Every Saudi government tender goes through one platform. If your company is not on it, you cannot bid.

Etimad is the Ministry of Finance's procurement platform. Ministries, authorities and government entities publish tenders on it, receive bids through it, award contracts on it and process invoices and payments through it. There is no side door.

Most people picture construction when they think of government tenders. The larger opportunity for international firms is in services:

1. Management and strategy consulting for ministries and authorities
2. Audit, accounting and tax advisory for government entities and their subsidiaries
3. IT, software, cybersecurity and digital transformation, now a large share of public spending
4. Feasibility studies, economic research and PPP structuring
5. HR, training and Saudization programmes
6. Engineering, PMO and specialised technical services

What it takes to be eligible

A Saudi commercial registration with the right activities, an Etimad supplier account, sector classification where required, and a compliant tax and GOSI standing. For large contracts, a Regional Headquarters in the Kingdom may also be needed, since government entities are now expected to favour companies with an RHQ.

What to do

Before you set up, list the tenders you want to win and work backwards: the ISIC activities on the CR, the classification grade, the RHQ question. Changing activities after incorporation takes weeks you will not have when a tender is open. Then track Etimad daily; opportunities close fast and the good ones are rarely advertised anywhere else.

This is the third note in a series on the platforms that decide who wins work in Saudi Arabia: Tawrid for supply-chain financing, MUSAHAMA for PIF's portfolio companies, and Etimad for government.

Sources: Etimad (etimad.sa), Ministry of Finance; author's practice.

150+ companies. One supplier gateway. Most international businesses have never heard of it.

MUSAHAMA is PIF's Local Content Growth Program, and the MUSAHAMA Platform is the single hub where PIF and its 150-plus portfolio companies discover and connect with suppliers.

That portfolio is where much of the Kingdom's transformation is being built: ROSHN, Red Sea Global, Qiddiya, Diriyah, NEOM, ACWA Power, Saudi Electricity, stc, Ma'aden, Ceer and many more.

How it works

1. A supplier registers once on the platform, instead of repeating the process with every company.
2. Suppliers are matched to portfolio companies by product category and local-content performance, so the right buyers see them.
3. Portfolio companies use it to find high-performing local suppliers, which is exactly what PIF's local-content policy pushes them to do.

Around it sits the Supplier Development Program, which offers financing and capability-building support to help suppliers grow into Tier 1 and Tier 2 roles.

Companies that set up correctly, with the right activities, classification and a local-content plan, get discovered. Companies that arrive as a foreign branch selling from abroad do not. Local-content scoring rewards Saudi hiring, local purchasing and local manufacturing, so the structure you choose on day one shapes your score for years.

Sources: PIF, MUSAHAMA Platform; author's practice.

Saudi Arabia keeps finding new ways to make it easier for businesses to grow here. The latest is Tawrid.

Tawrid is a supply-chain financing platform launched by PIF on 20 September under a SAMA sandbox permit. It connects buyers, suppliers and banks on one digital platform: a supplier holding an approved invoice from a registered buyer can settle it early with a partner bank, turning receivables into working capital on demand.

It has already signed binding agreements with SNB, GIB, Banque Saudi Fransi, ROSHN and Nesma & Partners, anchor buyers whose supply chains run through hundreds of SMEs and international subcontractors.

Why it matters if you are building a business here

1. Working capital is often the deciding factor when a growing company takes on a large contract. Faster access to liquidity makes the Kingdom's supply chains more attractive to join.
2. The benefit flows to registered suppliers. Being on the vendor list of a PIF portfolio company is now worth more than ever.
3. PIF's 2026–2030 strategy gives the private sector a larger role in its projects. Financing tools like this are how that role becomes practical.

Sources: PIF announcement, SAMA; author's practice.

Ceer's first vehicles are an ecosystem signal, not a car launch.

Saudi Arabia's automotive ambitions became more tangible with the launch of Ceer's first vehicles, the Exobot sedan and SUV. The Exobot is the beginning of a planned seven-model portfolio, with future models produced at Ceer's industrial complex in the King Salman Automotive Cluster at King Abdullah Economic City.

Ceer is expected to contribute more than SAR 30 billion to GDP and improve the trade balance by roughly SAR 80 billion by 2034, with direct and indirect jobs on top.

Why the launch matters beyond cars

When a country starts building its own automotive manufacturing, an entire ecosystem has to grow around it: components, engineering, manufacturing technology, automation, logistics, supply chains, maintenance and specialised industrial services. Each of those is a licence category and a local-content opportunity.

Practically: an industrial licence for component manufacturing takes longer than a service licence (land allocation through MODON or a Royal Commission city is on the critical path), so start the licensing before the first purchase order, not after.

Sources: Ceer, Saudi Press Agency; author's practice.

Saudi Arabia's digital infrastructure push is creating investment opportunities beyond technology providers.

Saudi Arabia is strengthening technology cooperation with Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar, with discussions covering digital infrastructure, telecommunications, AI and advanced technologies. For businesses looking at the Kingdom, this signals a growing focus on the capabilities needed for its digital economy.

Where the opportunities sit

• Data centres and cloud: demand for storage, cloud services and computing capacity for companies with infrastructure expertise and capital.
• Telecommunications and connectivity: network development and telecom infrastructure.
• AI and advanced technologies: AI, cybersecurity and automation specialists.
• Engineering and industrial support: digital infrastructure needs power, construction, engineering and specialised services, so the opportunity reaches well beyond the technology sector.

For businesses with relevant expertise, investment capacity and the right local partnerships, that is an argument for a long-term presence: an RHQ or an operating subsidiary rather than a distributor.

Sources: Saudi Press Agency; author's practice.

The Ministry of Industry wants industrial ideas to become companies.

The Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, with Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University, has launched a two-week Industrial Ideas Development Program to help entrepreneurs turn industrial ideas into viable projects, with market assessment, feasibility development, industrial facility visits and support from SIDF Academy experts.

The significance goes beyond developing a product concept. Turning an idea into a business means understanding market demand, identifying potential customers and assessing whether the project can be commercially sustainable.

What a feasibility study has to prove here

• Market need: a genuine industrial customer requirement, ideally one a PIF portfolio company or Aramco supply chain is already buying from abroad.
• Commercial feasibility: unit economics after Saudization, energy and land costs, not before.
• Operations: the actual manufacturing process, machinery and compliance (SASO, SFDA where relevant).
• Funding path: SIDF loans and incubator endorsement for the entrepreneur licence, which foreign founders need.

Sources: Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, SIDF; author's practice.

Italy, Qatar, the UAE and the EU: Saudi Arabia as a base, not just a market.

Four agreements in a single month point the same way: Saudi Arabia is being positioned as the hub from which companies serve the Gulf and beyond.

Italy

The Federation of Saudi Chambers and Cassa Depositi e Prestiti signed an MoU to improve market access for businesses in both countries. Bilateral trade reached USD 12 billion in 2025; more than 100 Italian startups already operate in the Kingdom with around EUR 180 million deployed. Focus areas: infrastructure, telecoms, data centres, tourism and culture, with a planned digital business-matching platform for SMEs.

Qatar

Bilateral trade reached about USD 1.98 billion in 2025, up 36%, and grew a further 18% in the first quarter of 2026. The work now is on simplifying import and export procedures, supply chains, SME participation and making business establishment easier. More than 977 Saudi companies already operate in Qatar.

The UAE

An MoU on electricity grid interconnection and rail connectivity, with plans to extend the grid across the GCC. More efficient energy and freight networks make cross-border operations cheaper, which strengthens the case for treating Saudi Arabia and the UAE as complementary markets rather than alternatives.

The EU

The EU-GCC Summit in Riyadh on 24 October comes as the relationship moves from trade (EUR 165.7 billion in goods in 2025) toward investment, technology, AI, clean energy and resilient supply chains, with a proposed free trade agreement in the background.

Sources: Federation of Saudi Chambers, Saudi Press Agency, European Commission; author's practice.

Setting up a business in Saudi Arabia: the complete process.

Everything a foreign company needs to know before it files: the licence types, the documents, the four-step incorporation, the nine registrations that follow, and the tax and labour rules that shape the budget. Written from practice, not from the brochure.

1. Who can own a Saudi company

Since 2000 foreign investors have been able to own Saudi companies through the Ministry of Investment (MISA, formerly SAGIA). Three routes exist: a foreign subsidiary licensed by MISA, ownership through a Premium Residency (Premium Iqama) holder, and GCC-national ownership, which is treated like Saudi ownership. The first is the standard route for international companies.

2. Licence types

• Services licence: consulting, IT, engineering, most professional activities; the fastest and most common.
• Commercial (trading) licence: import, distribution, retail; 100% foreign ownership carries higher capital and track-record conditions.
• Industrial licence: manufacturing; paired with a Ministry of Industry licence and land from MODON or a Royal Commission city.
• Professional licence: regulated professions, usually with a Saudi professional partner.
• Real estate licence: development and related activities, with minimum project values.
• Entrepreneur licence: for founders with an endorsement from a recognised incubator, accelerator or university.
• Regional Headquarters (RHQ) licence: for multinationals making Saudi Arabia their regional base; brings tax incentives and priority in government contracting.

3. Documents for the MISA application

1. Company registration (trade licence) of the parent
2. Memorandum or articles of association
3. Last year's audited financial statements
4. Power of attorney
5. Owner and general manager details (passports, IDs)

The first four must be attested by the foreign ministry and the Saudi embassy in the parent company's home country, then translated into Arabic. This is usually the slowest step; start it first.

4. The incorporation flow

1. MISA application and licence issuance (1–3 weeks after a complete file)
2. Name reservation with the Ministry of Commerce
3. Articles of association studied, drafted and signed (notarised)
4. Commercial registration (CR) issued

5. Post-incorporation: the nine registrations

1. General manager appointment
2. GOSI (social insurance)
3. Chamber of Commerce membership
4. Mudad (wage protection)
5. MHRSD / Ministry of Labour file
6. ZATCA registration for zakat, tax and VAT
7. Muqeem (residency management)
8. National Address
9. Qiwa (labour contracts and work permits)

Then the bank account and the general manager's iqama, which together take the longest. Realistic total from first document to an operating company: 8 to 14 weeks.

6. Tax

• Corporate income tax: 20% on net income attributable to foreign shareholders (Saudi and GCC shareholders pay zakat instead).
• VAT: 15% on most supplies since 1 July 2020; e-invoicing (Fatoora) is mandatory and now in its integration phase.
• Withholding tax: 5% to 20% on service, interest, royalty and dividend payments to non-residents, depending on the nature of the payment and treaty position.
• Capital gains: 20%.
• Transfer pricing: by-laws in force since 2019; related-party dealings need documentation.

7. People

• Saudization (Nitaqat): a minimum share of Saudi employees by sector and company size; it decides how many work visas you get.
• GOSI: 21.5% contribution for Saudi nationals (employer and employee combined), lower for expatriates.
• Expat levy: SAR 800 per month per foreign employee where foreigners outnumber Saudis, and SAR 400 per dependant.
• Visas: employment visa leading to an iqama (one employer, up to two years); business visit visa for meetings; temporary work visa for contracts of three months or less; exit/re-entry visas extendable online via Absher or Muqeem.

8. What renews every year

MISA licence, commercial registration, Chamber certificate, National Address, Qiwa and Muqeem subscriptions, work permits, iqamas and medical insurance, plus quarterly VAT returns, the annual income tax return and the audit report. Missing one blocks the others; treat the renewal calendar as part of the setup.

Rates and rules are set by MISA, the Ministry of Commerce, ZATCA, MHRSD and GOSI and change from time to time; confirm current requirements before you commit. This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice.