PwC’s Annual Tax & Zakat Conference: Three Cities, Three Days of Compelling Debate and Discussions With Saudi’s Leading Organisations

PwC’s annual Saudi Tax & Zakat Conference attracted over 350 key Saudi and multinational companies in a series of workshops that took place in Jeddah, Riyadh and Khobar, last week.

The event was focused on providing updates around the tax & zakat landscape, and looked at the opportunities & challenges of doing business in KSA. The event also covered the far-reaching economic, fiscal and regulatory developments in the Kingdom that are impacting businesses, and the steps companies need to take to transform their organisations and prosper in the digital era.

Topics centred around the role of technology and its potential to play a significant role in the transformation and fulfillment of Saudi’s vision. Other topics on the agenda included, among others, debriefs on the latest on transfer pricing, VAT and Zakat regulations, as well as updates on IFRS 16 and IFRIC 23.

Some of Saudi’s leading figures were invited to take part in lively panel discussions over the course of the three days and the three cities in which these events were hosted.

PwC’s Middle East Tax Leader, Mark Schofield provided insights on the overall tax landscape saying: “Seeing a significant increase in attendance this year is a clear reflection of all the changes that are going on in the tax environment. A lot of these changes are due to Vision 2030 and the opening up of the economy. We see KSA participating in international agreements around taxation, which in turn is driving a lot of the change businesses are having to deal with on-ground. Another factor affecting the tax landscape is the foreign investment influx in the Kingdom. The role of tax in technology and global tax trends that will develop in KSA, as well as OECD’s importance in relation to tax, are just some of the areas organizations should consider in response to these changes.”

Mohammed Yaghmour, PwC Tax Leader in Saudi said: “It was a pleasure to welcome and speak to over 350 market pioneers, to discuss how the tax landscape is changing at a tremendous rate, becoming more & more complex and affecting the way we do business. Each organization needs to develop the proper expertise and know-how in order to respond to tax authorities in a timely manner to avoid any challenges. If your organization isn’t set up to quickly respond to authorities, we are here to help guide and support you with our vast network of experts.”

Overall, the pace of change in Saudi Arabia is unlikely to slow down and we are looking forward to seeing new topics arise in next year’s conference and analyse how they compare to the key issues discussed in this year’s conference.