Buying Property in Saudi Arabia: What the New Foreign Ownership Law Changes

Draft note for the editor: implementing regulations were still being developed at the time of writing. Confirm the current position with REGA and Saudi counsel before publishing, and update the zones and process sections if the executive regulations have since been issued.

Saudi Arabia has passed a new law expanding the right of non Saudis to own real estate. For anyone in the Gulf who has watched the Saudi market from the outside, it is the most consequential change in years.

We have offices in Riyadh and Jeddah, and this is the question we are asked most often. Here is what is settled and what is not.

What the law does

The Cabinet approved a new framework for non Saudi real estate ownership, with an expected effective date in early 2026 following publication in the official gazette.

The core change: non Saudis, both individuals and companies, may own real estate within designated zones across the Kingdom, with Riyadh and Jeddah specifically referenced.

The Real Estate General Authority, REGA, is responsible for defining those zones and for issuing the implementing regulations that determine how the framework actually operates.

The zones are the whole question

This is the point most coverage skips. The law creates the mechanism. REGA defines where it applies.

Until the designated zones are published and mapped, "foreigners can buy in Saudi Arabia" is true as a statement of principle and incomplete as a basis for a decision. A property inside a designated zone and a property two streets outside it are entirely different propositions.

Before you commit to anything, establish that the specific plot or unit sits inside a designated zone, and get that confirmed in writing.

Makkah and Madinah are different

Foreign ownership in Makkah and Madinah is contemplated but subject to additional regulatory controls beyond those applying elsewhere.

Treat these two cities as a separate regime requiring specific local advice, not as an extension of the Riyadh and Jeddah position.

What it complements rather than replaces

The new framework sits alongside existing routes rather than removing them.

Saudi Arabia's Premium Residency programme already carried property ownership rights for holders, and companies licensed under the investment framework have had routes to hold real estate for their operations. Those mechanisms continue.

For an individual buyer, the practical question is which route fits: the new designated zone framework, Premium Residency, or a corporate structure. They have different costs, different timelines and different consequences, and it is a question for a Saudi adviser rather than an article.

Why buyers in Qatar are interested

Three reasons come up repeatedly.

Scale. Riyadh's development pipeline is enormous, and the population and employment growth behind it is real.

Diversification. Gulf investors holding only Qatari property are exposed to one market, one currency peg and one regulatory environment. Saudi adds a second.

Timing. Early access to a market that has just opened carries the usual argument, and the usual risk. Markets that open quickly can also reprice quickly.

What to establish before you buy

• That the property sits within a designated zone, confirmed in writing.

• Which ownership route applies to you, and what it requires.

• The title position and whether there are any encumbrances registered.

• For off plan: the developer's registration status and the escrow arrangement, which work similarly in principle to Qatar's.

• The total transaction cost, including any transaction tax, registration fees and agency commission.

• The tax position on rental income and on eventual disposal, for your specific circumstances.

• Whether ownership carries any residency consequence, and on what terms.

A word of caution

A newly opened market attracts a great deal of confident commentary, much of it written before the implementing regulations exist. Be sceptical of anything that describes the process in precise procedural detail right now, including this article, which is deliberately general for that reason.

Take advice from a qualified Saudi lawyer on the specific transaction. That is not a disclaimer; it is the actual recommendation.

We operate in Riyadh and Jeddah alongside Qatar and can tell you what is genuinely available in each. Talk to our team about the Saudi market, or see our current off plan projects across the region.

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