In reference to Rule No. 300-1-1 for Licensed Businesses and Shops, and Rule No. 300-1-3 for Resident Companies, contained in Account Opening Rules, communicated by SAMA Circular No. 65681/67 dated 1/11/1440 H.

Please be informed of the amendment of the two aforementioned rules to align with the attached formulations, aimed at clarifying the requirements to be met when opening bank accounts for institutions or companies, particularly when the owner of the institution or one/all of the partners are associations or non-profit organizations.

For your information and consideration, please take this into account for similar accounts classified for the purposes mentioned above, such as sub-accounts under the main account of the association or non-profit organization.

Amendment of Requirements for Rule No. (300-1-1) related to Licensed Businesses and Shops, and Rule No. (300-1-3) related to Resident Companies.

300-1-1 / Licensed Businesses and Shops:

Bank accounts for these entities may be opened after obtaining the required documents from each, as follows:

1. A copy of the commercial registration for the institution or shop, or a copy of the activity license if it alone suffices for the establishment’s activity without needing a commercial registration.
2. Identifying and verifying the identity of the establishment owners based on the name listed in the commercial registration or license, and ensuring the validity of their identity information.
3. Copies of the individuals' identities authorized to manage and operate the accounts.

• If the owner of the institution or shop is a Waqf (endowment), non-profit associations/institutions, or cooperative societies, the bank must fulfill the following in addition to the above requirements:

1. A copy of the valid endowment registration certificate issued by the General Authority for Awqaf, which should minimally include the following: name of the Waqf, endowment deed number and date, names of supervisors and their ID numbers (for endowments), or a copy of the license issued by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development and the decision of the association’s or institution’s board of directors (meeting minutes) approving the establishment of the institution or shop and designating authorized signatories for bank accounts (for non-profit associations/institutions or cooperative societies).
2. Copies of the IDs of the supervisors named in the registration certificate (for endowments).
3. The accounts shall be classified as high-risk accounts.

300-1-3 / Resident Companies:

Bank accounts for resident companies in the Kingdom may be opened upon obtaining the following documents:

1. A copy of the commercial registration.
2. A copy of the articles of incorporation or bylaws and their appendices.
3. A copy of the identity of the responsible manager.
4. Identifying and verifying the identities of the board members.
5. A power of attorney issued by a notary public or certified notary, or an authorization prepared within the bank by the individual(s) authorized under the articles of incorporation, partner resolution, or board resolution to grant signing authority for bank accounts and to operate them.
6. Copies of the IDs of the individuals authorized to sign and operate the accounts.
7. Identifying and verifying the identities of the company owners listed in the articles of incorporation per its latest amendments, except for publicly listed companies.

• If all or any of the company owners are endowments, non-profit associations/institutions, or cooperative societies, as indicated in the articles of incorporation, the bank must fulfill the following requirements in addition to the above:

1. A valid copy of the endowment registration certificate issued by the General Authority for Awqaf, which should include at least the following: name of the Waqf, endowment deed number and date, names of supervisors and their ID numbers (for endowments), or a copy of the license issued by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development and the board of directors' decision (meeting minutes) approving the establishment of the company (for non-profit associations/institutions or cooperative societies).
2. Copies of the IDs of the supervisors listed in each endowment’s registration certificate (for endowments).

3. The accounts shall be classified as high-risk accounts if the ownership of endowments, non-profit associations/institutions, or cooperative societies exceeds 50% of the company’s capital.