Here's a look at incentives offered by Saudi Arabia to foreign investors

Saudi Arabia's Future Investment Initiative (FII) started in Riyadh on Tuesday, as the Kingdom seeks to attract more investors from the business world.

Last year, the Kingdom attracted $1.4 billion of foreign investment, UNCTAD data showed.

The Saudi government has also issued a broad range of tax incentives in Hail, Jazan, Najran, Al-Baha, Al-Jouf, and the Northern Border Area, including:

- A 50 percent discount on annual training costs of Saudi manpower;

- A 50 percent discount of annual wages paid to the Saudi employees;

- Additional discounts are allowed, provided that the capital invested is more than SAR 1 million, and in case more than 5 nationals were hired for at least one year in administrative or technical jobs.

Incentives offered for foreign investors are as follows:  

- Foreigners are entitled for a 100 percent ownership of companies and land plots;

- No restrictions on capital repatriation;

- No income tax is levied and foreign companies are subject to a 20 percent tax on annual profit;

- Deferred losses can be carried over within balance sheet for unlimited time;

- Foreign investors may seek financing from local and international financial institutions, including Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development (AFESD), Arab Monetary Fund, Arab Trade Financing Program, Arab Investment Guarantee Corp and Islamic Development Bank.

The Kingdom issued other financial incentives aimed at enhancing national as well as foreign investment:

- The Human Resources Development Fund will support activities related to rehabilitation, training and employment of the Saudi labor force;

- Competitive prices for utilities in commercial and industrial projects;

- Financial grants for research and development in King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), and King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology (KACST). 

Other industrial incentives in the Kingdom include building industrial cities across the Kingdom and providing services at affordable rates.

As for the customs tariff exemption, industrial entities in the Kingdom have the right to obtain a customs exemption on some imports:

- Raw Materials;

- Machinery, tools and equipment;

- Spare parts of machinery, tools and equipment.