Branches, holding companies and regional headquarters
Introduction
Choosing and setting up the right presence for groups and foreign companies: a branch, a holding company or a regional headquarters.
A branch of a foreign company lets the parent trade in the Kingdom without a separate Saudi company, but the parent remains liable for the branch's obligations. A Saudi subsidiary limits that exposure and makes it easier to bring in partners, which is why most investors who plan to stay end up with a company rather than a branch.
Holding companies sit at the top of family and investment groups. They hold the shares in subsidiaries, separate ownership from operations, and make it easier to bring in investors, plan succession and keep each business's risk inside it.
The Regional Headquarters Program offers incentives, including tax relief on qualifying activities, to multinationals that run their regional management from the Kingdom, and government entities generally contract only with foreign companies that have one here. We advise on whether a regional headquarters is needed, the conditions it must meet and how it fits with the group's other entities.
How we help
What the work covers
Presence options
Comparing a branch, a subsidiary and a regional headquarters for the planned activity.
Branches
Registering branches of foreign companies and appointing their managers.
Holding structures
Setting up holding companies and moving existing businesses beneath them.
Regional headquarters
Licensing, staffing conditions and incentives for a regional headquarters.
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