Payment Channels

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has initiated efforts to provide a variety of systems for making government payments, linking the government with its various sectors and individuals with the remaining sectors. This section provides an introduction into the Saudi governments payment systems, the numerous electronic methods of facilitated financial services and the platforms available to process government payments for public and private sectors and government workers. It will also provide information on four main electronic payment portals and four main electronic payment applications in Saudi Arabia.

Introduction about Saudi's Government Payments

The eGovernment of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia provides various systems for making government payments, thereby linking the government with its various sectors, and with the individuals. This in turn is designed to facilitate the process of making government payments, while elevating them to the global standards of payment and data security. The Ministry of Finance and the Saudi Arabia Monetary Agency (SAMA) are considered the two most relevant entities when it comes to monetary payment processes.

Payments System

Payments methods differ to meet the individuals and entities’ various needs. These are:

  • Electronic Payment: which is done through online banking services (Government Payments, Sadad)
  • Phone call: through banking services – phone banking.
  • ATMs
  • At the Bank

Government initiatives

 

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has facilitated financial services by confirming a number of electronic methods including:

  • Sadad: an online system that operates by providing services for making payments and taxes for individuals, businesses and the public sector, and enables individuals to pay their electricity, water, telecommunications, and government fees.
  • Saree’: Known as the Saudi Fast Transfer System which enables the user to make remittances automatically and ensures access to the beneficiary immediately in order to reduce financial risks and dispense with carrying money to transfer from one bank to another.
  • Mada: a system that enables ATM, POS and online payment services to perform the online tasks easily and simply.

Processing Government Payments

The Government payments are processed through these portals:

  • Etimad Platform: it is an online platform for the electronic requests regarding payables for the public sector and the private sector.
  • Sarf System: the the financial rights system for government workers. Payments are done through Remittance

Electronic Payment Portals

e-payments are one of life’s facilitators especially that online shopping has became more popular and this method is used to pay immediately. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia approves these services as e-payment portal:

Electronic Payment Applications

  • STC Pay: a digital wallet equipped with all the means and options that enable individuals to control their payments in all, where they can transfer, receive, shop and control their financial matters through a single mobile application.
  • Bayan Portfolio: an innovative and simplified way to enable individuals and businesses to accept, and spend electronic payments.
  • Mada Pay: an application allows bank customers, who have Issued cards, to save all their bank cards (whether related to the current or credit account) in one application on the smart phone and pay through it.
  • Apple Pay: a feature available on iPhones or Apple Watch that enables the user to pay directly with no need to use a credit card.

Non-Electronic Payment Channels

  • Bank: visiting a bank branch for payment, click here to view all banks in Saudi Arabia.
  • ATMs: Pay through an ATM by depositing or transfering money to beneficiaries, click here to view all ATMs in Saudi Arabia
  • Saudi Post:Visiting one of Saudi Post's branch to submit Payment in order to be delivered to the beneficary, click here to view Saudi Post branches.

Important links