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ZATCA Phase 1 & 2 restaurant software · Saudi ArabiaZATCA Phase 1 and Phase 2 for restaurants: what the law asks of your POS, and how MC-POS does it
A restaurant bill in Saudi Arabia is a tax document. Phase 1 made it electronic with a QR code; Phase 2 connects your till to ZATCA. MC-POS Cloud does both on the same till that prints your KOTs and takes orders on the waiter's phone.
Quick answer
ZATCA Phase 1 (the generation phase, since December 2021) means every restaurant bill must be made by software, carry a QR code, be in Arabic, and never be edited or deleted after it is issued. ZATCA Phase 2 (the integration phase, rolled out in waves since January 2023) means the till itself is registered with ZATCA as an e-invoice generation unit, signs each bill, and sends it to the FATOORA platform: a bill to a diner (a simplified tax invoice) is reported within 24 hours, and an invoice to a company with a VAT number (a standard tax invoice) is cleared by ZATCA before it is handed over.
MC-POS Cloud supports both phases on every till. Each Android or desktop till is onboarded once with an OTP, then every dine-in, takeaway and delivery bill is signed with the ZATCA QR code — even when the internet drops — and reported when the till is back online. Catering and company orders are cleared live. The same till prints the KOT at each kitchen and takes orders from the waiter app, so compliance costs the floor nothing. It is in the Restaurant Full Suite plan; the law itself is explained in our ZATCA Phase 2 guide.
At a glance
| Phase 1 | Electronic bills with a QR code, in Arabic (and English), never edited after issue — MC-POS prints them on every till |
|---|---|
| Phase 2 | Each till onboarded with ZATCA; bills signed with a cryptographic stamp; simplified invoices reported, tax invoices cleared |
| Diner bills | Simplified tax invoices: signed on the till with the QR, reported to ZATCA within 24 hours, offline too |
| Company orders | Standard tax invoices with the buyer's VAT number and address, cleared by ZATCA live |
| Kitchen | KOT printed at each kitchen or bar — Item, Note and Qty — with a line feed set per printer |
| Waiters | Orders taken on the waiter's phone and sent to the kitchen; the waiter's name stays on the bill |
| Plan | Restaurant Full Suite — 4 users: admin, waiter, kitchen, cashier |
Phase 1 and Phase 2, rule by rule — and what the till does
QR code on every bill (Phase 1)
Every diner bill carries the ZATCA QR with seller name, VAT number, time, total and VAT — and, under Phase 2, the cryptographic stamp and hash too.
Arabic on the bill (Phase 1)
The bill is printed in Arabic and English together: dish names, totals, VAT and your details.
No edits after issue (Phase 1)
An issued bill is never edited or deleted. A mistake becomes a credit note that references the original, as ZATCA requires.
Till registered with ZATCA (Phase 2)
Each till is its own e-invoice generation unit, onboarded once with an OTP from the ZATCA portal. A second counter is onboarded on its own.
Simplified invoices reported (Phase 2)
Dine-in and takeaway bills are signed on the till and reported to the FATOORA platform within 24 hours — in a batch when the till is back online.
Tax invoices cleared (Phase 2)
A catering or company order to a VAT-registered buyer is sent to ZATCA for clearance before it is shared, with the buyer's VAT number and national address.
KOT to each kitchen
Orders print at the grill, the mandi station or the juice bar with only that station's items, the note for the cook and the table.
Waiter app
Waiters take the order at the table on their own phone, add rounds, and send them to the kitchen; the bill at the counter carries the waiter's name.
One business, every device: the counter, the owner's phone and the back-office computer share the same data — Android, iPhone, Windows, macOS and the web. See all MC-POS Cloud features.
What ZATCA checks on a restaurant bill
- Phase 1 — generation. Bills are generated by a compliant system, carry a QR code, show the seller's name and VAT number, the time of issue, the total with VAT and the VAT amount, and are in Arabic. Handwritten bills and bills that can be edited later are not allowed.
- Phase 2 — integration. The system is registered with ZATCA, each invoice is in the required XML format with a UUID, a counter, a hash of the previous invoice and a cryptographic stamp. Simplified invoices (to diners) are reported within 24 hours; standard invoices (to VAT-registered buyers) are cleared before being shared.
- Who is in Phase 2 now. ZATCA brings businesses in by waves, by annual VAT-able revenue; the current wave covers businesses above SAR 375,000. The ZATCA Phase 2 guide keeps the wave dates.
- What MC-POS does. Each till passes ZATCA's compliance checks at onboarding, signs every bill, reports simplified invoices and clears tax invoices. We say "passes ZATCA's compliance checks", not "ZATCA approved" — ZATCA does not approve software brands; it checks each unit.
- VAT is 15%. Menu prices can include VAT or add it on top; the bill shows the VAT either way.
Phase 1 and Phase 2 for every kind of Saudi food business
Mandi & Arabic restaurants
Tables, portions as variants, KOT to the mandi station, and a signed bill for every table.
Read moreCafés & coffee shops
Fast counter billing with cup sizes and add-ons, each cup a reported simplified invoice.
Read moreCloud kitchens
Orders from your own ordering link, KOT per kitchen, and bills reported from one till.
Catering
Company orders as standard tax invoices, cleared live, with quotations and sales orders before them.
Fast food & shawarma
Takeaway counters without tables can use the Advanced plan and still sign every bill.
Read moreRestaurant groups
Every branch and every counter onboarded as its own unit, one report across all of them.
A compliant service, step by step
- Once: get an OTP from the ZATCA portal and onboard the till — it becomes your e-invoice generation unit.
- Order: the waiter takes the order on the waiter app, or the guest orders from the table QR; the KOT prints at each kitchen.
- Bill: the till signs the bill, prints it in Arabic and English with the ZATCA QR, and takes cash, card or split payment.
- Report: diner bills go to ZATCA within 24 hours on their own; a company order is cleared before you hand it over.
- Close: the day-end report shows sales, VAT and any bills still to report — and the till reports them when it is online.
Which MC-POS plan to choose
The Restaurant Full Suite has tables, KOT printing, the waiter app, QR menu and online ordering, plus everything in Advanced — including ZATCA Phase 1 and Phase 2 e-invoicing — for 4 users: admin, waiter, kitchen and cashier. A takeaway counter without tables can use Advanced. See plans and prices.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between ZATCA Phase 1 and Phase 2 for a restaurant?
Phase 1 (generation) means bills are made by software, carry a QR code, are in Arabic and cannot be edited after issue. Phase 2 (integration) means the till is registered with ZATCA, signs each bill, reports diner bills within 24 hours and gets company invoices cleared before they are shared.
Does MC-POS support ZATCA Phase 2 for restaurants?
Yes. Each till is onboarded with ZATCA once with an OTP, signs every bill with the QR and cryptographic stamp, reports simplified invoices and clears standard tax invoices. The same till prints KOTs and takes orders from the waiter app.
Is a restaurant bill to a diner a simplified or a standard tax invoice?
A bill to a diner is a simplified tax invoice — reported to ZATCA within 24 hours. An invoice to a company with a VAT number is a standard tax invoice — cleared by ZATCA before you share it.
What happens to ZATCA bills when the internet goes down during service?
MC-POS Android and desktop tills keep signing bills with the QR code offline and keep printing KOTs. The bills are reported to ZATCA when the till is back online, inside the 24-hour window.
Can I correct a wrong restaurant bill under ZATCA?
Not by editing it. You issue a credit note that references the original bill, which MC-POS does from the bill itself, and the credit note is signed and reported like the bill.
Does the waiter app change anything for ZATCA?
No. The waiter app only takes the order and sends it to the kitchen. The bill is still issued, signed and reported by the till, so only the tills need onboarding — not the waiters' phones.
Is MC-POS "ZATCA approved"?
ZATCA does not approve software brands; it checks each e-invoice generation unit at onboarding. Every MC-POS till passes those compliance checks when it is onboarded.
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