How international brands sell in Saudi Arabia on Amazon.sa and noon
Updated · By Ecomsellertool editorial team
International brands reach Saudi shoppers on Amazon.sa or noon; the hard part is compliance, not the storefront. Amazon says a business outside the Middle East may not need a Saudi company, but noon asks international sellers for a Saudi VAT certificate, and out-of-country FBA sellers register with ZATCA from their first sale. You arrange your own importer of record, and each shipment needs a SABER certificate before customs releases it.
- Saudi VAT has a 15% standard rate. ZATCA's SAR 375,000 mandatory threshold is for residents; non-residents who owe Saudi VAT must register whatever the value of their supplies.
- Amazon says out-of-country sellers using FBA in Saudi Arabia must register for VAT from their first sale, and out-of-country FBM sellers cannot register there.
- ZATCA's guidance says each non-resident taxable person needs one tax representative, jointly liable for the VAT due; the regulations ask non-residents without one for a larger guarantee.
- Amazon will not act as importer of record for FBA stock entering Saudi Arabia, and inbound shipments must travel on Delivered Duty Paid terms or be refused.
- SABER lists platform charges of 500 SAR to register a product certificate of conformity and 350 SAR per shipment certificate, before VAT. Ask your certification body for its own assessment fee.
- Amazon.sa FBA storage costs 3 SAR per cubic foot per month; noon's Saudi FBN storage rose to 2.75 SAR, from 2.5 SAR, on 1 October 2026. Both quote fees before VAT.
Marketplaces in Saudi Arabia
Amazon.sa
noon
Not tax advice. Saudi VAT has a 15% standard rate and is administered by ZATCA, which says non-residents who owe Saudi VAT must register regardless of the value of their supplies. Amazon says its out-of-country FBA sellers register from the first sale, while out-of-country FBM sellers cannot register. Amazon charges 15% VAT on most of its fees. Rules change, so confirm your position with a Saudi tax adviser before you ship stock.
Today, yesterday, 7-day and 30-day profit side by side
Read the Beezboard case study ↗Can an international brand sell on Amazon.sa and noon?
Often, yes, but the route decides the paperwork. VAT, conformity and customs apply on every route.
Amazon.sa. Amazon.com Professional sellers add a Saudi Arabia account from the Sell Globally dashboard; a new seller who also wants the US opens a North America and Brazil unified account first (Amazon's Middle East expansion page, checked October 2, 2026). Amazon India's global selling page, for example, links straight to Amazon.sa registration. Amazon says a business outside the Middle East may not need a local company, but Amazon.sa's registration checklist lists a KSA national ID and a commercial registration, and its sign-up page calls a commercial registration a mandatory prerequisite, so check your route's documents.
noon. noon lists an International Seller category for businesses registered abroad, yet its eligibility checklist asks for legal registration in the country of sale, so confirm your route with noon. International sellers in Saudi Arabia need a VAT certificate issued there whatever their turnover. noon requires English on every Saudi SKU and does not translate, and English-only SKUs may not show on the Arabic site.
noon's UAE to KSA lane is the other way in. Active noon UAE sellers using FBN or an eligible FBP warehouse, with no KSA store yet, are enrolled automatically without a Saudi trade license or Saudi VAT registration, though they owe Saudi customers warranty support. Each SKU needs a 12-digit HS code and a country of origin, and items over 25 kg or 120 cm on the longest side are excluded. See the UAE and noon.
Do you need to register for VAT in Saudi Arabia?
For most foreign brands, yes. Saudi VAT, run by ZATCA, has a 15% standard rate. The SAR 375,000 mandatory threshold is for residents; ZATCA's guideline on VAT registration and tax groups says non-residents who owe Saudi VAT must register whatever the value of their supplies (checked October 2, 2026).
- Amazon FBA: Amazon's Saudi Arabia VAT FAQ and its VAT FAQ for international sellers say out-of-country FBA sellers must register from their first Saudi sale.
- Amazon FBM from abroad: Amazon says out-of-country FBM sellers cannot register. Prices shipped from outside the Kingdom must already include import VAT and duties; Amazon does not collect them separately.
- Tax representative: ZATCA's guidance on tax representatives says every non-resident taxable person must have one, jointly liable for the VAT. The VAT Implementing Regulations make it optional but ask non-residents without one for a larger guarantee and a Saudi-based record keeper.
- Name match: your Seller Central legal name must match ZATCA's records exactly, including Arabic where ZATCA uses it, or Amazon cannot verify your VAT number.
Amazon also charges 15% VAT on most of its fees.
Do your products need SABER, SFDA or CST approval?
SASO sets Saudi product standards, and its SABER platform covers both regulated and unregulated products, as the US International Trade Administration's Saudi standards guide explains.
For products under a SASO technical regulation, a SASO-approved certification body assesses the product and you receive a product certificate of conformity. Unregulated products use a SABER self-declaration instead. Either way, each shipment then needs a shipment certificate. SABER lists platform charges of 500 SAR per product certificate and 350 SAR per shipment certificate, before VAT (checked October 2, 2026); get a separate quote from your certification body for the assessment.
Food, cosmetics, drugs and medical devices fall under the Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA). Telecom and IT imports come under the Communications, Space and Technology Commission (CST), called CITC until 2022, and may need its approval too. On every product, warnings, safety instructions and manuals need Arabic, with English allowed alongside, according to the ITA's labeling guide.
How do you get stock into Saudi Arabia?
Amazon will not act as importer of record for FBA inventory, according to its import and export guide (checked October 2, 2026). Its guidance is to register for that role with customs yourself and contract any customs broker or freight forwarder directly. Ask your broker early how a foreign company can hold it in Saudi Arabia. Shipments must use Delivered Duty Paid terms; anything arriving with charges due, or naming Amazon as importer, is turned away.
Amazon's SEND program lists Saudi Arabia among its destinations, with the carrier clearing customs at both ends and any duties charged to your account after delivery (checked October 2, 2026).
Each inbound needs its own SABER shipment certificate and duties are paid before delivery, so Saudi stock is slower to top up than a domestic warehouse. Plan replenishment around that lead time.
What do Amazon.sa and noon charge?
Both quote fees before VAT. Headline rates from Amazon.sa's fee structure and noon's FBN fees in KSA, checked October 2, 2026:
| Fee | Amazon.sa | noon (Saudi Arabia) |
|---|---|---|
| Referral fee | Mostly 5% to 15% by category, minimum 1 SAR | Set by category, minimum 1 SAR |
| Fulfillment, small envelope | FBA: 5.5 SAR (price under 25 SAR) or 7.5 SAR | FBN: 5.5 SAR (price under 25 SAR) or 7.5 SAR |
| Monthly storage | 3 SAR per cubic foot | 2.75 SAR per cubic foot since 1 October 2026 (2.5 SAR before) |
| Aged stock | Long-term storage fee after 365 days | Long-term storage fee after 365 days |
| Ship it yourself | Easy Ship from 19 SAR per shipment, or self-ship | FBP: stock stays with you, you pack, noon helps deliver |
Per-unit fulfillment rates also match for a standard parcel up to 0.25 kg (7.2 or 9.2 SAR), so compare storage and your category's referral rate first.
How would Growth OS support a Saudi launch?
Ecomsellertool Growth OS runs on your own Amazon and noon accounts, both among the 20+ marketplaces we have shipped integrations for:
- One product record. HS codes, country of origin, SABER references and Arabic content can share one record feeding both marketplaces, and the AI listing agents in Grow8 can draft Arabic copy for your approval.
- Margin-aware SAR pricing. Prices can build up from landed cost, certificates, marketplace fees and VAT on those fees, each clearing a contribution margin floor.
- Inventory and orders. Reorder points can include customs and certificate lead time, and orders from both marketplaces can land in one hub (order routing).
The base draws on Ecom Global, a catalog built for 100M+ products, 20+ marketplaces and 13+ carriers, and Seller7, a multi-marketplace seller OS we built. We build custom software where your operation differs. You keep your accounts, your data and the custom code we build; the Growth OS base is licensed to you.
Where should you start?
Before you register for Saudi VAT or book a SABER assessment, check whether your operation can carry another market. The free Quick Scan in the Ops Gap Diagnostic finds your top three Amazon operations gaps from uploaded reports; the Deep Diagnostic, priced on request, covers every gap plus marketplace and country opportunities such as Saudi Arabia. To see the base system first, look at Growth OS.
A Saudi launch also adds desk work: HS codes, country of origin and SABER certificate numbers kept per SKU, Arabic copy pasted into two marketplaces, SAR prices recalculated when fees change, and Amazon.sa and noon orders and stock tracked in separate tabs. If your team does that by hand, send us the workflow and a person replies within 2 business days with a written plan: what to automate, what stays with your team, and a fixed price.
Frequently asked questions
How can I become an Amazon seller in Saudi Arabia from another country?
If you already sell on Amazon.com with a Professional account, add a Saudi Arabia account from the Sell Globally dashboard; a new seller who also wants the US creates a North America and Brazil unified account first. Amazon India's global selling page, for example, sends sellers straight to Amazon.sa registration with KYC documents and card details, with no Amazon India account needed. Amazon says a business outside the Middle East may not need a local company, yet Amazon.sa's own sign-up page lists a KSA national ID and a commercial registration, so confirm which documents your route asks for. VAT and import rules apply either way.
Do I need to register for VAT to sell on Amazon.sa?
If you are based outside Saudi Arabia and use FBA, yes, from your first sale and whatever your turnover. Amazon also says out-of-country sellers using Fulfilled by Merchant cannot register for Saudi VAT, so settle your fulfillment model with a tax adviser before you list.
Do I need a SABER certificate to sell in Saudi Arabia?
SABER covers both regulated and unregulated products. A product under a SASO technical regulation needs a product certificate of conformity from a SASO-approved certification body; an unregulated product uses a SABER self-declaration. Either way, each shipment then gets a SABER shipment certificate before customs releases it. Food, cosmetics, drugs and medical devices also have SFDA requirements, and telecom and IT products may need approval from the Communications, Space and Technology Commission (CST).
Can I sell on noon in Saudi Arabia without a Saudi VAT number?
Not if you register directly as an international seller in Saudi Arabia: noon requires a VAT certificate issued there, whatever your turnover. The exception is noon's UAE to KSA lane, which enrolls active noon UAE sellers that have no KSA store yet, without a Saudi trade license or Saudi VAT registration. Those sellers must still provide warranty support in Saudi Arabia.
Who is the importer of record for Amazon FBA stock in Saudi Arabia?
Not Amazon. Amazon will not act as importer of record for FBA inventory and expects you to arrange that role yourself, registering with the customs authority and contracting any customs broker or freight forwarder directly. Ask your broker early how a foreign company can take that role in Saudi Arabia. Shipments must use Delivered Duty Paid terms, and any that name Amazon as importer are sent back to you at your expense.
What fees do Amazon.sa and noon charge sellers in Saudi Arabia?
Both charge a referral fee set by category with a 1 SAR minimum per item, and both quote their fees before VAT. Amazon.sa's FBA fulfillment fee starts at 5.5 SAR per unit and its storage costs 3 SAR per cubic foot per month. noon's FBN outbound fee also starts at 5.5 SAR, and its Saudi storage fee rose to 2.75 SAR per cubic foot on 1 October 2026. Both add a long-term storage fee for stock held more than 365 days.
