Recently, the General Authority of Zakat and Tax (GAZT) of Saudi Arabia published the English version of Tax Ruling Requests guide.
The tax ruling guide includes the following measures:
An applicant can apply for a Ruling when it is unsure about how the tax laws apply to its particular circumstances. These circumstances may be a transaction which the Applicant has entered into or intends to enter into, a series of such transactions, or an overall Activity which the Applicant has carried out or intends to carry out.
An applicant should not submit a Ruling Request in the following cases. Such Ruling Requests will be rejected by GAZT:
- The ruling request concerns a restricted matter that GAZT will not opine on, including:
- matters concerning contested tax amounts or amounts under review/appeal;
- matters involving the interpretation of foreign law; or
- matters involving the interpretation of non-tax legislation.
- The ruling request does not relate to the applicant’s own activities or intended activities;
- The ruling request is intended for another purpose than providing clarification for the;
- The applicant is under audit or investigation by GAZT;
- The matter is subject to a legal dispute between the applicant and another person or persons, or any matter which is intended to cause GAZT to act against another person or persons;
- The matter has been the subject of a rejected ruling request submitted during the last three months; or
- The applicant is not a taxpayer (or a taxable person for VAT purposes) registered with GAZT.
A ruling requests may be made in Arabic or English, with an English-language form for submitting a request included in the appendix to the Guideline. If an application for a decision is accepted, it will be processed after receipt of the decision. In general, GAZT will endeavor to make a decision within 45 days from the date on which GAZT receives all necessary information to provide an informed response. More complex requirements may require additional time.
