ECONOMIC Cities Authority (ECA) held a joint workshop with the Department of Zakat and Income Tax to familiarize investors with the Saudi taxation system. Held at King Abdullah Economic City's Bay La Sun Hotel, the workshop outlined the benefits of the system and the incentives it has to offer to businesses and corporations. Senior officials from Emaar, The Economic City and a number of investors in economic cities attended the workshop. DZIT was represented by Mansour bin Muhammad Mohayya, Director of Programs and Follow-up. In the workshop's two sessions the DZIT delegation discussed the duty of verifying and collecting Zakat and taxes, as well as the department's vision towards spreading awareness about roles and performance, and the ongoing development and improvements of the services it offers. In a closed session, DZIT's team familiarized economic cities' investors with the department's procedures, such as how tax brackets are determined, how taxes are calculated, and how to register and what documentation is needed. They also talked about how foreign corporations are treated, and what incentives the Kingdom's tax system has to offer them. "The Kingdom has a unique Zakat and tax system that differs from all other systems," said Mohanud Helal, ECA's Secretary General. "Given the vital role economic cities play in bringing foreign and regional investments into the Kingdom, we held this workshop to reach out to investors and ensure that they are familiar with all zakat and income tax laws in the Kingdom, which would spare them any complications or challenges later. This is a priority of ECA in its effort to streamline business operations for investors." Helal thanked the General Manager of the DZIT, Ibrahim bin Muhammad Mufleh, for his agency's cooperation with the investors in the economic cities. On the sidelines of the workshop, future cooperation plans between ECA and DZIT were discussed, along with ways to streamline business in the economic cities, which will ultimately raise its appeal for investments and projects.
