No, the certificate of conformity is issued under the name of the importer who obtained it.
Failure to comply with this program may cause clearance delays or the return of the shipment.
To ensure that the product conforms to the relevant Saudi technical regulations and specifications, and it does not affect the safety and health of the consumer.
You should provide all the information and the technical files for the registered products mentioned below, and submit it to facilitate and speed up the process of obtaining a conformity certificate for the products:
The time required to issue a conformity certificate depends on the regulations that the product belongs to, and providing the required documents (e.g. technical reports) to the conformity assessment body at the soonest time.
No, the product must be added as a new product and required another conformity certificate since the manufacturer or country of origin has been changed.
The Saudi importer or the local manufacturer is reasonable for issuing saber certificates, since they will responsible for these items in the Saudi market.
You can check the required certificate for your products via Saber platform, based on KSA Customs Tariff Code or the HS Code.
Saber product certificate of conformity is valid for one year, while, the shipment certificate of conformity is valid for each consignment only.
SASO didn’t set fixed fees for conformity bodies for the certification issuance, but, there are fixed governmental fees called the SADAD.
The duration to issue Saber certificate varies from 2 working days until 10 working days.
Technical documents, such as: test reports, quality management certificates, risk assessment reports, specification photo of the products, if available, etc.
Some products such as the lightings, sanitary ware, and telecommunication devices require additional certificates to be imported, such as the EER, WRC, and CITC.
The certificate of conformity shall be issued by an accredited certification company at the country of origin and shall be attested. In addition, the certificate shall state that the product complies with Saudi standards issued by the Saudi Standards, Metrology and Quality Organization (SASO) and/or GSO Standards.
It is not permitted to import cosmetic products unless the certificate of conformity states that the product complies with SASO standards and/or GSO Standard.
The Notified Body must also ensure the manufacturing has a production quality system implemented in order to confirm that the product is being manufactured in accordance to the technical specifications.
No, there is no need for a legal representative in Saudi Arabia. However, in case you had importers in Saudi Arabia, you need to provide SASO with their declaration and pay their certificate fees.
The purpose of the shipment exemption certificate is to expedite and facilitate the clearance of noncommercial products shipments.
Saudi Standards, Metrology and Quality Organization (SASO) are responsible for studying and reviewing shipment exemption requests and taking the decision for the request whether it’s approved or rejected.
Usually, Saudi Standards, Metrology and Quality Organization (SASO) quality team takes from 7 to 10 working days to check the exemption request and study the submitted documents.
The cost of submitting a shipment exemption request is 402 SAR, same as the shipment certificate of conformity. These fees are nonrefundable is the request wasn’t accepted.
The required documents vary according to the purpose of the request; contact SABERSAUDI’s team to know the exemption purposes and the required documents.
Previously, SASO allowed only 30 products to be listed in each exemption request, but since December 2020, SASO extended the quantity of products to a 100 product/request. To cut down the number of requests and the submission fees.
No matter, you still need to comply with the SASO certification scheme for your products.
The documents review and certification issuance takes from 5 to 21 working days. Based on the submitted documents, if sufficient and valid, the certification body will issue the certificate within one week.
After the issuance of the Saudi IECEE Recognition certificate, it must be linked to your Saber account, in order to be able to issue the Saber Shipment Certificate of Conformity (SCOC).
The IECEE CB Scheme, or CB process, is an international system for mutual recognition of test results and certificates in the field of electric and electronic component, production equipment and product safety. It is based on a multilateral agreement among participating countries and certification organizations. The primary goal of the IECEE CB Scheme is to facilitate international trade of electrotechnical products; it offers manufacturers a simplified way to receive worldwide country-specific certificates.
The IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) uses the term IECEE for the “IEC System for Conformity Testing and Certification of Electrical and Electronic Components, Equipment and Products.” The abbreviation “CB” means “Certification Body.”
The CB Scheme offers benefits to manufacturers who want to export their products to countries that participate in the CB process. Among these advantages is the choice of NCB, centralized product testing from one NCB, including additional testing required to bring products into circulation in other target markets, as well as the use of CB test reports and certificates to obtain country-specific approval marks. NCBs participating in the CB process are required to give priority to certification applications based on existing CB certificates. Certifications based on the CB process therefore save time and money.
An extensive product palette is included in the CB process: IT and office equipment, household appliances and devices, lighting, measurement devices or electrical medical devices.
The CE mark represents product compliance with all applicable legal regulations in the European domestic market. The manufacturer or an authorized agent located in the European Union affixes the CE mark and declares thereby on their own authority that the product meets all valid requirements of EU law, independent of the input of an impartial third party to the compliance evaluation process.
In the CB process, an NCB, as an impartial third party, tests the compliance of the electrotechnical product with the applicable, published IEC standards. If the product is in compliance with the relevant IEC standards, the NCB issues a CB certificate based on the CB test report.
Dealers and importers can provide a copy of the certificate. The product is also recognizable by the test mark. A list of all NCBs participating in the CB process is available on the IECEE website.
It is a harmonized compliance scheme that facilitates the movement of low voltage equipment and devices to the GCC member countries by eliminating technical barriers and unifying customs requirements. This establishes a common market scheme that guarantees quality and safety for consumers.
GSO Technical Regulations require suppliers of certain goods to go through checks on their products to see if they are “fit” for the Gulf countries’ common market, meaning they are safe to use and of good quality.
These check procedures make up the “Conformity Assessment” and require the manufacturer to involve independent third-party organizations to determine if their products meet the Gulf standards.
The QR code is contained in the tracking symbol on the certificate which can be obtained from the Notified Body.
The GCC Conformity Marking (or in short: “G-mark”) can be downloaded as high-resolution image from the GSO website in the section “Home » Activities » Conformity » Regulatory System » GC Marking”. Or using this link: Shape of GCC Conformity Mark-High Resolution
All enterprises that want to obtain the Saudi quality mark, upon availability of the standards, and the granting procedure of the product.
It takes from 70 to 90 working days to finish the certification and licensing process.
The Saudi Quality Mark is valid for 3 years, with a periodic inspection, at least once a year. Also the licensed entity must update SASO with any changes in the production line, otherwise there license will be canceled.
The license is auto renewed, unless the entity requested to cancel the license 60 days prior to the end date.
The Environmental Performance Efficiency Label of Paints is valid for a total of one renewable year.
OXO-degradable plastics quickly fragment into smaller and smaller pieces, called micro-plastics, but don’t break down at the molecular or polymer level like biodegradable and compostable plastics. The resulting micro-plastics are left in the environment indefinitely until they eventually fully break down.
They are conventional plastic materials with artificial additives that do not biodegrade but merely fragment into small pieces that remain in and potentially harm the environment and endanger recycling and composting.
Food packaging plastics are included in Technical Regulation for Degradable plastics. As it mentioned on the website, the applicant must provide SASO with declaration from the manufacturer / importer to submit a test report certificate of their plastic product, given by the additives’ importer, and add the additives (degradable material) according to the required ratio, and ensure that the additive is safe for food- contact (does not affect the safety of food) within a maximum period of (6) weeks from registration date.
Plastics for packaging are included in the regulation and must have SASO’s logo in order to enter Saudi custom and market. Therefore, you need to have the plastic factory –abroad- that you deal with registered at SASO. Please visit our website for more details on how to register external factories.
The validity of the Water Consumption Rationalization Card is one year, renewable, provided that the supplier submits the renewal request at least one month prior to the expiration date.
A CITC certification is the basis for market approval in Saudi Arabia. Market approval in Saudi Arabia is granted by the Royal Communication and Information Technology Commission (CITC). The CITC certification is the basis for the market approval of products with wireless technologies in Saudi Arabia.
A CITC certification is valid for a total of one years and the approval process takes between one and two weeks in total. A full recertification is needed after an approval expires, as a modular recertification is not possible for Saudi Arabia.
Products that contain one or more substance(s) intended to be used on the outer parts of the human body (such as for skin, hair, nails, lips, teeth etc.). The purpose of these products should be to perfume, protect, condition or change/improve the appearance and/or smell of the body.
Organizations that are ISO 9001 certified have successfully implemented a quality management system in accordance to all of the requirements detailed in the ISO 9001 standard.
Part of the ISO 9001 certification is making sure areas for improvement are identified and acted on. As such, organizations with ISO 9001 certification can be assumed to provide products and/or services that meet strict quality management standards.
ISO 9001:2015 applies to any organization, regardless of size or industry. More than one million organizations from more than 160 countries have applied the ISO 9001 standard requirements to their quality management systems.
An ISO 14001 Environmental Management System is a way of managing the aspects of your business which have a significant impact on the environment.
ISO 14001 environmental certification provides a framework for environmental management best practice to help organizations:
Develop their business in a sustainable manner
Every company large and small (industrial, manufacturing, services, or trade related) has an impact on the environment and can therefore benefit from ISO 14001 certification.
ISO 9001 standard is the Quality Management System standard. The ISO 22000 standard is the Food Safety Management System standard. The ISO 9001 standard is the basis of all quality systems and can be applied by a wide range of organizations and organizations, both large and small.
ISO 22000 describes requirements for a food safety management system and sets out what requirements an organization must meet to demonstrate it can control food safety hazards. It is designed to ensure fair competition and provide for communication within and between organizations along the food chain.
HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) and ISO certifications serve different purposes, but are also complementary. HACCP focuses on the sanitation of facilities, equipment and products, all of which must meet government and municipal standards. ISO is a quality control method. Both standards can be implemented either individually or simultaneously. In our opinion, HACCP certification is more of a priority for companies in the food industry.
While HACCP focuses primarily on control within the production processes, ISO is broader in nature and takes into account all of the supporting processes as well. Both systems require formal documented processes.
ISO 50001 provides a framework of requirements for organizations to:
An energy management system (EMS) is a system of computer-aided tools used by operators of electric utility grids to monitor, control, and optimize the performance of the generation or transmission system. Also, it can be used in small scale systems like micro-grids.
ISO 14001 considers energy from the perspective of environmental impact, but it does not stress on energy reduction. This aspect is taken into consideration by ISO 50001, and its total focus is on energy.
For organizations that already have an Environmental Management System, the EnMS implementation will be uncomplicated as several of the management systems and practices will already be in place.
Although, it is not mandatory to have ISO 14001 before ISO 50001 is adopted, as ISO 50001 is a standalone standard and can be adopted regardless of any management systems that already exist.
