Short answerE-invoicing violations in Saudi Arabia start with a warning and 30 to 60 days to fix them, not an immediate fine. Repeat fines start at SAR 1,000, 5,000 or 10,000 depending on the violation and rise to SAR 40,000 or 50,000 after the sixth time, under ZATCA's May 2024 violations guide.
What is the legal basis for e-invoicing fines?
Article 4 of the E-invoicing Regulation treats e-invoices and e-notes as tax invoices and credit or debit notes under the VAT Law and its Implementing Regulation, so the VAT Law's chapter 16 fines apply to them. The Implementation Resolution applies these penalties to anyone violating the Regulation, per the classification set by ZATCA's Board of Directors.
ZATCA's penalties page lists VAT Law ceilings: SAR 50,000 for breaching any VAT provision, not keeping invoices and records, or obstructing ZATCA employees; SAR 100,000 for issuing a tax invoice while unregistered.
Does a penalty start with a warning or a fine?
The amounts come from ZATCA's 'Simplified guide to the classification of general VAT violations' (second edition, May 2024). It explains the Board decision amending the classification of violations and amends no law or regulation. Under it, every general violation starts with a warning and guidance, plus 30 to 60 days to fix it.
The exception is obstructing ZATCA staff: at most 10 days from the last penalty to correct it, repeat penalties applied consecutively, and a 10-day periodicity. Every other violation has a 30- or 60-day periodicity; in the guide's examples, a fine is issued if the violation is found again after it, rising with each repeat.
- A violation counts as repeated only within 12 months of its last detection.
- If committed after 12 months have passed since the decision imposing the previous penalty, the same violation is new and starts again with a warning and no fine.
- In the guide's example, a restaurant integrated only 2 of its 3 cashier devices with Fatoora: a warning, then a SAR 10,000 fine if found again after 30 days.
We could not confirm the May 2024 edition is the latest; it is the one ZATCA's guidelines page links to as of 28 September 2026.
ZATCA e-invoicing penalties: what is the fine for each violation?
The guide sets violations 8 to 18 for the E-invoicing Regulation, an integral part of the VAT Implementing Regulation. Amounts are in SAR. Violations 8 and 9 do not apply if the business can prove a ZATCA system fault caused them; violation 18's fine applies separately to each provision violated.
| Violation | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | After 6th | Periodicity (days) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8. Not integrating all systems with ZATCA | Warning | 10,000 | 15,000 | 20,000 | 30,000 | 40,000 | 50,000 | 30 |
| 9. Not sharing with ZATCA in the required format and time | Warning | 5,000 | 10,000 | 15,000 | 20,000 | 30,000 | 40,000 | 30 |
| 10. Not issuing within the statutory periods | Warning | 5,000 | 10,000 | 15,000 | 20,000 | 30,000 | 40,000 | 30 |
| 11. A prohibited function in the solution | Warning | 5,000 | 10,000 | 15,000 | 20,000 | 30,000 | 40,000 | 30 |
| 12. Deleting or editing after issuance | Warning | 5,000 | 10,000 | 15,000 | 20,000 | 30,000 | 40,000 | 30 |
| 13. Not storing as the Regulation requires | Warning | 1,000 | 5,000 | 10,000 | 20,000 | 30,000 | 40,000 | 60 |
| 14. Not notifying ZATCA of faults | Warning | 1,000 | 5,000 | 10,000 | 20,000 | 30,000 | 40,000 | 60 |
| 15. No QR code | Warning | 1,000 | 5,000 | 10,000 | 20,000 | 30,000 | 40,000 | 60 |
| 16. Missing data fields in invoices shared with ZATCA | Warning | 1,000 | 5,000 | 10,000 | 20,000 | 30,000 | 40,000 | 60 |
| 17. Not sharing with customers in the required format | Warning | 1,000 | 5,000 | 10,000 | 20,000 | 30,000 | 40,000 | 60 |
| 18. Any other breach of the Regulation (per provision) | Warning | 1,000 | 5,000 | 10,000 | 20,000 | 30,000 | 40,000 | 60 |
Which general VAT violations concern the tax invoice?
The guide also lists seven general VAT violations. Three concern issuing the invoice or note and its data, and appear below. For violation 3 the fine applies to each missing field, so one invoice can carry several fines.
Violations 4 to 7 (not keeping records, obstructing ZATCA staff, wrong tax on invoices to the final consumer, and any other breach of the Law or Regulation) start with a warning, then SAR 1,000 to 40,000, with a 60-day periodicity (10 days for obstruction).
| Violation | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | After 6th | Periodicity (days) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Not issuing tax invoices as the VAT Law requires | Warning | 10,000 | 15,000 | 20,000 | 30,000 | 40,000 | 50,000 | 30 |
| 2. No credit or debit note, or not given to the customer | Warning | 5,000 | 10,000 | 15,000 | 20,000 | 30,000 | 40,000 | 30 |
| 3. Missing required data (per field) | Warning | 1,000 | 5,000 | 10,000 | 20,000 | 30,000 | 40,000 | 30 |
Our tax invoice vs simplified tax invoice guide explains the fields each type needs.
When do Phase 2 violations apply to your business?
Phase 1 (generation) has applied since 4 December 2021 to all taxpayers except non-residents. Phase 2 (integration) has applied in waves since 1 January 2023; a business need not apply it until ZATCA notifies its wave's integration date, and follows Phase 1 until then.
ZATCA notifies each target group at least 6 months ahead. The latest announcement we found, Wave 25 (24 July 2026), covers businesses with VAT-taxable revenue above SAR 187,500 in any year from 2022 to 2025, with an integration date of 1 February 2027. See the integration waves guide.
- Violations 8, 9, 16 and 17 apply from the date integration becomes mandatory for your business (its wave's integration date).
- Violations 10 to 15 apply from the date the E-invoicing Regulation took effect.
- Violation 18 applies from the obligation date of each provision.
- Non-residents need not issue e-invoices or e-notes for supplies taxable in the Kingdom.
Received a warning or violation notice: what now?
A first warning is not a fine but the first step on the ladder: if the violation is found again after its periodicity, a fine is issued. These steps follow ZATCA's documents and are not legal advice; for your case, contact ZATCA on 19993 or zatca.gov.sa.
- Identify the violation and period in the notice, and find its row and next fine in the tables above.
- Fix the cause before the period ends; for example, every device issuing invoices under your VAT number must be registered in the Fatoora portal.
- Once integrated, check both flows: tax invoices are cleared by ZATCA before reaching the buyer, and simplified invoices are reported within 24 hours. Uncleared invoices are not eligible for input VAT deduction.
- Review the Fatoora portal statistics, request its CSV error files, and keep API logs of clearance attempts and any evidence of a ZATCA system fault, which violations 8 and 9 exclude.
- If simplified invoices cannot be reported within 24 hours, notify ZATCA through the form on its website and report them once reconnected. Not sharing with ZATCA on time without notifying a fault that hinders sharing is violation 9; not notifying a fault that hinders issuance is violation 14.
- Never delete or edit an issued invoice (violation 12); correct it with a credit or debit note referencing the original, since not issuing one is general violation 2.
How does Xrero handle these requirements?
Xrero is a cloud ERP in Arabic and English, provided in Saudi Arabia by SIF International (S I F International Company) in Riyadh, with the e-invoicing module in every licence. It does not remove your responsibility to comply, but helps with several points these violations come from:
- Onboarding with an OTP from your own Fatoora portal, the six compliance checks, and certificates issued to your business, never to us.
- Clearance of tax invoices and reporting of simplified ones, including at the point of sale, with a 9-tag QR code and automatic retries; counters never reset, the log is append-only, and cleared invoices cannot be edited or deleted.
- Status as of 28 September 2026: validated on ZATCA's developer sandbox on 18 September 2026 (all six compliance document types accepted). On 28 September 2026 a Saudi establishment's device was onboarded on the Fatoora simulation environment through Xrero, and the application to be listed in ZATCA's solution-provider directory was submitted the same day and is under review. ZATCA's solution-provider list is indicative: any compliant solution may be used, listed or not.
Try it for 15 days with no credit card, read about Fatoora integration and pricing, or contact us.
Frequently asked questions
What is the fine for not issuing an e-invoice?
Not issuing e-invoices or e-notes within the statutory periods is violation 10: a warning, then SAR 5,000, rising to SAR 40,000 after the sixth time, with a 30-day periodicity. Not issuing tax invoices as the VAT Law requires is general violation 1: a warning, then SAR 10,000, up to SAR 50,000.
What are the e-invoicing violations in Saudi Arabia?
ZATCA's May 2024 guide lists eleven e-invoicing violations, numbered 8 to 18, including not integrating all systems, not sharing invoices with ZATCA or customers, not issuing on time, deleting or editing after issuance, not reporting faults, a missing QR code and missing fields.
Can an e-invoice be edited or deleted after it is issued?
No. Deleting an e-invoice or its e-note, or modifying either after issuance through the technical solution, is violation 12 (a warning, then SAR 5,000 to 40,000). Corrections are made with a credit or debit note referencing the original invoice; not issuing one when needed is a separate general violation (2).
What is the fine for a missing QR code on a simplified invoice?
Not including the QR code in an e-invoice or e-note is violation 15: a warning, then SAR 1,000, rising to SAR 40,000 after the sixth time, with a 60-day periodicity. The QR code has been mandatory on simplified invoices since 4 December 2021, and on all e-invoices from your Phase 2 wave.
Official sources
- ZATCA - Simplified guide to the classification of general VAT violations (2nd edition, May 2024, Arabic)
- ZATCA - VAT penalties
- ZATCA - E-invoicing Regulation
- ZATCA - E-invoicing Implementation Resolution
- ZATCA - E-invoicing Detailed Guidelines
- ZATCA - Fatoora Portal User Manual
- ZATCA - E-invoicing roll-out phases
- ZATCA - Wave 25 announcement