Saudi VAT for Ecommerce Sellers: Register, Price and File

Saudi online stores charge 15% VAT on what they sell. Once your sales pass SAR 375,000 a year, you register with ZATCA, the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority.

That's a sign you're winning. Saudi ecommerce registrations grew 23% in the year to mid-2026. Crossing the VAT line means your store has joined the serious end of that market.

The good news? Saudi VAT is simple once it's set up. You'll learn when to register, how to price, what you can deduct, and how a real quarterly return adds up.

How does VAT work for an online store?

VAT (value added tax) is a tax on consumer spending. Each business in the chain charges it and passes it on, and the shopper carries the cost.

For your store, that means two flows:

• Output VAT. The 15% inside each price you charge customers. You collect it and pay it to ZATCA.
• Input VAT. The 15% you pay on business costs, like imported stock and platform fees. You deduct it from your output VAT.

You only pay ZATCA the difference. Saudi Arabia has charged 15% since July 2020, and it applies to nearly every product an online store sells.

When must you register for Saudi VAT?

Register once your taxable sales pass SAR 375,000 in 12 months. The test looks backwards and forwards, so sales you expect over the coming year count too.

Here's how the thresholds work:

• Mandatory: above SAR 375,000. Check your rolling total at each month-end. Apply within 30 days of the end of the month you cross it.
• Voluntary: above SAR 187,500. You can opt in if your taxable sales or your taxable expenses pass this amount.
• Below SAR 187,500. You can't register yet.

Exempt sales and sales of your own capital assets don't count toward the total. Everything a normal store sells does.

Is voluntary registration worth it? Often, yes. It lets you deduct VAT on stock and fees from day one, and you'll need a VAT number for many B2B buyers.

How to register with ZATCA

Registration is online and free. You need your CR (commercial registration, your Saudi business licence) and access to the ZATCA portal.

1

Total your taxable sales

Add up the last 12 months across your store, marketplaces and offline sales, plus what you expect in the next 12.

2

Log in to the ZATCA portal

Sign in on zatca.gov.sa with your business account. Open General Services, then VAT Registration.

3

Fill in the form

Enter your legal name, CR number, address, email, annual sales or expenses and your effective date.

4

Answer any follow-up

ZATCA may ask for supporting documents. You get at least 20 days to reply.

5

Download your VAT certificate

Add your VAT number to your store settings, invoices and marketplace accounts.

6

Switch on e-invoicing

Issue every invoice from a ZATCA-compliant system from your first taxable sale.

Prefer someone else to handle it? Compare VAT and tax advisors in Saudi Arabia.

How should you show VAT in your prices?

Saudi shoppers expect the shelf price to be the final price. So every price on your store, listings and ads should already include VAT.

To find the VAT inside a price, multiply by 15 and divide by 115. A SAR 115 product holds SAR 15 of VAT.

Price from the number you want on the page, then work back to your net revenue. Switch on "prices include tax" in your platform once you're registered. See the setting for each platform in VAT-inclusive pricing.

What input VAT can you deduct?

Most of the VAT you pay to run your store comes back as a deduction. The costs that usually matter most:

• Import VAT. 15% of the CIF value (goods, freight and insurance) plus duty and customs fees, paid at clearance. It's deductible if your business is the importer on the declaration.
• Marketplace fees. Noon and Amazon.sa add VAT to their commissions and fulfilment fees.
• Payment gateway fees. Gateways charge VAT on top of their per-order fee.
• 3PL, couriers and software. Saudi warehouses, delivery partners and local apps add VAT too.

You need a valid tax invoice or customs declaration for every claim. Download marketplace and gateway fee invoices monthly, so nothing goes missing at return time.

How do you file and pay VAT returns?

Most online stores file quarterly. Monthly returns only apply once annual taxable sales pass SAR 40 million.

Each return and payment is due by the last day of the month after the period:

You file on the ZATCA portal. The return shows your sales, your output VAT, your deductible input VAT and the net amount to pay.

Worked example: a Riyadh store's Q4 return

A Riyadh homeware brand sells on its own Salla store and on noon. This quarter it imports one shipment from China into its Riyadh 3PL.

The deductions cut the bill from SAR 30,000 to under SAR 18,000. Without the customs declaration in the company's name, it would lose the biggest one.

Try your own prices. Add or extract VAT and check your registration status:

E-invoicing and your store platform

Every VAT-registered Saudi business must issue e-invoices that meet ZATCA's Fatoora rules. Your store platform does most of this for you, but only on the right plan.

The next deadline is close. Stores that passed SAR 187,500 of taxable sales in any earlier year must connect their invoicing directly to Fatoora by February 2027.

Budget for the upgrade the month you register. Compare plans in Salla pricing, and read the deadlines in ZATCA e-invoicing.

What are the penalties, and is there a waiver?

Failing to register on time costs SAR 10,000. Late filing adds 5–25% of the tax due, and late payment 5% for each month it's overdue.

Here's the opportunity. ZATCA has extended its penalty waiver scheme to 31 December 2026. It only covers returns due by 30 June 2026, so if you should have registered earlier, register and settle what you owe now to get many of those fines cancelled.

Notes for marketplace sellers

• You're the seller, so the 15% inside each marketplace price is yours to report.
• Upload your VAT certificate to each Seller Central or noon account as soon as you have it.

Notes for importers

• Once you file monthly and import every month, you can apply to pay import VAT through your return instead of at the port. You need a year of on-time filing first.
• Use your own CR and importer code on the declaration, so the credit stays with you.
• Ship stock in? Plan the paperwork with importing to Saudi Arabia.

For rates across the Gulf, see GCC VAT rates, or browse all Saudi Arabia regulations.