e-Invoice in Saudi Arabia
The Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA) introduced the Fatoora e-Invoicing framework for a nationwide mandate to digitize invoicing, improve tax compliance, and combat VAT fraud. Previously, a draft law was opened to public consultation in April. ZATCA introduced changes to the draft law and released this resolution considering the comments made by the business community.
Is e-invoicing in Saudi Arabia mandatory? Who is obliged?
E-invoices have been mandatory since 4 December 2021 in Saudi Arabia. The resolution imposes KSA e-invoicing on resident taxpayers and third parties acting on behalf of them. All tax invoices (B2B invoices), simplified tax invoices (B2C invoices), and debit/credit notes are under scope.
How does the e-invoicing in KSA work?
Saudi Arabia’s e-invoicing regulation is implemented through the Fatoora platform in two phases.
The first phase introduced mandatory electronic invoice generation and archiving on 4 December 2021. E-invoice software in Saudi Arabia must be able to generate all invoices and associated notes in electronic format. E-invoices must contain the mandatory fields defined by the tax authority and comply with all business and validation rules. Tax invoices must contain the buyer’s VAT registration number (if registered). Simplified tax invoices must include a QR code so that individuals can verify the invoice by scanning it with a mobile device.
The second phase, known as the Integration Phase, started on 1 January 2023 and continues to be rolled out gradually through multiple waves announced by ZATCA. Taxpayers are notified by ZATCA at least six months before their mandatory integration date.
The implementation scope continues to expand as the annual VAT revenue threshold is gradually reduced, bringing additional taxpayer groups into scope.
All invoices issued shall be transmitted to the e-invoice portal within the timeframes specified by ZATCA according to the applicable invoice type.
Taxpayers must apply certain security features on invoices such as a Cryptographic Stamp (electronic signature), Hash, UUID, and QR Code where applicable.
How can SNI KSA e-invoicing solution help you?
SNI provides an end-to-end Saudi Arabia e-Invoicing solution that enables businesses to comply with the requirements established by the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA).
Our solution supports the complete invoice lifecycle, including invoice creation, data extraction, mapping, XML generation, validation, cryptographic stamping, transmission, monitoring, reconciliation, and long-term archiving.
SNI solution can automatically create and send electronic invoices to the tax authority and trade partners. It exports e-invoices to local storage for mandatory archiving.
SNI solution can generate invoices in the required format defined by the tax authority.
For outbound invoices, SNI securely transmits invoice data through the official ZATCA APIs while automatically monitoring validation responses, government acknowledgements, clearance results where applicable, and document status updates.
For inbound invoice processing, SNI supports the automated retrieval and processing of structured electronic invoice data, enabling seamless integration with ERP systems and downstream financial processes.
All inbound invoices are displayed in SNI’s Inbound Cockpit, providing centralized monitoring, invoice status tracking, structured XML visualization, and human-readable HTML/PDF rendering.
SNI’s invoice reconciliation functionality automatically matches incoming invoices with purchase orders, delivery notes, or other ERP documents. This significantly reduces manual effort, improves processing accuracy, minimizes errors, and accelerates invoice approval and financial processing workflows.
SNI solution integrates with clients’ systems without the need for updates to existing system versions and is independent of SAP versions. SNI’s SAP solution is compatible with SAP ECC 4.7 and higher, SAP ERP, SAP S/4HANA, and SAP Business Technology Platform (SAP BTP). In addition, SNI provides ERP-independent solutions designed to integrate with any ERP system clients may use.
With continuous monitoring of regulatory developments published by ZATCA, SNI ensures that customers remain aligned with the latest Fatoora requirements, technical specification updates, and compliance obligations while minimizing implementation effort and operational risk.