Saudi Arabia company registration cost: every fee line and who is paid

There is no honest single figure for the Saudi Arabia company registration cost, because the largest government fee is not published as a number. The Ministry of Investment of Saudi Arabia (MISA) sets its registration fee only when it approves your file. What is published is the Ministry of Commerce fee for an LLC: SAR 1,200, plus SAR 500 publication fees, plus 15% VAT. This guide lists each fee line, who is paid, and what we cannot confirm yet.

It is written for Indian founders who budget in rupees as well as riyals. Every amount below carries its source and the date we checked it. Where we have no confirmed amount, the table says so instead of guessing.

Key takeaways

• The one confirmed official fee: LLC company registration, SAR 1,200, plus SAR 500 publication and 15% VAT (Ministry of Commerce service page, read on 14 October 2026).
• MISA’s registration fee and annual update fee are “determined by the ministry upon approval”. No figure is published, so ask for the current invoice before you budget.
• Chamber of Commerce, municipality, attestation, translation, visa, insurance and office costs have no published amount we can confirm.
• We show no total and no rupee figures. Any total today would be a guess.

Last reviewed: 14 October 2026. Reviewed by: not yet reviewed by a named expert (draft).

Saudi Arabia company registration cost: why there is no single total

A single total would hide three different kinds of cost.

1. Government fees. Paid to MISA, the Ministry of Commerce, ZATCA (the tax authority) and others. Some are published. The MISA fee is not.
2. Third-party costs. Attestation, certified translation, notarization, medical insurance and office space. Different providers charge different amounts, and the authorities do not set them.
3. Consultant fees. What a firm charges for its own work. This is not a government fee, and it varies by firm and scope.

Published cost guides give very different totals because they mix these three groups, cover different scope, and are written on different dates. The rules also moved. The 2025 Investment Law replaced the foreign-investment “license” with “investment registration” and an “annual update”. The commercial register now has an “annual confirmation” instead of a renewal. Older “license renewal” figures may describe a model that no longer applies (verify).

The fee lines, one by one

Amounts are in SAR, estimated unless marked as confirmed. Last reviewed: 14 October 2026. “(verify)” means the amount has been read from an official page but a named reviewer has not yet signed it off.

Fee line	Who is paid	Amount (SAR)	Source and date
MISA investment registration	MISA	Not published as a figure; set on approval	MISA Investor Guide, 13th edition, March 2026; read 14 October 2026
MISA annual registration update	MISA	Not published as a figure; set on approval	Same guide
Trade name reservation, Arabic name	Ministry of Commerce	200 (verify)	Ministry of Commerce service page; read 14 October 2026
Trade name reservation, English name	Ministry of Commerce	500 (verify)	Same page
LLC company registration under an investment license	Ministry of Commerce	1,200 + 500 publication + 15% VAT (confirmed)	Ministry of Commerce service page; read 14 October 2026
LLC annual confirmation of commercial register data	Ministry of Commerce	1,200 (verify)	Ministry of Commerce service page; read 14 October 2026
VAT registration	ZATCA	Free (verify)	ZATCA e-service page; read 14 October 2026
Chamber of Commerce membership	Chamber of Commerce (by city)	No official figure found; ask us	None found
Municipality (Balady) license	Municipality	No official figure found; ask us	None found
Document attestation	Embassy, ministries, agents	No official figure found; ask us	None found
Certified Arabic translation	Certified translators	No official figure found; ask us	None found
Notarization of the articles of association	Notary	No official figure found; ask us	None found
General Manager (GM) visa, Iqama, work permit	Government departments	No official figure found; ask us	None found
Medical insurance	Insurers	No official figure found; ask us	None found
National address and office	Landlord or business center	No official figure found; ask us	None found
Consultant service fee	The consultancy	Quote-based	Apex Arabia: no fixed price published

MISA investment registration and annual update

MISA’s Investor Guide says the registration fee and the annual update fee are “determined by the ministry upon approval”. You must pay within a set period after you are notified, or the registration is void. The guide’s wording on that deadline is not consistent between sections, so ask us for the deadline on your file (verify).

Consultancy websites quote several different MISA amounts, and some say the fee is suspended or waived. None of those figures comes from MISA, so we do not repeat them. Ask for the current invoice from the MISA portal before you budget this line. For the license types themselves, see our MISA licensing types page.

Company registration, publication fee and VAT

For an LLC, the Ministry of Commerce service page for company registration under an investment license lists SAR 1,200, SAR 500 in publication fees and 15% VAT. This is the one fee in this guide we treat as confirmed. The page does not itemize which charges the 15% VAT applies to, so confirm the exact invoice (verify). These are service-page fees only. They do not include the third-party costs in the table.

Annual confirmation: what replaced renewal

Many guides still say “commercial registration renewal”. The Ministry of Commerce pages now describe an annual confirmation of commercial register data. For an LLC the page lists SAR 1,200 (verify). We have not found an official effective date for the change (verify).

Costs with no published figure

Chamber of Commerce membership, the municipality license, attestation, translation, notarization, visa fees, medical insurance and office costs all depend on your city, activity, number of documents and providers. We found no official current schedule for them, and third-party ranges disagree widely. We have left them out rather than average them.

The same applies to capital. Some activities carry a minimum capital in MISA’s guide, and some service activities do not. That is a deposit you hold, not a fee. Read the capital rules for your activity before you plan, starting with our guide to business setup in Saudi Arabia from India.

Costs after registration

Registration is not the end of the spending. Plan for these recurring items, each of which needs a current figure from the relevant authority:

• Annual confirmation of the commercial register (the LLC line above).
• MISA annual update, with the fee set by MISA.
• Chamber of Commerce membership.
• GOSI (the social insurance authority) contributions once you hire. The GOSI employer FAQ lists 2% for non-Saudi employees under occupational hazards (verify). Its page is undated.
• Office, national address, insurance and payroll costs.

VAT registration with ZATCA is shown as free on the e-service page (verify). Thresholds and filing duties are a tax matter, so confirm them with a tax adviser.

Costs that start in India

Your documents are prepared in India before anything is filed in Saudi Arabia. That usually means notarization, government attestation or apostille, Saudi embassy or agent steps, certified translation and courier. We found no official fee for these, and rules on apostille versus embassy attestation are still being confirmed (verify). Ask for a quote based on your actual document list.

Budgeting in rupees. We show no rupee figures here. We have no confirmed official SAR amount for most lines and no dated exchange-rate source, and the rupee rate moves. When you convert, use the rate your bank applies on the day you pay, and treat any earlier conversion as an estimate. Moving money out of India has its own rules. Speak to an Indian chartered accountant before you remit funds.

How Apex Arabia payments work

The Complete Setup Package is quote-based. We do not publish a fixed price. Our payment schedule is staged: 50% at initiation, 45% at the MISA license, and 5% at completion. This is a payment schedule, not a price.

Government fees are paid directly by you and are not part of our service fee. Our quote excludes government fees, 15% VAT, translation fees, medical insurance, GM Iqama issuance fees and office lease costs. See our pricing page for the current package outline.

Common budgeting mistakes

• Adding up totals from different guides. They cover different scope, dates and currencies.
• Treating the Ministry of Commerce fee as the whole cost. It is one line.
• Budgeting a MISA figure from an old renewal article. The fee is set on approval.
• Forgetting recurring costs. Annual confirmation, MISA annual update, Chamber, address and insurance repeat each year.
• Fixing a rupee total too early. The rate and the fee list can both change.

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to register a company in Saudi Arabia?

We cannot give an honest single total. The one confirmed official line is the LLC company registration fee at the Ministry of Commerce: SAR 1,200, plus SAR 500 in publication fees and 15% VAT. The MISA fee is set on approval and not published as a figure. Chamber, municipality, attestation, translation, visa, insurance and office costs depend on your case and have no confirmed schedule. Ask for a scoped quote that separates government fees, third-party costs and consultant fees, with the date of each figure.

Does MISA charge a fee, and how much is it?

MISA’s Investor Guide, 13th edition (March 2026), says the registration fee and the annual update fee are determined by the ministry upon approval. It states no amount. Other websites give figures that disagree, and some say the fee is waived. We do not repeat them, because none comes from MISA. Before you budget, ask for the current invoice or fee notice from the MISA portal and note its date. The fee can only be known after approval.

What is the commercial registration fee for an LLC?

The Ministry of Commerce service page for company registration under an investment license lists SAR 1,200 for an LLC, plus SAR 500 publication fees and 15% VAT. We read it on 14 October 2026. Other types of company have different fees on the same page. The page lists the service fees only, so it excludes attestation, translation, Chamber, municipality, visa, insurance and office costs. Confirm the invoice at the time you apply, because fees can change.

Does 15% VAT apply to government fees?

The Ministry of Commerce company registration page lists 15% VAT next to the registration and publication fees. It does not itemize which charges the VAT covers, so the exact amount on your invoice may differ from a simple calculation (verify). We have not confirmed how VAT applies to MISA’s fee or to third-party charges. Do not assume. Ask for the invoice breakdown, and confirm VAT treatment with a tax adviser, especially if you need to account for it in India.

How much will it cost in Indian rupees?

We do not give a rupee figure. Most lines have no confirmed SAR amount, and we have no dated exchange-rate source to convert from. The rupee rate moves, so a conversion made today may not match what you pay later. When you budget, convert each confirmed SAR line at the rate your bank applies on the payment day, and add a margin for rate movement. Speak to an Indian chartered accountant about remittance rules and tax before you send funds.

Can I get a fixed total from Apex Arabia?

We give a quote based on your activity, structure, documents and number of visas, rather than a published fixed price. Our payment schedule is 50% at initiation, 45% at the MISA license and 5% at completion. Government fees are paid directly by you. The MISA fee is only known after approval, so no firm can fix it in advance. Ask us to separate our fee from government and third-party costs, and to date each figure.

Next step

Tell us your activity and structure, and we will itemize what is confirmed and what is not. Request a quote or talk to our experts before you set your budget.

This guide is for general information and is not legal advice. Requirements vary by activity and can change; confirm current rules with MISA or speak to our team.

Updated: 14 October 2026. Reviewed by: not yet reviewed (draft).

Sources: MISA Investor Guide, 13th edition, March 2026; Ministry of Commerce, company registration under an investment license; Ministry of Commerce, trade name reservation; Ministry of Commerce, annual confirmation of company data; ZATCA VAT registration e-service; GOSI employer FAQ. All read on 14 October 2026.