Saudi Arabia Tax for Expats (2026): Income Tax, Zakat, VAT

Who the Income Tax Law applies to

ZATCA's Income Tax page says the provisions of the Income Tax Law apply to resident capital companies with respect to the shares owned by non-Saudi partners, whether such partners are natural or legal persons, resident or non-resident. It says the provisions of the Law also apply to non-resident persons, natural or legal, Saudi or non-Saudi, who conduct business activities in Saudi Arabia through a permanent establishment, or who derive income from sources within Saudi Arabia. Its Transfer Pricing Guidelines (Third Edition November 2021) list, among those the Income Tax Law also applies to, a resident non-Saudi natural person who conducts business in the KSA. The Income Tax page defines taxable activity broadly, including commercial, industrial and service activities, banking, investments and leasing of property. It says this does not include opening bank accounts, or trading shares listed on the Saudi Capital Market by a resident natural person.

zatca.gov.sa: Income Tax zatca.gov.sa: Transfer Pricing Guidelines (Third Edition)

Residence tests: 30 days and 183 days

ZATCA's withholding guideline (Second Version | May 2026) says a natural person is a resident for a Zakat year if the person has a permanent dwelling in the Kingdom and resides there for a total of no less than 30 days in the Zakat year, or resides in the Kingdom for no less than 183 days. The Zakat regulations say 30 days with a permanent residence in the Kingdom and 183 days without one, whether consecutive or aggregated.

zatca.gov.sa: General Guideline for Withholding Tax (Second Version) zatca.gov.sa: Implementing Regulations for Zakat Collection

Counting days and the Tax Residency Certificate

For their 30-day and 183-day residence tests, the Zakat regulations also say presence in the Kingdom for a part of a day is deemed presence for a full day, but a person may not be considered physically present for a full day during transit in the Kingdom for a day or a part of it between two destinations outside the Kingdom. ZATCA's Tax Residency Certificate e-service for individuals mentions the Saudi Income Tax Law and agreements to avoid double taxation, and lists a valid passport, proof of residency and an Employment Verification Letter.

zatca.gov.sa: Implementing Regulations for Zakat Collection zatca.gov.sa: Tax Residency Certificate for Individuals

Visiting expatriates and employment

In its withholding guideline, ZATCA asks whether amounts paid to visiting expatriates, such as doctors or others performing temporary work in the Kingdom, fall under tax withholding. Its answer says amounts earned by visiting expatriates performing temporary work in the Kingdom are subject to income tax at 20% or tax withholding at 15%, depending on their residency status, unless such amounts arise from an employment relationship governed by applicable labor laws with all employment conditions met. This page draws no conclusion about how any salary is taxed.

zatca.gov.sa: General Guideline for Withholding Tax (Second Version)

Zakat and who counts as Saudi

ZATCA's Implementing Regulations for Zakat Collection (1445 H - (2024)) define a Saudi as a person holding the Saudi nationality and nationals of a member state of the Gulf Cooperation Council who are accorded similar treatment as Saudi nationals. They list among the persons subject to them a resident Saudi person who practices an activity under a license within the Kingdom, and also shares held by non-Saudi shareholders in resident companies listed in the Saudi Stock Exchange, except for the shares held by non-Saudi founders. Zakat is levied at 2.5% of the Zakat Base for a Hijri year. The regulations also say persons subject to the Income Tax Law are not subject to them.

zatca.gov.sa: Implementing Regulations for Zakat Collection

VAT: the 15% standard rate

ZATCA's guideline on professional services (Third Version | May 2026) says persons subject to VAT must impose tax at a rate of 15% (assuming the standard rate applies to those supplies), added to the final sale price. A guideline issued in April 2025 says VAT-registered individuals must charge VAT at a standard rate of 15%, where applicable. The 'About Vat' page describes the start of VAT on 1 January 2018 at a standard rate of 5%, while the two guidelines give 15%. The professional services guideline gives qualifying residential rent exempt from tax as an example of exempt supplies.

zatca.gov.sa: Guideline on Professional Services under VAT Provisions zatca.gov.sa: Guideline for Amendments to the Implementing Regulation of VAT zatca.gov.sa: About Vat

Withholding tax on payments to non-residents

ZATCA's withholding guideline says tax withholding obliges the withholding agent in the Kingdom who makes payments from a source in the Kingdom to a non-resident without a permanent establishment to withhold a percentage of the amount paid. It says tax is withheld in accordance with the rates specified for each type of income. Its rate table includes management fees 20%, royalties 15%, dividends 5%, rent 5%, loan charges 5%, insurance/reinsurance 5%, technical and consulting services 5%, land transport within the Kingdom 15% and any other payments 15%. The guideline also says amounts paid to non-residents by natural persons for personal use are not subject to Tax Withholding provisions. These rates concern payments to non-residents.

zatca.gov.sa: General Guideline for Withholding Tax (Second Version)

Social insurance (GOSI)

GOSI's Social Insurance Law page says the Occupational Hazards Branch is compulsorily applied to all workers without any discrimination as to sex, nationality or age, and the Annuities Branch to all Saudi workers. The same law excepts some workers from coverage in Article 5, including domestic servants and foreign workers who come to the Kingdom to engage in works which usually take no more than three months to complete. Article 5 also says domestic servants, among some other excepted categories, may be covered under the Law by decision of the Minister. It says the contribution for the Occupational Hazards Branch is fixed at 2% of the contributory wages and is payable by the employer.

beta.gosi.gov.sa: Social Insurance Law

GOSI's new law for new employees

A GOSI news item (last update 03-07-2024) says a New Social Insurance Law applies only to new employees with no prior contribution periods in the current laws, and gives 03/07/2024 G as the date it takes effect. The news item does not say whether the rules quoted above from the Social Insurance Law page apply to those new employees, and this page did not read the new law's contribution rules, so a person starting work in Saudi Arabia for the first time should check GOSI's pages for the rules that apply to them.

beta.gosi.gov.sa: Social Insurance Law gosi.gov.sa: Council of Ministers Approves New Social Insurance Law Applicable Exclusively to New Employees

What this page does not cover

This page does not cover how salaries from employment are taxed, the general income tax rate and filing, double tax agreements with other countries, customs duties, the real estate transaction tax, the Annuities Branch contribution for Saudi workers, VAT registration thresholds, the contribution rules of the new Social Insurance Law, or how any person's own residence status and income would be treated. Check the official pages for them.