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Glossary

Every term you meet in Clix, on the Fatoora portal or in a letter from ZATCA, in one or two plain sentences. Terms are in alphabetical order.

Each entry gives:

  • Arabic: the term used in the Arabic docs. It comes from the Clix Arabic glossary where that has one, otherwise from ZATCA's Arabic text. A dash means neither has a term yet. Codes and acronyms stay in Latin script.
  • In Clix: where you see it.
  • Read more: the Clix page that explains it, and the page of ZATCA's document that defines it, where one does.

A · B · C · D · E · F · I · N · O · P · Q · R · S · T · U · V · W · Z

A

Advance payment invoice

An invoice for money a customer pays before you deliver. VAT is due on an advance when you receive it, and the final invoice later deducts what was already invoiced.

B

B2B and B2C

B2B means business to business: you sell to a company. B2C means business to consumer: you sell to a person. B2B sales usually get a standard tax invoice and B2C sales a simplified one.

Buyer ID

An extra number that identifies a buyer who has no VAT number, such as a commercial registration or a national ID. ZATCA lists which IDs count and in what order to use them.

C

Clearance

ZATCA checks a standard invoice before it is valid. If the invoice meets ZATCA's rules, ZATCA stamps it and sends it back, and only then may you share it with the buyer.

Credit note

A document that reduces an invoice you already issued: a return, a late discount, an overcharge or a cancellation. The original invoice stays as it is, and the note points to it.

Cryptographic stamp

An electronic seal on an invoice. It proves who issued the invoice and that nobody changed it afterwards. ZATCA stamps standard invoices when it clears them; your invoicing system stamps simplified invoices.

CSID (compliance and production)

The certificate ZATCA issues to one invoicing unit. It ties the unit to your business, and the unit signs every invoice with it. ZATCA first issues a compliance CSID, used while the unit passes ZATCA's test invoices, then a production CSID (PCSID), used for real invoices.

  • Arabic: شهادة CSID / شهادة PCSID; ZATCA's Arabic: معرّف ختم التشفير
  • In Clix: Clix requests both when you connect to ZATCA; the connection reads Active once it holds the production one. The Compliance tab of ZATCA Connections shows each certificate's Valid Until date. Renew certificate replaces an expiring one.
  • Read more: Devices, certificates and branches · ZATCA: E-Invoicing Detailed Guidelines §2.10, p. 10. The split into compliance and production CSIDs comes from ZATCA's technical onboarding guideline, which is not among the documents these pages cite.

D

Debit note

A document that increases an invoice you already issued: an undercharge, extra goods or a missed fee. The original invoice stays as it is, and the note points to it.

Draft

An invoice you have saved but not issued. It is not a tax document yet, ZATCA has not seen it, and you can still change it.

  • Arabic: مسودة
  • In Clix: Save as Draft on the invoice form. You can share a draft with your client for approval before you issue it.
  • Read more: Invoices → Save a draft and finish it later. ZATCA's documents do not use the term.

E

E-invoice

A tax invoice generated and stored in a structured electronic format by electronic means. A paper invoice that is scanned or copied is not an e-invoice.

EGS unit (ZATCA connection)

EGS stands for E-Invoice Generation Solution: the system that produces your e-invoices. A unit is one registered part of it, such as one till, with its own certificate and its own chain of invoices. Every unit that issues invoices under your VAT number must be registered with ZATCA.

Exempt

A supply on which no VAT is charged and for which the seller cannot recover the VAT on related costs, such as some financial services and residential real estate. Fully exempt supplies need no tax invoice and are outside e-invoicing.

Export invoice

A standard tax invoice for goods that leave Saudi Arabia, or for services to a buyer with no residence in the GCC. Every line is zero-rated, and the invoice carries no buyer VAT number.

F

FATOORA (portal)

ZATCA's e-invoicing platform, at fatoora.zatca.gov.sa. It receives invoice data from invoicing systems, and it is where you register (onboard) each unit and see the units you have registered.

I

Input VAT

The VAT you pay your suppliers on purchases. You deduct it from the VAT you charged your customers.

Invoice counter (ICV)

A number inside each invoice's XML that goes up by one for every invoice and note a unit issues. It cannot be reset, so a gap shows that a document is missing. ICV stands for invoice counter value.

N

National address

The official Saudi address of a building: building number (4 digits), street, district, city and postal code (5 digits). ZATCA requires it for the seller, and for a buyer in Saudi Arabia on a standard invoice.

O

Onboarding

Registering an invoicing unit with ZATCA. You get a one-time code from the Fatoora portal, enter it in the invoicing system, and ZATCA issues the unit its certificate.

OTP (Fatoora code)

A one-time password: the six-digit code the Fatoora portal gives you to register one unit. It is valid for one hour.

Out of scope (not subject to VAT)

A supply that VAT does not reach at all, such as a sale between members of the same VAT group. Unlike an exempt supply, it is not a VAT supply of any kind.

Output VAT

The VAT you charge your customers on sales. You pay it to ZATCA, less your input VAT.

P

PDF/A-3

A PDF made for long-term archiving that can carry other files inside it. ZATCA lets you give an invoice to your buyer as a PDF/A-3 with the invoice's XML embedded.

Phase 1 and Phase 2

The two stages of Saudi e-invoicing. Phase 1, generation, applied from 4 December 2021: invoices must be generated and stored electronically. Phase 2, integration, applies from 1 January 2023 in waves: your invoicing system must also connect to ZATCA.

Previous invoice hash (PIH)

A fingerprint of the previous invoice, stored inside each new one. It links a unit's invoices into a chain, so deleting or replacing one breaks the chain.

Q

QR code

A square barcode printed on the invoice. Scanning it shows the seller, VAT number, time, total and VAT, and lets anyone make a basic check that the invoice is genuine.

R

Reconciliation

Matching each line of your bank statement to the invoice or bill it paid, so your records agree with the bank.

  • Arabic: التسوية البنكية
  • In Clix: after you upload a bank statement, Link on a statement line records the payment and marks the line Matched.
  • Read more: Reconcile. ZATCA does not define the term; it lists bank statements among the records you must keep (Tax Invoicing guideline §8.2, p. 40).

Rejection

ZATCA's answer when an invoice has at least one fatal error. The invoice is not valid. You cannot resubmit it; you fix the cause and issue a new invoice.

Reporting

Sending a simplified invoice to ZATCA after you have issued it. The invoice is valid when you issue it, and ZATCA must receive it within 24 hours.

Retention

How long you must keep invoices and records: at least six years from the end of the tax period, and 15 years for real estate. Records must be kept in the Kingdom.

S

SAR and exchange rate

SAR is the Saudi riyal. You may invoice in any currency, but the VAT must be shown in SAR, converted at the Saudi Central Bank's daily rate on the day the tax is due.

Simplified tax invoice

A shorter tax invoice, usually for a sale to a consumer (B2C). It need not name the buyer. It is valid when you issue it and is reported to ZATCA afterwards.

Standard tax invoice

The full tax invoice, usually for a sale to a business (B2B) and required for any supply over SAR 1,000. It names the buyer, and ZATCA must clear it before it is valid.

Supply date

The date you delivered the goods or finished the service. A standard invoice must show it; ZATCA asks for it on the invoice when it differs from the issue date.

T

Tax point

The date VAT becomes due. It is the earliest of three dates: when you supply, when you issue the tax invoice, or when you are paid (to the extent of the payment).

U

UBL 2.1 XML

The file format of a Saudi e-invoice. XML is a structured text format computers read; UBL 2.1 is the international standard that fixes which fields an invoice has and where they go.

UUID

A long random identifier given to each invoice and note, unique across every business. It is separate from your invoice number.

V

VAT

Value added tax: a tax on goods and services, collected at each stage of the supply chain. The standard rate in Saudi Arabia is 15%.

VAT group

Two or more related companies resident in the Kingdom, under common control of 50% or more, registered for VAT as one. The group has one VAT registration number, and sales between its members are outside the scope of VAT.

VAT registration number

The 15-digit number on your VAT registration certificate. It starts and ends with 3, and it must appear on your invoices.

VAT return

The form you file with ZATCA for each tax period. It shows the VAT you charged and the VAT you paid, and you pay the difference. The period is three months, or one month if your yearly revenue is over SAR 40 million. You file and pay by the last day of the month after the period.

VATEX reason code

ZATCA's code for why a line carries no VAT, such as VATEX-SA-32 for an export of goods. Every zero-rated or exempt line needs one.

W

Warning

ZATCA's answer when an invoice has no fatal error but something is not right, such as a missing building number. The invoice is accepted and valid. ZATCA says warnings may become rejections in future.

Z

ZATCA

The Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority: the Saudi government body that collects zakat, taxes and customs duties. It runs VAT and e-invoicing.

Zero-rated

A supply that is taxable but at 0%, such as an export. Unlike an exempt supply, the seller can still recover the VAT on related costs.

ZATCA documents cited

All are ZATCA's official publications. Where the English and Arabic texts differ, ZATCA says the Arabic prevails. The full list, with Arabic editions, is in ZATCA e-invoicing in Clix → ZATCA sources.