Saudi Arabia has extended the deadline for value-added-tax registration by one additional year for small businesses, the General Authority of Zakat and Tax said on its new VAT-dedicated website.

Businesses whose annual taxable supplies of goods and services do not exceed one million Saudi riyals ($266,659) will be exempt from the requirement to register by December 20th 2017. They will have have until 20th December 2018 to register, the authority said.

All entities whose annual taxable supplies exceed 375,000 riyals had been told they were legally required to register for VAT. However, companies that have an annual taxable supply of goods and services in excess of 187,500 riyals are eligible for voluntary registration, which provides the benefit of input tax deduction.

The authority’s board of directors earlier this week approved the VAT implementing regulations ahead of the official implementation of the tax on 1 January 2018.

© Zawya 2017