticated, finish the rest of your trust signals for Saudi shoppers.