Tax Appellate Committee Saudi Arabia: Appeal Deadline, Finality

The first-level circuit rejected a trading company's objection to a tax assessment worth SAR 640,000. The manager read on an old website that he has 60 days to appeal and can then go to the Board of Grievances. Both points come from a repealed text. Relying on them could make the decision final before he acts.

The direct answer: a first-level decision is appealed before the appellate circuits of the Zakat, Tax and Customs Committees within 30 days from the day after you receive it, through the GSTC electronic system (Article 34 of the Rules of Work). The appellate decision is final and cannot be challenged before any other judicial body, including the Board of Grievances (Income Tax Law, Article 67(7)).

What is the Appellate Committee for Tax Violations and Disputes?

Article 67(5) of the Income Tax Law, as amended by Royal Decree M/113 dated 2/11/1438H, created it to decide objections against first-level decisions. It has specialised circuits of three members and one alternate with legal or accounting qualifications; the chair and at least one member must be legally qualified, and they are appointed by royal order for renewable four-year terms (Article 67(6)).

It now works within the General Secretariat of the Zakat, Tax and Customs Committees under the Rules of Work of the Zakat, Tax and Customs Committees (Royal Order No. 25711 dated 8/4/1445H). Article 3 of the Rules gives the appellate circuits jurisdiction over objections to first-level decisions in zakat, tax and customs cases.

When is a first-level decision final without appeal?

Article 33 of the Rules lists three cases:

• Cases where the amounts payable do not exceed SAR 50,000.
• The appeal period ends with no appeal.
• The parties settle or confirm a settlement before the first-level circuit.

So if SAR 45,000 is in dispute, put all your effort into the first stage. It is also the last.

What is the deadline to appeal?

Thirty days starting the day after you receive the decision. The appeal is filed through the GSTC electronic system with the decision details, the grounds and your requests, and is registered from the filing date. If information is missing, you have 15 days from notice to complete it, or the circuit may rule it inadmissible (Article 34).

ZATCA is also a party and may appeal a decision in your favour. Do not treat a first-level win as the end until the 30 days have passed. Statements online that the appeal period is 60 days and that the appellate decision can go to the Board of Grievances within 60 days come from the old Article 66 of the Income Tax Law before its amendment. They no longer apply.

What does the appellate circuit do with my file?

It hears the case with pleadings, in person or remotely, and limits itself to reviewing the file in the cases set out in Article 37 of the Rules. If the decision is correct in result, it upholds it and may add reasons; if it cancels it, it rules on the cancelled part after hearing the parties.

If the first-level decision carries expedited enforcement, which the circuit may order when it fears irreparable harm (Article 32), you may ask the appellate circuit to stay it if your grounds may lead to reversal (Article 36).

Can the appellate decision be challenged?

Not before any other judicial body (Income Tax Law, Article 67(7)). The only route left is a petition for reconsideration of the final decision, filed by any party through the electronic system and decided by the circuit that issued it (Rules, Articles 40 and 41).

Reconsideration is not a second appeal. For matters the Rules do not cover, Article 48 refers to the Law of Civil Procedure before Sharia Courts, the Law of Criminal Procedure and the Law of Procedure before the Board of Grievances. Article 200 of the Law of Civil Procedure limits reconsideration to cases such as forged documents discovered after judgment, decisive documents that could not be produced earlier, fraud by the other party, or a ruling on something not requested.

Also note the limitation rule: claims in tax disputes are not heard after five years from the due date of the amount or from knowledge of the facts, unless the committee accepts an excuse (Income Tax Law, Article 67(8)).

The company received the first-level decision on a Sunday. The 30 days start on Monday. It filed its appeal on day 20 with supplier contracts and the auditor's report, and asked to stay expedited enforcement because the decision carried it. Had it waited for the period on the old website, the decision would have become final on day 31.

Practical steps for both sides

If you are the taxpayer who lost at first level:

• Count 30 days from the day after you received the decision, not from its issue date.
• Check that the amount exceeds SAR 50,000; otherwise the decision is final.
• Make your grounds specific: where the circuit erred on the facts or the law.
• If the decision carries expedited enforcement, ask for a stay in the appeal itself.
• Complete any missing information within 15 days of notice.

If you are the taxpayer who won at first level:

• Do not close the file before 30 days pass; ZATCA may appeal.
• Prepare your answer to ZATCA's likely grounds and keep your original documents.
• If an appeal is filed, attend the hearings and do not leave the circuit with an incomplete file.
• Once the decision is final, ask ZATCA to settle your account under it.

This is general information based on the official Arabic texts of Saudi laws, which prevail over any translation. It is not legal advice for your specific case.

If you received a first-level decision and want to assess an appeal before the deadline runs out, send the decision and your statement of claim on WhatsApp and we will review them with you.