Fly-In Fly-Out operations in KSA
- The Oath
- Dr. Constantin Frank-Fahle, LL.M.
- Marcel Trost, LL.M.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (“KSA”) has emerged as one of the most dynamic economies globally, driven by large-scale public and private initiatives under Vision 2030. As a result, international consulting and professional services firms increasingly support Saudi projects on a cross-border basis. While many services are delivered remotely, it is common for foreign consultants to travel to the Kingdom for short, task-specific visits. This operating pattern is commonly referred to as the Flyin-Fly-out (“FIFO”) model. Although commercially attractive, FIFO arrangements involve material legal and tax risks, most notably in relation to permanent establishment (“PE”) exposure, withholding taxes (“WHT”), licensing requirements, and immigration compliance. These risks apply regardless of the short duration of physical presence and require careful advance assessment.
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