How the FAL brokerage licence works in Saudi Arabia
How the FAL brokerage licence works in Saudi Arabia, from commission and renewal to fines, read straight from REGA's own texts.
Anyone who brokers, markets or advertises property in Saudi Arabia needs a FAL licence from REGA, the real estate regulator. Two points are often misreported: the 2.5% commission is a fallback that any written agreement replaces, and REGA never publishes the licence fee.
Key figures
| Figure | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brokerage Law in force | 18 July 2023 | current | REGA |
| Default commission | 2.5% of the sale price, or of the first year's rent | Law Art. 14(1) | Brokerage Law |
| Fines in the schedule | SAR 100 to SAR 40,000 | current text | Implementing Regulations |
| Legal fine ceiling | SAR 200,000 | Law Art. 19 | Brokerage Law |
| Licences issued | 15,414 | Q1 2026 | REGA Open Data |
| Brokerage contracts documented | 119,179 | Q1 2026 | REGA Open Data |
Who can hold a licence
REGA describes FAL as five licences for practitioners plus a sixth for advertising, and the advertising one is needed for each advertisement. An individual can hold brokerage, marketing, advertising, and consultations and analyses. Property management, facility management and auctions are kept for companies (REGA FAL page).
An individual has to be 18 and pass the qualification programme for each activity. That bar is going up. In July 2026 REGA said a first brokerage or marketing licence will require the foundation level of a new Brokerage Levels Track, ending in an in-person exam at Qiyas centres (REGA).
Renewal and fees
A licence runs one year. The Regulation lets a broker renew in the sixty days before expiry, while REGA's platform has opened renewal 120 days before since April 2024. Both are in force, so the safe reading is to renew as soon as the platform allows. If a licence is cancelled, the holder waits three years before applying again.
The Law leaves the fee to REGA's board, and no REGA page we could open states an amount. Figures quoted online come from portals and law firms.
The 2.5% is a default
Article 14(1) of the Law sets commission at 2.5% of the sale price, or of the first year's rent on a lease, "unless the parties to the brokerage contract agree otherwise in writing" (Brokerage Law). A broker acting for both sides cannot take more than that in total.
The market seems to pay well below it. REGA reported SAR 355 million of commissions on about 219,000 contracts in the Law's first year (REGA). That works out at about SAR 1,621 a contract. At 2.5%, it implies deals far smaller than a typical Saudi sale, which most likely means the pool is made up largely of leases.
Fines depend on the city
The Law allows fines up to SAR 200,000. The Regulation's own schedule tops out at SAR 40,000, a fifth of that ceiling (Implementing Regulations). Its A, B and C bands are about where the breach happened, with Riyadh and the other big cities in band A. Trading without a licence costs SAR 5,000 for a first offence in band A and SAR 1,000 in band C. The top of the schedule, SAR 40,000, is for lying to get a licence.
REGA does not publish how many fines it has issued, or for how much.
More licences than business
The 15,414 on REGA's Open Data page counts licences issued in a single quarter. Set against the Q1 2025 figures REGA published a year earlier (REGA), licensing grew 95.7% by Q1 2026 while brokerage contracts grew 24.1%. The last count of active licences was more than 46,000, at end Q1 2024.
Outlook
Entry is getting harder with the new exam, and in July 2026 REGA said property advertising will be limited to FAL brokerage and marketing licensees (REGA). Ask for the FAL source pack with every article and release linked, or see REGA's indicators platform.
FAQ
How much does a FAL licence cost? REGA does not publish the fee on any page we could open.
How many licensed brokers are there in Saudi Arabia? No current number is published. The last stock was more than 46,000 active licences at end Q1 2024.
Sources
- REGA, Real Estate Brokerage Law (Arabic PDF; Articles 7, 13, 14, 15, 19 to 24): link
- REGA, Implementing Regulations of the Real Estate Brokerage Law (English PDF, Appendices 1 and 2): link
- REGA, Implementing Regulations, Arabic edition (Appendix 2 band A): link
- REGA, Regulatory Rules for Real Estate Consultations and Analyses: link
- REGA, Open Data page, Q1 2026 counters: link
- REGA, FAL platform page and licensed-platform directory: link
- REGA, 46,000 active FAL licences and 120-day renewal (21 April 2024): link
- REGA, year one of the Law, SAR 355 million commissions (18 July 2024): link
- REGA, two years of the Law (21 July 2025): link
- REGA, Q1 2025 brokerage indicators and enforcement (27 April 2025): link
- REGA, third Brokerage Forum, cumulative totals and advertising restriction (19 July 2026): link
- REGA, Brokerage Levels Track and Legislation Diploma (19 July 2026): link
- REGA, July 2026 inspection report: link
- REGA, rental violations and 11 broker referrals (16 October 2025): link
- REGA, circulars to real estate brokers: link