Saudi Arabia Launches $400M Estrdad SME Fee Refund Plan

Saudi Arabia’s Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority Monsha’at has launched the second edition of the Estrdad initiative, allocating SAR 1.5 billion (US$400 million) to refund government fees for startups in their first three years.

Applications are open until the end of 2026, with eligible businesses receiving payments until 2028. The program covers 10 types of fees, including expatriate levies, commercial registration, municipality licenses, and the newly added patent registration. To qualify, businesses must be micro, small, or medium enterprises, launched after January 1, 2024, operating less than three years, and be at least 60 percent Saudi-owned, while meeting localization requirements. A digital platform will manage eligibility checks and disbursements.

Key Highlights

• Monsha’at launches $400M Estrdad initiative for Saudi startups
• Refunds cover 10 key government fees, including patent registration
• SME GDP contribution reaches 21.9 percent, surpassing Vision 2030’s target

Estrdad complements Saudi Arabia’s comprehensive SME funding ecosystem, which includes the Kafalah loan guarantee program (worth $3.7B in guarantees and $4.8B SME funding in 2024), the SME Bank’s flexible lending schemes, and the Tourism Development Fund’s $4B initiative for startups.

These layered support systems have already boosted SME growth. In Q1 2025, SME registrations surged 48 percent YoY, while venture capital investment jumped 72 percent in 2022 to $987M. SMEs now contribute 21.9 percent to GDP, employing 7.86M people—surpassing Vision 2030’s interim goal of 20.2 percent. The ultimate target is to raise SME GDP contribution to 35 percent.

Also Read: Saudi Arabia Leads MENA Startup Funding in H1 2025

Saudi Arabia’s efforts have earned global recognition, ranking second worldwide in the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor’s Entrepreneurship Context Index, cementing its role as a regional leader in diversification and entrepreneurship.