Hiring an Egyptian software company from the Gulf
Time zones, the working week, dollar quotes, reverse-charge VAT, Saudi withholding tax and the contract: what Saudi and UAE buyers should settle first.
A business in Saudi Arabia or the UAE can hire a software company in Egypt and run the whole project remotely with little friction. Cairo is never more than two hours behind Riyadh or Dubai, the work can happen in Arabic, and a dollar quote stays fixed in riyals and dirhams because both currencies are pegged to the dollar. What needs care is on paper: the VAT and withholding tax you handle as the buyer, and a contract that gives you the code and protects your data.
Last checked: 6 November 2026
What works in your favour, and what to plan for
Lower cost is usually what brings Gulf buyers to Egypt, and the saving can be real. It is only one line in the decision, though. Weigh it against the rest:
| In your favour | Plan for it |
|---|---|
| Meetings, requirements and screen text in Arabic | Egyptian dialect can slip into the app; ask for Modern Standard Arabic |
| A working day that overlaps almost fully with Riyadh and largely with Dubai | No office in your city, so meetings are video calls |
| Lower prices than most Gulf-based teams | Reverse-charge VAT and, in Saudi Arabia, possible withholding tax on your side |
| Contract terms that can give you full ownership | Court action across a border is slow, so let staged payments and regular handover protect you |
Egypt is a poor fit if you need someone in your office every week, or if your sector's regulator expects the people running your system to be based in your country. Government bodies should also check their own procurement rules on foreign contractors before they start; those rules are outside this guide.
If you are comparing several vendors, from Egypt or anywhere else, the general questions are in how to choose a software company without being a technical person. This guide covers what changes when the vendor is in Cairo and you are in the Gulf.
Time zones and the working week
Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain are on UTC+3 all year, and the UAE and Oman on UTC+4. None of them change their clocks. Egypt is on UTC+2 but moves its clocks forward from the last Friday of April to the last Thursday of October, so the gap changes twice a year.
| Your city | Late October to late April | Late April to late October |
|---|---|---|
| Riyadh, Kuwait City, Doha, Manama | Cairo is 1 hour behind | Same time |
| Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Muscat | Cairo is 2 hours behind | Cairo is 1 hour behind |
In winter, a 10:00–18:00 day in Cairo is 11:00–19:00 in Riyadh and 12:00–20:00 in Dubai. In summer the Riyadh hours match exactly, and Dubai is one hour ahead. Either way, most of your working day has the team online.
Saudi Arabia's weekend has been Friday and Saturday since 29 June 2013, so a Cairo team that works Sunday to Thursday shares all five of your working days. The UAE federal government has worked Monday to Thursday plus Friday morning, with Saturday and Sunday off, since 1 January 2022. Private companies set their own week, so a UAE business may share four working days with a Cairo team rather than five.
Agree three things at the start: which days are working days on both sides, how public holidays in both countries are handled, and what hours apply during Ramadan.
Money: dollar quotes and payment terms
The Saudi riyal is fixed at 3.75 to the US dollar, and the UAE dirham at 3.6725, a rate it has held since 1997. A dollar quote therefore converts to a known amount in your currency, today and at the last milestone, with no exchange-rate surprise along the way.
What deserves attention is how the price is structured. Ask for a fixed price for a written scope, with change requests priced separately, rather than an open hourly estimate. That also makes the comparison with a Gulf-based team fair: compare the same scope, not day rates. Then settle three points in the quote:
- Payment milestones tied to working software you have seen, not to calendar dates.
- Who pays the bank charges on international transfers, so the invoice and the amount received match.
- Whether the price is before or after any Saudi withholding tax, described below.
A small first milestone, such as a clickable prototype or one working screen, tells you more about a vendor than any proposal document.
Tax you handle as the buyer
What follows is general information, not tax advice, so confirm your own position with an accountant. In both countries, a VAT-registered business normally accounts for the VAT on a foreign supplier's services itself, under the reverse charge. The Egyptian company's invoice therefore carries no Saudi or UAE VAT.
| Saudi Arabia | UAE | |
|---|---|---|
| VAT rate | 15% | 5% |
| VAT on a foreign supplier's services | You self-account if VAT-registered | You self-account if VAT-registered |
| Withholding tax to consider | Possibly 5% on technical services | Ask your adviser |
| What to keep | The supplier's invoice and your withholding records | The supplier's invoice |
In Saudi Arabia, a payment to a supplier abroad for technical services may be subject to 5% withholding tax. You deduct it from the payment and pay it to ZATCA yourself, and the supplier receives the rest. The rate depends on how the payment is classified, and a software project can mix different kinds of work, so ask your adviser to classify it before you sign. Then state in the contract whether the agreed price is before or after withholding; otherwise one side ends up 5% short.
If your business is not VAT-registered, the treatment can differ, which is another question for your adviser rather than the vendor.
The contract: code, data and confidentiality
The general checklist is in nine things to check in a software development contract. Across a border, five points carry more weight:
- Ownership in writing. UAE copyright law makes an employer the owner of software its employees write as part of their job, unless agreed otherwise. That rule is about employees, not an outside company, so assign the source code and all IP to your company explicitly in the contract.
- Your accounts from day one. The code repository, hosting, domain and app-store developer accounts should be in your company's name, with the vendor added as a user, so another team can take over if needed.
- Confidentiality and data. Saudi Arabia's Essential Cybersecurity Controls (control 4-1-2) list the clauses expected with third parties: non-disclosure, secure removal of your data when the service ends, and a procedure for reporting incidents. The duty sits with government and critical-infrastructure entities, but the same three clauses are a sensible baseline for any business.
- Personal data. Saudi Arabia's Personal Data Protection Law has been fully enforceable since 14 September 2024, and the UAE has its own federal law. Decide where the system is hosted and who in Cairo can reach live data. Development can usually run on test data.
- Acceptance and warranty. Define what "done" means for each milestone, and how long the vendor fixes defects free of charge after launch.
Also agree the governing law and where disputes are heard. The Gulf-specific clauses are covered in software contracts for Saudi and UAE clients.
Checking the company and running the project
Before you sign
- Ask for its commercial registration and tax card, and check that the name matches the contract and the bank account.
- Ask to see an Arabic interface it has built, and read the text yourself.
- Ask which Gulf systems it has actually integrated, such as mada payments or e-invoicing, and to see them working.
- Start with a small paid phase before committing the full budget.
If the system must issue e-invoices, raise it in the first call. The rules differ by country and by date, as set out in GCC e-invoicing by country. Buying from Europe instead? See nearshoring software development to Egypt.
Once work starts
- One named project manager on their side and one decision-maker on yours.
- A fixed weekly call in the overlapping hours, and a written channel for everything else, so decisions are on record.
- A test version you can open on your own phone after each milestone.
- Someone on your side who reads every Arabic screen before launch.
- A proper handover at the end: source code, documentation, passwords and a short recorded walkthrough.
How KF Tech Solutions works with Gulf clients
KF Tech Solutions is a software studio in Cairo, founded by Kirollos Fayez in 2020. We work with businesses in Egypt and the Gulf, remotely, with calls in Arabic or English. We build custom software, websites, web and mobile apps, POS, ERP and inventory systems, WhatsApp chatbots and AI automation, and we have integrated a POS with Egypt's ETA e-receipt system. Projects start from $200 (about SAR 750 / AED 735); the final price depends on scope, with a fixed written quote after a free call. More on our custom software service and our page for Gulf clients.
Common questions
Do we pay VAT on an Egyptian company's invoice?
Usually not to the supplier. If you are VAT-registered in Saudi Arabia or the UAE, you account for it yourself under the reverse charge, at 15% or 5%, and can normally recover it as input tax. If you are not registered, ask your adviser.
Who pays the Saudi withholding tax?
You withhold it from the payment and pay it to ZATCA. Whether it comes out of the supplier's price or is added on top is a commercial point for the contract to settle.
Can we meet the team in person?
KF works remotely from Cairo, so our meetings are video calls. If you need regular face-to-face meetings, a firm in your city may suit you better.
Is Egyptian Arabic a problem in a Saudi or Emirati app?
Only if it slips into the interface. Ask for Modern Standard Arabic, or your brand's own tone, and have someone on your side read every screen before launch.
Can the system be hosted in Saudi Arabia or the UAE?
Hosting location is a choice you make in the contract, not something the vendor's location decides. If your sector, your customers or your own policy call for in-country hosting, say so before the quote, because it affects the price.
Planning a project from Saudi Arabia, the UAE or elsewhere in the Gulf? Book a free call; the calendar shows times in your own time zone. Or describe the project to us.
Sources
- ZATCA: imports and exports under VAT, guideline
- ZATCA: withholding tax guideline
- UAE Federal Tax Authority: e-commerce VAT guide
- SAMA: the riyal's rate to the dollar
- The National: the dirham's dollar peg
- Ahram Online: Egypt's daylight saving time
- Crowell: Saudi Arabia's weekend change
- UAE government portal: federal working hours
- NCA: Essential Cybersecurity Controls (ECC-2:2024)
- Morgan Lewis: UAE copyright law
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