Okaz/Saudi Gazette RIYADH — The Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) General Authority (Monshaat) has begun refunding government fees to some small and medium enterprises as part of a government fee recovery initiative after the service was previously limited to companies only. The fee exemption will be for a period of three years or until reaching the maximum amount of refund allotted to the firms concerned. Okaz/Saudi Gazette learnt from sources that government fee refund is applicable to firms that are operating currently in 10 sectors covering 2,040 areas. They include real estate sector with 11 areas; financial and insurance sector with 72 areas; professional, scientific and technical activities with 167 areas; education with 92 areas; the manufacturing industries with 1,331 areas; arts and entertainment sector with 53 areas; information and communications with 95 areas; transportation and storage with 121 areas; accommodation and food services with 23 areas; and public health and social work with 75 areas. The Ministry of Commerce and Investment has prepared a research guide for the National Directory of Economic Activities through which the owners of firms can find their field of activity. It would enable them to understand which sector their activity comes under and whether their sector would fall under the government fee refund initiative announced by the Authority. The initiative was designed, in cooperation with the Ministry of Finance, as part of the plan to stimulate the private sector by encouraging the entry of new establishments into the labor market and enhance opportunities for sustainability and support during the first three years after starting their businesses. The refund will be applicable to the following categories of government fee: fee for obtaining commercial registration; subscription fee for the Chamber of Commerce and Industry; fee for registration of trademark; fee for publishing the contract of the firm's establishment; fee for the municipality license, and fee for licenses for economic activities. Expatriate workers are the beneficiaries of 80 percent of this financial compensation. The SMEs can have the details of the refund entitled to them from the authority's website. They have to fulfill certain conditions for getting the advantage of refund. These include the start of the economic activity of the establishment in 2016 and after, and that the status of commercial activities should be active. The number of employees in the establishments affiliated with the owner should range between one and 249 employees, and they are in the Nitaqat green category with revenues not exceeding SR200 million.
