Saudi Central Bank (SAMA)
Do I need a licence to operate a payment gateway in Saudi Arabia?
Content reviewed 2026-08-14 · How we check sources
Short answer
It depends on the gateway’s actual role. If it itself provides a regulated payment service under SAMA’s Law of Payments and Payment Services, authorisation is required; a pure technology gateway supporting a licensed provider can have a different perimeter.
What this means
Map whether the company handles funds, executes payment orders, acquires merchants, issues accounts or payment instruments, or only routes technical messages.
The marketing term “payment gateway” is not itself a licence category, so the flow of money and contractual responsibility determine the answer.
Official sources
SAMA — Law of Payments and Payment Services ↗SAMA — Implementing Regulations of the Law of Payments and Payment Services ↗Ask with your entity, activity and regulator.
Regulatory research, not legal advice. This answer has the scope and review date shown above; your institution decides applicability.