Saudi Arabia: Adopted Telecommunications and Information Technology Law including operational license requirement

On 31 May 2022, the Telecommunications and Information Technology Law was adopted by the Council of Ministers. The law contains provisions on operational license requirements for certain telecommunication service providers. The Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) requests licenses for any service provider that offers public telecommunication services and infrastructure services that support public telecommunication services. Additionally, the licensing requirement extends to service providers that make use of any frequency spectrum or numbering resource and firms that offer registration services for Saudi domain names. Moreover, the Board of Directors of the CITC might, at their own discretion, require license applications from private telecommunication service providers, digital content platforms, and firms that make use of relevant technological devices. Finally, the CITC needs to be informed of significant ownership changes as they occur.