Saudi Arabia

Social security contributions

Social insurance contributions are paid monthly based on the monthly basic salary plus housing (paid or in kind) with an upper limit of SAR 45,000, are computed at 2% for non-Saudi employees (note that this is not social insurance, it is occupational hazard), and are paid by the employer. For Saudi employees, the rate is 21.5% and is paid by both the employee (9.75% = 9% social insurance + 0.75% unemployment insurance [SANED]) and the employer (11.75% = 9% social insurance + 2% occupational hazard + 0.75% unemployment insurance [SANED]).

Consumption taxes

There is no consumption tax system in Saudi Arabia.

Net wealth/worth taxes

There are no net wealth/worth taxes in Saudi Arabia.

Inheritance, estate, and gift taxes

There are no inheritance, estate, or gift taxes in Saudi Arabia.

Property taxes

There are no property taxes in Saudi Arabia. However, there is white land tax (WLT).

White land tax (WLT)

Pursuant to Royal Decree No. M/4 dated 24 November 2015 and to Council of Ministers Decision No. 377 dated 13 June 2016, the White Land Tax Law and its implementing regulations (the 'WLT law') were issued.

The Ministry of Housing (MOH) has been mandated to enforce and implement the WLT law.

Under the WLT law, owners of urban vacant land (also referred to as 'unexploited land or undeveloped land') designated for residential or commercial use will have to pay an annual tax of 2.5% on the market value of the land.

Taxable lands

Article 8 of the implementing regulation states that the following conditions should be met for the land to qualify to be subject to WLT:

• the land must be vacant
• the land must be within the limits of the urban boundary
• the land must be allocated for residential or commercial use according to the approved plan issued by the concerned authority, and
• the land must lie within the category of lands subject to application of tax according to the provision of article (6) of the regulation.

'Vacant land shall mean a land that is not developed for its purposes in accordance with the relevant laws and regulations applicable at the time of announcement'.

Luxury and excise taxes

There are no luxury taxes in Saudi Arabia. For excise taxes, please refer to the Other taxes section in the Corporate tax summary.