Saudi Exports Incentives Program

The Saudi Exports Incentives Program is a Saudi program seeking to encourage and assist Saudi companies in building and enhancing their competitive capabilities and expanding their global reach. Launched by the Saudi Export Development Authority in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 2019, the program offers support to Saudi manufacturers and exporters, facilitating their access to global markets and contributing to the enhancement of the index of total promising exports at the lowest possible cost through grants and incentives.

This program is an integral component of the suite of executive programs under Saudi Vision 2030, initiated in 2016. It follows the National Industry Development and Logistics Services Program, which focuses on diversifying sources of income and advancing the Kingdom’s non-oil exports. This involves developing laws and legislation for the energy, mining, industry, and logistics sectors, as well as enhancing infrastructure, developing industrial and economic zones, and fostering research, development, and innovation to elevate its share in the gross domestic product from 16 percent to 50 percent.

The Saudi Exports Incentives Program commenced its work with an allocated budget of SAR120 million, designated to subsidize a portion of expenses related to export operations and activities. Each national exporting establishment is eligible for program incentives ranging from SAR20,000 to SAR255,000, with cost coverage percentage and upper limits contingent upon the type of export activity targeted.

The Saudi Exports Incentives Program primarily targets non-oil commodity sectors within Saudi exports, including petrochemicals, vehicles and spare parts, building materials, electronics and heavy equipment, food products, medicines, jewelry and precious metals, consumer goods, packaging, textiles, and paper and wood products.

The Saudi Exports Incentives Program expedites the arrival of Saudi goods and products into various foreign markets and enhances their competitiveness. This is done alongside a set of bilateral, regional, and international Saudi trade agreements, as well as the Kingdom's membership in the World Trade Organization since 2005, trade agreements with European Free Trade Association countries, the agreement to facilitate and develop trade among Arab states in 2008, the economic agreements between the Gulf Cooperation Council countries signed in 1981 and renewed in 2001, and bilateral trade agreements with the Republic of Singapore.

The Saudi Exports Incentives Program aims to assist local exporters in entering and expanding into global export markets by offering a comprehensive range of incentives and services in alignment with the World Trade Organization. Costs are paid on behalf of exporters according to the type of export activity.

The Saudi Export Development Authority has established general policies and conditions for benefiting from the services of the Saudi Exports Incentives Program, within specific export stages and activities for each category, along with documents required for obtaining the services and other documents required upon completion of service acquisition. Registering on the authority’s website, submitting applications, and uploading documents are prerequisites for obtaining the incentives. Following the utilization of specified services and activities, invoices and compensation requests are submitted accordingly.

The program offers nine incentives to exporters that are consistent with the Kingdom’s obligations to the World Trade Organization. These include: advisory and export and supply chain strategies, listing on e-commerce platforms and attracting potential customers, product registration with foreign government entities, facilitate the visit of potential buyers, national establishment's individual participation in international exhibitions, issuance of export-related certifications, legal support for legal advice and legal expertise in target markets, marketing and advertising activities in foreign markets, and specialized training programs and workshops in export fields.

The category of export strategy studies covers supply chain diagnostic studies, procurement strategy, foreign market entry strategy, improving business networks, international business plan development, improved transportation routes, supply chain risk management and business risk, export program management, inventory optimization, determining the position of products and their prices in potential foreign market, with a 55 percent compensation rate of the activity fees, without exceeding SAR255,000.

Establishments registered in the program will be compensated with 70 percent of the value of listing and registration activities on electronic commercial platforms, whether it be registering product lists or covering the costs of enhancing appearance in search results on search engines, provided that the compensation does not exceed SAR55,000.

The program contributes SAR55,000 towards the costs of registering an export facility for its products with foreign governments to approve their import and sale operations, with a coverage rate of 50 percent. It also facilitates the visit of buyers of national products by covering 90 percent of the visa fees, airline tickets, and hotel accommodation costs, with a maximum disbursement limit of SAR50,000. For visits involving less than three invitees, the cap becomes SAR13,000 for each invitee.

Furthermore, the program encourages Saudi exporters to participate in international exhibitions to expand the scope of exporting products by covering 65 percent of participation fees. This includes registration fees for exhibition registration, design and implementation of the designated pavilion, and product samples and shipment cost, with a maximum value of up to SAR150,000.

Additionally, SAR100,000 is allocated to cover 85 percent of the legal consultation fees. These consultations include explaining the rules and regulations of trade in foreign markets, identifying export and import risks and trade restrictions, and conducting commercial arbitration and dispute settlement activities. It also covers negotiating export and import agreements and preparing legal export documents.

The program aims to raise awareness of national products, promote them, and clarify their standards in foreign markets by covering 75 percent of fees for marketing and advertising activities, whether on social media, promotional flyers, television and radio advertisements, billboards, and website design for establishments. However, the exchange value should not exceed SAR200,000.

Exporters are reimbursed for the costs of issuing certificates for their products in foreign countries, such as local and international conformity certificates. A maximum value of SAR250,000 is set to cover 50 percent of the evaluation fees for obtaining certificates and accreditation fees. Additionally, the program focuses on qualifying and training exporters in export-related fields by covering 55 percent of the costs of specialized training programs, professional certificates, and workshops, at a value of up to SAR50,000.