GOSI is Saudi Arabia's social insurance body. A new Social Insurance Law has applied since 3 July 2024 to Saudis entering the workforce for the first time, and its contribution rates rise every July until 2028. Self-employed Saudis can register voluntarily. Foreign freelancers do not join GOSI, but they meet Saudi withholding tax.
This post separates what I could confirm from official or reliable sources from what you should check on the GOSI portal yourself. Social insurance and tax rules change, so confirm anything that affects your money with an accountant.
What the new Social Insurance Law changed
The new law came into effect on 3 July 2024, and it applies to Saudi citizens entering the workforce for the first time from that date, according to Lockton's briefing on the reforms. People who were already contributing before that date stay under the previous system. So do Saudis who were close to retirement age or had at least 20 years of contributions on that date.
The same briefing says employee and employer contribution rates will each rise gradually from 9% to 11% of contributory wages, by 0.5 percentage points a year from 3 July 2025 to 2028. Mercans, a payroll provider, describes the new-system combined rate as 22.5% until July 2026 and 23.5% from 1 July 2026, with a further 0.5 percent a year through 2028, in its GOSI contributions glossary. The two sources frame the numbers differently, one per side and one combined, so read the GOSI schedule for the exact figure that applies to you.
The practical point is that the cost of social insurance for a new entrant is going up on a known schedule. If you are planning to register, budget for the higher rate rather than today's.
What I could not confirm for the self-employed
Many guides claim that self-employed Saudis pay a fixed percentage of a wage they choose themselves. I could not verify the exact rate, the wage band or the benefits on an official page, and neither of the sources above covers self-employed contributors. Treat any number you read in a blog, including this one, as a pointer to check, not an answer.
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What the sources do support is this. Voluntary registration is a feature of the system, the new law's reach includes people working outside a salaried job, and the amount you pay depends on a declared wage, not a payslip. Before you register, ask GOSI directly: what is the contribution rate for a self-employed person, what is the minimum and maximum declared wage, and which benefits does it buy.
The government has paid the first years before
Saudi Arabia has used incentives to bring freelancers into the system. The International Social Security Association describes a national freelance work program in which the government pays a freelancer's GOSI contribution for two years after the freelancer registers online, in its programme profile. The profile does not give amounts or a launch date.
That is a launch-era description. I found no current source confirming that the subsidy is still running or on what terms. If you are a Saudi national starting to freelance, check with the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development and the Human Resources Development Fund before you assume it exists. Do not budget on a subsidy you have not confirmed in writing.
Freelancer reviewing financial paperwork beside a laptop at a clean desk
E-invoicing keeps moving down the size scale
Separate from GOSI, the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA) is rolling out Phase 2 of its e-invoicing programme in waves based on annual revenue. Businesses issue structured invoices that are cleared through ZATCA's Fatoora platform for business-to-business and business-to-government sales, while simplified invoices to consumers are reported within 24 hours.
Wave 23, covering businesses with annual turnover above SAR 750,000, has been in effect since 31 March 2026. Wave 24, covering turnover above SAR 375,000, had an application deadline of 30 June 2026, and further waves are expected, according to The Invoicing Hub's guide to the mandate. Each wave lowers the revenue threshold, so a small business that has not been pulled in yet should plan on being in a later wave.
The effect on a freelancer who crosses the threshold is that an invoice stops being a PDF you email and becomes structured data cleared before it reaches the client. We cover the details in our plain guide to Saudi ZATCA e-invoicing. If you work with Saudi clients from outside the Kingdom, the guide to freelancing legally in Saudi Arabia covers who may do what.
Withholding tax for foreign freelancers
If you live outside Saudi Arabia and invoice a Saudi company for services, the tax you meet is withholding tax, not GOSI. Payments from a Saudi resident party to a non-resident for services are subject to withholding tax at 5%, 15% or 20%, depending on the type of service, and the tax is due within the first ten days of the month after the payment, according to PwC's Saudi Arabia tax summary.
PwC's page does not map each service to a rate, and other guides disagree on where consulting and technical work falls. That is a reason to ask the Saudi client's finance team which category they will apply before you quote a price. Three things follow in practice.
The gross invoice and the amount that lands in your account are not the same figure. Plan on the net.
The Saudi payer withholds and remits the tax, so the question for you is whose number appears on the paperwork.
If your country has a double-tax treaty with Saudi Arabia, relief may apply. PwC notes that treaty rates can differ and generally follow the OECD model. Give the Saudi client your tax residency certificate before they pay, because claiming relief afterwards is slow.
Ask the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development whether your activity needs a freelance work document.
Ask GOSI about voluntary registration: the rate, the wage band and the benefits.
Ask whether any subsidy is available now, and get the terms in writing.
Check which e-invoicing wave your turnover puts you in, and talk to your accountant before the deadline.
For a foreign freelancer with Saudi clients:
Ask the client which withholding category they will apply.
Send your tax residency certificate and any treaty paperwork up front.
Quote on the net figure you want to receive.
Make sure your invoices carry the details a Saudi finance team needs to process them: your name, address, tax or registration number where you have one, dates, line items and currency.
None of this is legal or tax advice. Check it with your accountant or lawyer.
How Delivvo fits when you invoice Saudi clients
Delivvo is not a GOSI tool and does not submit invoices to ZATCA's Fatoora platform. If your turnover puts you in an e-invoicing wave, you will need a ZATCA-connected solution for that, and your accountant can tell you which. What Delivvo does cover is everything between the first inquiry and the money arriving, in Arabic and English. Here is the flow.
A Saudi client fills in your inquiry form, which supports Arabic and English labels, and lands on your lead board.
You send a quote and the client accepts it. The contract is signed in the same flow, typed or drawn, with a signing record that stores a SHA-256 hash, the IP address and the device.
The client pays the deposit through your own payment gateway. Delivvo supports gateways used in the region, including Moyasar, Tap, PayTabs and others, as well as Stripe and PayPal. Delivvo takes 0%, and the money goes straight to you.
Invoices get sequential numbers in your own format. You can title them Tax Invoice, apply reverse charge and issue credit notes, and you can add your business details.
Documents can be produced in Arabic or English, so a client's finance team reads a document in its own language.
Every invoice, receipt and contract carries a verification code, which a client's accountant can check on the Verify page.
For withholding, the useful part is the record. You can keep the contract, the invoice and the payment history for each client in one place, which makes it easier to show your accountant the gross amount, what was paid, and what the client withheld. See invoices and tax for what the invoicing side includes.
FAQ
What is GOSI and does a freelancer have to join?
GOSI is the General Organization for Social Insurance, Saudi Arabia's social insurance body. Employees are enrolled by their employers. A self-employed Saudi can register voluntarily, according to the system as it is described by payroll guides. Confirm the current rules with GOSI.
Do foreign freelancers pay GOSI?
As a rule, no. GOSI is built around people working inside the Kingdom, so confirm your own case with GOSI. What foreign freelancers usually meet is withholding tax when a Saudi company pays them for services, at 5%, 15% or 20% depending on the type of service, according to PwC.
Is the GOSI subsidy for freelancers still available?
I could not confirm it. An international social security programme profile says the government paid freelancers' contributions for two years after online registration, but gives no current terms. Ask the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development before relying on it.
How much will contribution rates rise?
For people entering the system from 3 July 2024, employee and employer rates each rise from 9% to 11% of contributory wages by 0.5 percentage points a year from July 2025 to 2028, according to Lockton's briefing.
Does ZATCA e-invoicing apply to me?
If your annual turnover is above the threshold of the wave you fall in, yes. Wave 23 covers turnover above SAR 750,000 and wave 24 covers turnover above SAR 375,000, with further waves expected. Ask your accountant which applies.
Delivvo runs the whole client cycle for service businesses, from the first inquiry to the quote, contract, deposit, invoice and delivery, so a Saudi client's job is documented in Arabic and English from the first form to the final payment. Clients pay you directly through your own gateway, and Delivvo takes 0%. Start free
