Saudi Arabia's E-Commerce Law (Royal Decree M/126, 2019) and its implementing regulation expect your store or app to show the seller's identity and contact details, a clear product description, the full price including taxes, fees and delivery, and the contract, payment and delivery terms before purchase, plus your cancellation and return policy. After purchase the customer should receive a summary or invoice, and online ads must be clear and not misleading. This is general information; check the text with the Ministry of Commerce.
- saudi e-commerce law website requirements
- what must an online store show in saudi arabia
- saudi e-commerce law returns and cancellation
- seller information required on saudi online store
- saudi e-commerce law advertising rules
What must your store or app show under the Saudi e-commerce law?
If you are asking what the Saudi E-Commerce Law requires your website or app to show, the core idea is disclosure and clarity: customers should know who is selling, exactly what they are buying, what they will pay in total, and what their rights are if they want to cancel or return. The law was issued by Royal Decree M/126 in 2019, and its implementing regulation details these obligations.
The good news: most of these requirements are exactly what gets customers to finish buying. A store that hides who runs it or surprises shoppers with fees at the last step loses the order before it loses compliance. So here they are as a practical checklist organized by the pages of your store.
| Where in your store | What must appear |
|---|---|
| Footer and About page | Seller identity, CR or document number, address, contact channel |
| Product page | Clear description of characteristics, full price, availability |
| Cart and checkout | Total including VAT, fees and delivery; payment methods; contract terms |
| After purchase | Order confirmation, contract summary or invoice, delivery information |
| Policy pages | Cancellation and returns, warranty, privacy |
| Ads and offers | Advertiser identity, offer conditions, duration |
Seller identity: who you are and how customers reach you
The first thing the law expects is that customers know who they are dealing with. That does not mean a long paragraph; it means the essentials are visible and reachable from any page.
- Name: your name or the business's trade name as registered.
- CR or document number: including the unified number starting with 7 if you hold a CR, following the new Commercial Register Law.
- Address: the business address; the National Address works well here.
- A working contact channel: a phone, WhatsApp number or email that actually gets answered, not a form nobody reads.
- VAT number: if you are registered for VAT.
If you have a mobile app, do not stop at the website. Make seller details reachable inside the app itself from the account or settings screen, and make sure your App Store and Google Play listings show the business name, a privacy policy link and a contact channel.
Product page and price: no surprises at the last step
The law expects the store to describe the product or service clearly and to show a price that includes everything the customer will pay. In Saudi Arabia specifically, prices shown to consumers should include 15% VAT if you are registered, so do not show one price and add VAT at checkout.
| Element | Good practice | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Description | Size, ingredients, volume, duration, real photos | Edited photos that do not match the product |
| Price | VAT-inclusive, in SAR | A pre-VAT price that changes at checkout |
| Fees | Delivery and packaging fees shown before payment | Fees that appear only at the final step |
| Availability and delivery | Expected delivery time per city | Vague promises such as 'soon' |
| Options | A clear price for each size or color | 'From' prices with no explanation |
Clarity here also lifts your conversion rate, because surprises at checkout are one of the classic causes of abandoned carts.
Checkout and after purchase: contract, confirmation and invoice
An online purchase is a contract between you and the customer. The law expects its terms to be clear before it is concluded and the customer to receive proof of it afterwards. This flow covers what is needed in practice:
- 1Before payment: show the summary
Items, quantities, total including VAT and delivery, payment method and expected delivery time.
- 2Tie the terms to a clear control
Links to the terms of sale and the cancellation and return policy near the pay button, not only buried in the footer.
- 3After payment: confirm immediately
A confirmation page and a message by SMS, WhatsApp or email with the order number and details.
- 4Send the invoice
An invoice or contract summary. If you are VAT-registered, it is a Fatoora-compliant e-invoice, a simplified one with a QR code for consumers.
- 5Keep customers updated on delivery
A message when the order ships with a tracking number, and another on delivery.
If delivery is late against the agreed date, the law gives consumers rights in that situation. Do not promise timelines you cannot meet, and read the regulation for the details.
Cancellation, returns and warranty: write them so customers understand
The law gives consumers a right to cancel within a period and under conditions set by the implementing regulation, with exceptions for some products and services, such as made-to-order items or goods that perish by nature. What matters for you as a seller is to write your policy clearly, show it before purchase, and honor it.
- Cancellation and return periods written as the regulation allows
- The condition an item must be in to be returned
- Who pays return shipping in each case
- How refunds are made and how long they usually take
- Excluded products named clearly, with the reason
- 'No returns at all' applied to every product
- Hidden conditions that only appear after a complaint
- Refunds as store credit only, without saying so upfront
- A policy copied from another store that does not match your business
We prepared a practical template in Return and refund policy for Saudi online stores.
Ads, offers and customer data
Snapchat and TikTok campaigns and influencer accounts are central to selling in Saudi Arabia, and the law's rules apply to online advertising too. The general rule: the advertiser must be identifiable, the ad must not mislead, and offer conditions must be clear.
- Name the store or advertiser clearly in the ad and on the landing page.
- Do not advertise an inflated discount against an 'original' price the product never actually sold at.
- State the offer's duration and conditions: quantities, eligible products, and whether it stacks with other coupons.
- The landing page must match the ad: same product, same price, same conditions.
- Use customer data only for the purpose you collected it for, and protect it under the Personal Data Protection Law. See our Saudi PDPL checklist for apps and privacy policy for a Saudi app.
Build the requirements into your store from day one
The easiest way to comply is not to rely on memory. Make the store template enforce these elements: seller details in the footer, the full total in the cart, policy links by the pay button, and confirmation plus invoice after purchase, automatically.
Review my store and apply the common disclosure requirements of the Saudi E-Commerce Law: in the footer, show the business name, unified CR number, address, WhatsApp number and VAT number from the admin settings. Show prices in SAR including 15% VAT. In the cart, show delivery fees by city before payment. Near the pay button, add a checkbox to accept the terms of sale with links to the cancellation and return policy and the privacy policy. After payment, send a confirmation by WhatsApp and email with the order number, and issue a simplified e-invoice with a QR code. Do not change the design.
Try it in FanannTransparency is not just a legal burden; it is the shortest path to customer trust.
Your next step: open your store on your phone as a first-time customer and confirm every item in the table above is visible without searching. If you are just starting, follow How to start an online store in Saudi Arabia.
Key takeaways
- Show clearly who you are: name, CR or document number, address and a contact channel that actually works.
- The price customers see must be complete: VAT, fees and delivery before payment, not after.
- Contract, cancellation and return terms appear before checkout, and an order summary or invoice follows it.
- Online ads must identify the advertiser and state offer conditions and duration without misleading.
- Build these requirements into your store template from the start; they also lift trust and conversion.
Frequently asked questions
What information must an online store in Saudi Arabia display?
Do prices have to include VAT?
Can a customer cancel an online order after buying in Saudi Arabia?
Does the law apply to selling on Snapchat and Instagram?
Is it enough to put my terms in the footer?
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