Saudi Arabia

Starting a Business in

Saudi Arabia

Listed below is a detailed summary of the bureaucratic and legal hurdles an entrepreneur must overcome in order to incorporate and register a new firm, along with their associated time and set-up costs.  It examines the procedures, time and cost involved in launching a commercial or industrial firm with up to 50 employees and start-up capital of 10 times the economy's per-capita gross national income (GNI).

The information appearing on this page was collected as part of the Doing Business project, which measures and compares regulations relevant to the life cycle of a small- to medium-sized domestic business in 183 economies. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2011.

  • Standardized Company

  • Legal Form: Limited Liability Company
  • City: Riyadh

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No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 Register at the Unified Registry/ Ministry of Commerce and Industry

The applicant completes all required forms and submits them to the new one-stop Unified Office at the Ministry of Commerce in Riyadh. The Unified Office includes representatives from: Companies Department, Commercial Names Department, Commercial Registration Department, Chamber of Commerce, Private Bank, Publication Office, Notary Public, Department of Zakat and Income Tax (DZIT), General Organization of Social Insurance (GOSI). In addition, the Company registration with the Chamber of Commerce is done through the Chamber of Commerce desk at the MoCI.
-The registration fees for LCC is SAR 1200 as stated in the Council of Minister's resolution No.163 dated 23/6/1429 (16/6/2008) and SAR for 2,100 Chamber of Commerce fee. The requirement to publish summary Articles of Association in the Official Gazette cost SR 1500-3000, depending on the length.
5 days SAR 1200 registration fee + SAR 2,100 Chamber of Commerce fee+ SAR 500 publication of summary AOA
* 2 Open bank account


1 day (simultaneous with previous procedure) no charge
* 3 Founders sign the articles of association before a notary public

A notary is located at the Unified Center. It may take a few days to arrange the appointment.
1 day no charge
* Takes place simultaneously with another procedure.
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