Detecting Checks and Documents Proving the Expatriate`s Responsibility for Importing Goods from China
As MCI continues its inspection campaigns to keep track of those involved in the violation of Anti-Commercial Concealment Law, the efforts of MCI inspectors resulted in monitoring the clues of a commercial concealment issue against one of the specialized institutions in importing and selling watches through ten branches in various regions of the Kingdom. During the inspection process, MCI inspectors had detected a number of documents and physical evidence proving the involvement of an Arab expatriate, aided by a citizen, through exploiting his name and his Commercial Registration against a monthly lump sum.
The preliminary investigation results show the responsibility of the expatriate for importing goods from China, while the Ministry summoned the involved parties to be heard, in preparation for referring the case to the Bureau of Investigation and Public Prosecution Authority, and then to be referred to the Bureau of Grievances for issuing the final judgment.
The details go back when MCI received a notification from a citizen, suspecting the existence of a commercial concealment in one of the famous Establishments, specialized in watch trading, after the investigations carried out by the Ministry inspectors, it turned out that the said Establishment had many branches inside the Kingdom, managed by the expatriate without any supervision or follow-up by the citizen, despite the fact that the Est. is registered under his own name. Upon inspecting the Est., the inspectors had found a number of documents, official papers, checks signed blank, the stamp and signature of the real owner, as well as the system for identity verification to access the banking accounts of the Est. This would indicate that the expatriate is behaving as if the Est. were his own.
This comes within MCI keenness and attention to take stern measures to implement all penalties and fines against violators of the Anti-Commercial Concealment Law, that may reach to two years' imprisonment and a fine of one million riyals per violator, and deporting the non-Saudis from the Kingdom.
It is worth mentioning that MCI is making defamation in the local newspapers periodically against the violators at their own expense, in addition to other penalties and fines including the closure and liquidation of the trade activity, as well as writing off the Commercial Registration and the prevention of practicing the same business for five years.
According to Anti-Commercial Concealment Law, any Saudi citizen or a foreign investor would be deemed a violator, if he enabled a non-Saudi of doing business for his own account, whether through using his name, license, CR or in any other way. The first article of Anti-Commercial Concealment Law provided that, It is not permissible for the non-Saudi in all cases, to exercise or invest in any activity, he is not authorized to, under the Foreign Investment Law or other Rules & Regulation.
MCI would like to warn all companies, institutions and individuals against the cooperation with the violators of the Kingdom`s R&R, otherwise they would be legally accountable and subject to statutory penalties. MCI aims to reduce the phenomenon of commercial concealment and to create a regular, free of irregularities, trading environment, as well as to enable the citizens of practicing business safely.
MCI would like to urge all citizens to report any commercial concealment, if the evidence is found, since the Ministry grants a financial reward to the collaborator in such cases, not exceeding 30% of the value of the adjudged fines after collection.