Saudi Gazette Report

RIYAD – Saudi Arabia on Tuesday launched the Electronic Invoicing Project (FATOORAH), which will help reduce hidden economy transactions and promote fair competition.

Several managers and specialists in this sector attended the launch ceremony. The implementation of the first phase of FATOORAH will begin on December 4 of this year.

The project is part of the process of digital transformation of all public sector transactions. This will help immensely the efforts of several government agencies to combat commercial cover-up (tasattur).

The project is one of the vital national initiatives, led by Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority, to achieve the desired digital transformation, as set out in the Kingdom’s Vision 2030.

Addressing the launching ceremony, Suhail Abanmi, Governor of Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority, stressed that FATOORAH is one of the vital projects as it is a continuation of various digital projects presented by the authority in recent years in the implementation of the Kingdom Vision and goals to achieve the desired digital transformation.

“The FATOORAH project is part of the latest developments in major world economies and will have a tangible impact on the national economy.

“The project will help reduce hidden economy transactions and promote fair competition, in addition to contributing significantly to the efforts of several government agencies to combat commercial concealment, in addition to playing its essential role in the enrichment of the consumer experience, ”he added.

For his part, Saleh Al-Rasheed, governor of the General Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises (Monshaat), said that the impact of the application of electronic invoicing brings several positive benefits to the industry, including the provision of an attractive competitive environment for growth and prosperity, especially since invoicing helps eliminate commercial concealment.

“It will also facilitate access to financing and banking facilities while recognizing that electronic invoicing ensures the availability of accurate financial statements. The new procedure increases the efficiency and operation of the facilities and reduces costs by regulating with precision the accounting work ”, he underlined.

Speaking on the occasion, Ahmed Al-Suwailem, CEO of the anti-trade cover-up program, said the electronic invoice project would open an important window for small and medium-sized businesses on credit.

“FATOORAH is an incentive for legal businesses that reduces waste of time and money, in addition to helping to improve after-sales services to consumers and to preserve the rights of both parties,” he said. .

The new procedure will reduce disguised and illegal establishments, as it will activate the role of the consumer in monitoring and reporting, increase transparency on the movement of funds and allow monitoring of crimes and related violations.

Abdullah Al-Fantoukh, director of the FATOORAH project, said the success of the project depends on the cooperation of all parties involved.

“The project would be positive and limit the phenomenon of commercial concealment and the hidden economy, besides helping taxpayers to organize financial matters,” he said, adding that the impact of the project will show in coming years.

The application of the first phase will begin for taxpayers subject to the Electronic Invoice Regulation from December 4 and which requires the issuance and storage of tax invoices and associated debit and credit notices electronically.

The second phase will be implemented gradually from the beginning of January 2022, as it will consolidate the integration between the electronic systems of taxpayers and the systems of Zakat, tax and customs administration.

Meanwhile, the authority called on the public to visit the FATOORAH page on its website, to see all the details before starting the implementation of the project.

There are three main steps for taxpayers subject to the FATOORAH regulation. It is about stopping issuing handwritten invoices or invoices issued manually through text editing software.

Second, create a capability to generate and store invoices electronically through a compliant electronic invoicing system, which can be a cash register, cloud system, or enterprise resource planning (ERP) software.

Third, simplified tax invoices must include a QR code, and tax invoices must include the buyer’s VAT number if the buyer is a registered VAT taxpayer.