E-commerce store verification in Saudi Arabia (Business Platform): steps, conditions and what your store must show
Store verification in Saudi Arabia now runs through the Business Platform (business.sa), not Maroof: since 29 March 2023 the Ministry of Commerce has made it the only approved platform for verifying online stores. You apply with a valid commercial registration or freelance document and a commercial bank account linked to the store, and receive the "E-Commerce Authentication Certificate", whose badge you display on your store.
The certificate is issued by the Saudi Business Center, which Council of Ministers Decision 662 (March 2026) merges into the Saudi Center for Competitiveness and Business; both centres keep operating until the merger is complete.
Reviewed by Taha Farhane, Founder, Arqam360Last reviewed
Is store verification mandatory?
The E-Commerce Law does not make verification a standalone obligation: Article 6(a) requires a seller to disclose its name and address "unless registered with an e-shop authentication entity", so verification is an alternative to that disclosure. The Ministry of Commerce has "invited" stores to verify, while Salla and Zid treat it as a core requirement. Verified stores are the ones shoppers can look up through the public inquiry service.
Conditions and documents
- A valid commercial registration, or a valid freelance document.
- A commercial bank account linked to the store, not an account in an individual’s name; the Ministry warns shoppers against transferring to personal accounts.
- A National Single Sign-On (Nafath, via Absher) login for the Business Platform.
- A store domain whose ownership you can prove with a DNS record, and a store link that is not a social-media profile (per Zid).
Salla’s help articles list further conditions that disagree with each other, such as nationality and bank-account type, so check them on the Business Platform’s service page before applying.
How to verify your store on the Business Platform
- Go to the Business Platform, open the online-store verification service and press “Start service”.
- Sign in through Nafath with your Absher credentials and complete your registration.
- Search “توثيق” and choose “Issue e-commerce authentication”.
- Choose the document (commercial registration or freelance document), press “Submit request” and accept the terms.
- Enter the store details and the bank account (IBAN).
- Prove domain ownership by adding a TXT record on @ with the value the platform gives you, then press “Verify ownership”.
- Submit and track the request under “My requests”; status updates arrive by SMS.
These steps are as Salla’s and Zid’s help centres describe them. Salla says issuance is free with no government fee and that the domain check can take up to 12 hours; we found no official source confirming the fee or the timing.
Where to show the certificate on your store
The Implementing Regulation requires a verified seller to display the verification statement clearly on its store, and to notify the verifying entity of any change in its data within 30 days (Article 16). On Salla: Store design → Header and footer → Footer settings → “Business Platform certificate”, then enter the authentication number. On Zid: Dashboard → Online store → Store identity, then add the authentication number. On a custom-built or WordPress site, put the badge and number in the footer with a link to the verification check.
What your store must show under the E-Commerce Law
| Name and address, unless the store is verified | Law, Art. 6(a) |
| Contact information | Law, Art. 6(b) |
| Commercial registration name and number, if any | Law, Art. 6(c) |
| A privacy policy covering personal-data protection and how “user-identification files” (cookies) are handled, if used | Regulation, Art. 6(1)(a) |
| Complaint procedure and channels | Regulation, Art. 6(1)(b) |
| VAT number, if any | Regulation, Art. 6(1)(c) |
| Terms and conditions, total price including tax and delivery, and payment and delivery terms, before the contract | Law, Art. 7 |
| A 7-day right of withdrawal from receipt, with the listed exceptions | Law, Art. 13 |
Verification and personal data
Verification does not check a store’s compliance with the Personal Data Protection Law or its visitors’ cookie consent. But the E-Commerce Implementing Regulation bars using consumer data for advertising or marketing without "explicit prior consent", requires notifying the Ministry and the consumer of a breach within 3 days, and requires compliance with the data-protection laws of the competent authorities (Article 5), which include the PDPL. A verified store still needs a clear privacy policy and the visitor’s consent before analytics and advertising tags run.
Questions about store verification
- Does Maroof still verify stores?
- No. Since 29 March 2023 the Ministry of Commerce has moved store verification to the Business Platform instead of Maroof, making it the only approved platform. You apply online at business.sa.
- Can I verify a store without a commercial registration?
- Yes, with a valid freelance document instead, plus a commercial bank account. The Law itself defines a "practitioner" as someone trading online without being in the Commercial Register.
- How much does store verification cost?
- Salla says issuing the certificate through the Business Platform is free, with no government fee. We found no official source confirming this, so check the service page before applying.
- How do I check that an online store is verified?
- Use the verified-store inquiry service at eauthenticate.saudibusiness.gov.sa/inquiry. The Ministry warns against transferring to personal bank accounts, because verified stores use commercial accounts linked to the store.
- Does verification mean my store complies with PDPL?
- No. Verification establishes the seller’s identity and bank account; it does not check the privacy policy or visitors’ cookie consent. Those are required by the PDPL and the E-Commerce Implementing Regulation.
Sources
- Ministry of Commerce: verification moves to the Business Platform (29 Mar 2023)
- Ministry of Commerce: complaints about verified stores (3 Sep 2023)
- E-Commerce Law (official English translation)
- E-Commerce Law Implementing Regulation (Arabic)
- Council of Ministers Decision 662 (Umm Al-Qura)
- Zid help: verifying your store on the Business Platform
This page is general information, not legal advice. Arqam360 is independent and not affiliated with the Saudi Business Center or the Ministry of Commerce.