SABER 2026 changes: 12-digit HS code, product declaration and fees — how to keep your shipment moving at Saudi customs

The SABER 2026 changes are three: only the 12-digit ZATCA-synchronised HS code is accepted; steel, building materials and added categories need a Ministry of Industry product declaration before the shipment certificate; and fees are about SAR 500 per product certificate and SAR 350 per shipment, excluding VAT. Match the code on invoice and bill of lading, and do not ship before the product certificate exists.

What are the SABER 2026 changes, and why do they touch your shipment?

SABER is the platform of SASO, the Saudi standards body, that issues the Product Certificate of Conformity (PCoC) and the Shipment Certificate of Conformity (SCoC). Without both, customs does not release any product covered by a technical regulation. What changed this year is three details that stop your container at customs if you neglect them.

The 12-digit HS code

Since the start of 2026 SABER works with the 12-digit harmonised code synchronised with the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA). An application filed with the old 8- or 10-digit code is rejected and cannot be corrected; you file again. In practice the supplier writes a 10-digit Chinese code on the invoice, the forwarder copies it, and your broker ends up with three different numbers in three documents. Check the full code in the tariff on zatca.gov.sa before the invoice is issued, then use the same code on the invoice, bill of lading, certificate of origin and SABER application.

The product declaration from the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources

Since 18 June 2026, under the SASO circular covered by the VATupdate bulletin of 26 August 2026, a Shipment Certificate of Conformity for Appendix (1) products is only issued after a product declaration approved by the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources. The list now covers further codes for iron and steel products, building materials, paints and some machinery components. Without an approved declaration linked to the product code, the shipment certificate stops however clean the test results are. Categories change by circular, so check the current regulation on saber.sa before each application.

The fees

The platform fees you pay through the conformity body in 2026 are indicative and move with the regulations: about SAR 500 for a Product Certificate of Conformity valid one year, and about SAR 350 for a Shipment Certificate of Conformity per consignment, both excluding VAT, which is 15 percent in Saudi Arabia. Add the SASO-approved conformity body's own fees in China for testing and review, which vary by product, number of models and laboratory. With 10 models of the same appliance the amount multiplies; grouped into one product family, it falls. The binding figure is what the platform shows when you submit.

What are the steps to obtain a SABER certificate for a product you buy in China?

Each step depends on the one before it. The timings come from our team's experience with conformity bodies in China and stretch when a test is repeated or a document is missing.

1. Identify the technical regulation: search by the 12-digit code on saber.sa to see which regulation applies and whether the product is high risk or low risk. One day if the code is correct, a week if SASO must classify a new product.
2. Register the product on the platform in your importing establishment's name, entering the Chinese factory's details exactly as on its business licence.
3. Choose a SASO-approved conformity body with an office in China, so testing and the factory visit happen near the supplier, saving the cost and time of shipping samples.
4. Tests and reports: samples go to an accredited laboratory, and the technical file, label and Arabic instructions are reviewed. Two to 4 weeks by product; electrical appliances and building materials take the upper end.
5. The Ministry of Industry product declaration if your product is on the covered lists: submit it in parallel with the testing, do not wait for the report.
6. Issue of the Product Certificate of Conformity: once the reports are accepted, the certificate comes within a few days and stays valid one year from issue.
7. A Shipment Certificate of Conformity per consignment: requested once the final invoice and packing list are ready and before the container arrives, usually within 1 to 3 working days.
8. Linking to the customs declaration through FASAH: the broker enters the certificate number, and ZATCA verifies it electronically without paper.

Steps 1 to 6 happen once a year per product; steps 7 and 8 repeat with every container. So the organised importer starts the product certificate before paying the production deposit, not after the goods are ready, and keeps it as a fixed item in the compliance checklist from order to arrival.

High-risk or low-risk product: which route applies to you?

The platform classifies products by technical regulation, and the classification decides who signs off on conformity, what it costs and how long it takes:

• High-risk products (electrical appliances, children's toys, building materials, car spare parts and others): an approved conformity body issues the product certificate after laboratory testing or a factory assessment. Cost: platform fees of about SAR 500 plus the body's and laboratory's fees. Time: 3 to 6 weeks the first time.
• Low-risk products (goods without a specific technical regulation): a self-declaration by the importer on the platform with the basic documents, no mandatory laboratory test. Cost: platform fees only. Time: a few days if the documents are complete.
• Products subject to the Ministry of Industry declaration (steel, building materials and categories updated by circular): the high-risk route plus the declaration step before the shipment certificate. Roughly the same cost, one to two weeks longer if you start the declaration late.
• The shipment certificate in every case: about SAR 350 per consignment excluding VAT, issued only against a valid product certificate.

Classify your product before negotiating with the factory, because certification and testing are part of your landed price. The remaining items are explained in the real cost of importing from China to your warehouse door.

Checklist before you file the shipment on SABER

Go through this list with the supplier and the broker before requesting the shipment certificate, ideally a week before the container is loaded. Every item has held up a shipment for a previous client, and most are caught in minutes if you compare the documents side by side.

• The 12-digit HS code is identical on the invoice, bill of lading, certificate of origin and SABER application.
• The factory name and address on the product certificate match the commercial invoice and the Chinese business licence.
• The product certificate is valid until the shipment's arrival date, not only its departure date.
• The Ministry of Industry declaration is approved if the product is on the covered lists, and its number is recorded on the platform.
• The model numbers on the label match the models registered on the certificate.
• The label, warnings and origin details in Arabic are fixed on the product at the factory, not at the port.
• The final invoice and packing list are ready before the shipment certificate is requested; any later change means a new application and new fees.
• A copy of the test reports is kept with you, not only with the supplier.

Common mistakes that stop a shipment at Saudi customs

These come up more than any others in the shipments our team takes on after they are held at the port:

Shipping before the product certificate is issued. The supplier says the goods are ready, factory storage charges push you, so you ship, then discover the test needs another 3 weeks. The container sits at the port on demurrage charged by the day, and may be returned or destroyed if the product is rejected. Start the certificate with the production deposit.

A factory name that differs between certificate and invoice. A Chinese trading company sells you the product while the certificate names the actual factory, or the other way round. The platform compares the name letter for letter with the invoice, and any difference means the shipment certificate is refused. Ask for the factory's licence before contracting, as explained in how to inspect a factory before you pay.

An old HS code. The SABER application is rejected automatically, and if the old code slips through on the shipping documents the duty calculated differs from the correct code and invites a penalty.

Forgetting the Ministry of Industry declaration. Many importers of steel and building materials hold a valid product certificate from 2025 and are surprised that no shipment certificate is issued without an approved declaration. The old certificate does not exempt you from the new condition.

Relying on a certificate the supplier holds. A product certificate obtained for another importer does not transfer to you, because it is tied to the importer registered on the platform. You need your own, in your establishment's name.

Where do you check the current regulation?

Three official sites are enough: saber.sa for the technical regulations, application status and the approved conformity bodies; saso.gov.sa for new circulars and the product lists covered by the Ministry of Industry declaration; and zatca.gov.sa for the tariff by 12-digit code and the duty rates. The figures here are correct as of September 2026, and categories and fees change, so treat the platform as the reference. If your product sits in a grey area between two regulations, consult a specialist before buying; the most frequent cases are gathered in legal challenges in import and export from China.

What should you do this week?

Three actions that protect your next shipment before the fourth-quarter season:

1. Ask the supplier for the proforma invoice, compare its HS code with the 12-digit code in the zatca.gov.sa tariff, and send the correct code in writing for every document.
2. Log in to saber.sa and check the product certificate status for every item you intend to ship, and whether it appears on the current Ministry of Industry declaration lists.
3. Contact an approved conformity body in China and book the testing slot now; laboratory schedules fill up before the seasonal shipments.

And if you would rather have a team in China handle it, HiGreenPanda's quality inspection service supervises sampling, testing and document review with the approved conformity body, and hands you the product and shipment certificates ready to link to the customs declaration.