How to buy from abroad, step by step

Updated September 2026

Every application goes through REGA’s Saudi Properties platform. The steps below reflect the published rules as of September 2026; details can change as the platform evolves.

1. Check eligibility and your goal. Confirm you meet the requirements, that the city and zone allow what you want, and what right you will get.
2. Get a Saudi digital identity. Non-residents obtain an electronic ID issued through the Ministry of Interior, arranged via Saudi missions abroad.
3. Open a Saudi bank account in your own name and obtain a local contact number. The Implementing Regulations make both a requirement for non-resident individuals.
4. Choose the property and check it. Zone status on the official map, the seller’s title or the developer’s licence to sell off-plan, the contract and the price.
5. Apply on the Saudi Properties platform. Applications, approvals and payments are handled electronically, with payments running through Saudi Central Bank infrastructure.
6. Pay the tax and fees. RETT and the non-Saudi fee. See Costs, taxes and fees.
7. Register your right. The transfer is recorded in the national Real Estate Registry and the title issued electronically. Until this happens, the property is not legally yours.

Buying off-plan

Many units in the Holy Cities are sold before completion. Check that the project is licensed for off-plan sale, that payments go to the project’s escrow account, and what happens if completion is late.

Buying through a company

Companies follow a separate route, registering through the Invest Saudi platform and obtaining a Saudi unified number. In the Holy Cities corporate ownership is tightly limited. Take specific advice.