Electronic Transactions Law

Purpose and scope

• Governs electronic transactions and signatures and gives them a legal framework; it applies to them except personal-status transactions and the issue of title deeds for real-estate dispositions, unless the responsible body allows them electronically (Article 3).

Key rules, rights and obligations

• Electronic transactions, records and signatures are binding, and their validity or enforcement may not be denied merely because they were made electronically, if they meet the law's conditions (Article 5).
• An electronic transaction or signature is accepted as evidence if its record meets the requirements, and may be accepted as presumptive evidence even if it does not; its weight depends on how it was created, how its integrity was kept and how the originator was identified (Article 9).
• A compliant electronic signature equals a handwritten one with the same effects; its owner must take precautions against misuse and report any unlawful use to the certification service provider (Article 14).
• A certification service provider may not stop its activity, assign its licence or merge without the authority's prior written approval (Article 19).

Violations, penalties and common problems

• Violations include operating certification services without a licence, disclosing or misusing client data, forging an electronic record, signature or certificate or knowingly using one, accessing another person's signature system, and impersonation to obtain a certificate (Article 23).
• The penalty is a fine of up to five million riyals, prison of up to five years, or both, with possible confiscation and publication of the judgment summary (Article 24 as amended).

Procedures and key deadlines

• The authority carries out inspection and records violations, and may hold the devices and software used until the case is decided (Article 25).
• Keep emails, chats and platform logs in their original form with sending data, as they count as proof unless the contrary is shown (Article 9).

An advisory summary prepared by Al-Bayan Al-Wadih Law Firm. It is not an official text and does not replace the law, its implementing regulations, or advice from a specialised lawyer. The official published text and its amendments prevail.