Saudi Arabia has secured 62 market access deals in goods and services since joining the World Trade Organization, alongside 379 rounds of in person and virtual negotiations, and 42 laws and regulations enacted to fulfill its pre-accession commitments, the General Authority for Foreign Trade said in a report.
The kingdom became the WTO’s 149th member in December 2005 after 12 years of talks, a milestone that reshaped Saudi Arabia’s trade landscape and pushed it toward deeper global integration.
Accession paved the way for foreign investment, expanded non oil exports, strengthened the commercial ecosystem and enhanced transparency and international dispute settlement in line with WTO rules.
This month marks two decades since Saudi Arabia entered the global trade body, a period defined by sweeping reforms, expanding partnerships and a more assertive Saudi presence in international commerce.
Decision making role
Over the past 20 years, Saudi Arabia has steadily grown its influence within the WTO, moving from a new entrant to an active participant in global rulemaking.
Riyadh continues to overhaul its commercial framework to stimulate economic activity.
Key changes include the Commercial Register Law, the Trade Names Law, amendments to the Precious Metals and Gemstones Law, and updated executive regulations governing private laboratories.
The new Commercial Register and Trade Names laws aim to streamline business operations and ease regulatory burdens by consolidating company documentation into a single nationwide register and tightening procedures for reserving and protecting trade names.
Both laws align with Saudi Arabia’s accelerating economic and digital transformation under Vision 2030.
The Commercial Register Law, which comprises 29 articles, improves the ease of doing business by regulating registration procedures, ensuring data accuracy, mandating regular updates and making information readily accessible to investors and regulators.
Commercial register
The revamped system introduces a centralized electronic database that records traders’ names and key information, and sets out clearly defined responsibilities and procedures for registration.
It simplifies commercial activity by abolishing branch level records for firms and establishments. Instead, each entity will operate under one unified commercial register covering all activities nationwide, a shift expected to reduce costs and administrative burdens.
The law grants companies and sole proprietorships a five year transition period to settle existing branch records. Options include transferring a sole proprietorship’s branch record to another party as a main record, converting a branch record into a standalone company, or canceling the branch record and moving its assets and activities to the main register.
The legislation also obliges businesses to open bank accounts directly linked to their commercial entities to bolster credibility and ensure the integrity of financial transactions.
It eliminates the requirement to renew commercial registers and removes expiry dates altogether. Instead, businesses must complete an annual electronic confirmation of their data. Registers are suspended after a three month delay and deleted automatically after one year of suspension.
The law also introduces alternative enforcement tools that emphasize compliance over punitive action, including formal warnings and compulsory correction of violations.
