SPGA seeks public feedback on real estate ownership abroad draft

Logo of State Properties General Authority (SPGA)

State Properties General Authority (SPGA) launched a survey on the regulations for government ownership of properties outside Saudi Arabia, seeking public feedback through Istitlaa platform, from Dec. 29 to Jan. 13.

The project aims to organize the process of government entities owning and disposing of properties outside Saudi Arabia.

The project stipulates that each government entity, in coordination with SPGA and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, must develop a plan for its property needs abroad before the start of each fiscal year. The plan, in the approved format, should include the country, region, or city where the property is to be acquired. In addition, the type of property, its specifications and it purpose should be mentioned in the plan.

Moreover, the plan should include information about the property’s users from the government entity, such as their numbers, levels, and organizational structure as well as any other data requested by SPGA.

The development of the plan does not entail any obligations on SPGA, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, or the government entity.

After SPGA’s initial approval of the acquisition request, the government entity must provide offers from marketing, brokerage companies, and real estate consulting firms within 60 days, with at least three offers that fall within the government entity's financial allocations. The government entity may, in exceptional cases, submit just one offer with supporting reasons.

SPGA may provide additional or alternative offers and may consult experts from outside its staff. The authority will approve the appropriate offers within 15 business days from receiving them, with the possibility of a one-time extension.

The government entity is required to provide the authority with a report on the property's condition upon receipt and annual reports on its status, along with an assessment of whether the property is still needed. This should be in accordance with the prescribed format and must facilitate the work of the authority’s employee responsible for periodic inspections of foreign properties. The employee should be given full access to the property and its facilities, along with any reports or documents related to its ownership or operation.

The government entity must also provide the authority with a list of unused properties abroad and the necessary technical reports once the property is no longer needed. The property will remain under the entity’s care until the authority decides on its sale or reallocation.

The authority will examine these properties and verify whether other government entities in the host country require them. The authority will refer any sale requests, along with its recommendations, to the Foreign Property Committee for consideration of sale, investment, or exchange.

SPGA pointed out that the proceeds from the sale of these properties will be deposited into a current account at the Ministry of Finance and will be allocated to meet the needs of government entities for their foreign properties, as per the recommendations of the Foreign Property Committee.