Aims to Improve the Business Environment and ease Starting up a Business for the Investor, also to improve the Kingdom's Competitive Rank in the Ease of Practicing Business Index
The Ministry of Commerce and Investment announced reducing the procedures for starting up a business. Therefore, the investor can follow 4 steps only to start up his business and investment activity.
The Ministry pointed out in a statement that reducing the procedures for starting up a business is one of the ten most important indicators for the ease of doing a business, which is evaluated annually by the World Bank for all Member States. The four-step procedures come to light after rendering great efforts with government agencies in the Kingdom. This represents one of MCI initiatives within the National Transformation Program 2020, emerging from the Kingdom’s Vision 2030. That is to set up e-business platform to serve the investors by reducing the procedures of starting-up a business, such as issuing C.R. and relevant licenses, all that for reaching a final goal, which is improving the Kingdom's competitive rank in the ease of practicing business index.
MCI has shown the procedures for starting up a business as follows: First, sending the corporate founding contract electronically (excluding the joint-stock co.) to the Notary Public, without any human intervention. Second: The authentication of the said contract to be effected by the Notary Public, without prior appointment, or by any one of the authorized authenticators. Third, payment of the consolidated bill through (SADAD e-payment System), including all fees. This is related to Commercial Registration, Chamber of Commerce subscription and the cost of electronic publishing of the contract. Therefore, in conjunction with the payment of the said bill, the electronic C.R. will be issued, Chamber of Commerce subscription will be effected, opening a file with the Ministry of Labor will be done, together with Zakat file and the registration in the General Authority for Zakat and Income will also be completed through one step only and through a national comprehensive and consolidated e- portal, without any human intervention. Automatically, the corporate contract will be published in “Amali” e-newspaper. Fourth, the instant electronic license will be issued through “Baladi” e-portal, belonging to the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs, and automatically the registration in the national post (Wasil) will be done as well.
Notably, the above mentioned electronic services can be obtained via business e-portal, through the corporate founding link:
com.cr.sa
These procedures come as a continuation of the reforms related to starting up a commercial activity, where the procedures of founding a corporate and getting a C.R. have become so easy and affordable. The Ministry of Commerce and Investment, in cooperation with the relevant authorities, has carried out a number of reforms, including launching the services of booking commercial names online, in addition to prior e-booking for proposed companies names (white list), also enabling the customers to get the e-service of booking five options of commercial names at once, and give the customer the priority of booking one of the five options.
The process of reducing the procedures started by linking with the Ministry of Labor and Social Development, Zakat and Income Tax Authority. This link enables making the Commercial Registration, Labor and Social Insurance file, Zakat and income file through a single electronic step, in addition to obtaining a consolidated identification number for the institution (700) from the National Information Center to facilitate linking with government agencies. In this context, H.E. The Minister of Commerce and Investment issued a decree not to comply the private sector companies with the official stamps on the documents and papers, requested from them or submitted by them. In addition, MCI announced allowing limited liability companies to complete the founding procedures and to get the electronic C.R. without prior deposit of capital. Notably, the services for founding the establishments and local companies (not the joint-stock ones), as well as the services for opening a file at the Ministry of Labor and Social Development, also the registration in the General Organization for Social Insurance and the General Authority for Zakat and income will only be provided through the consolidated electronic channels and the e-platform for the parties concerned in starting a business, more over enabling the partners to authenticate the corporate founding e-contract directly by the Notary Public or by any of the accredited lawyers from the private sector, without prior appointment, as well as combining the payment of all invoices in one electronic bill to be paid through e-payment channels easily and around the clock.
Concurrently with the payment of the aforementioned bill, the corporate founding contract will be published through MCI website
aamaly.sa automatically without any human intervention.