To determine the uncultivated land eligible for distribution according to the law, the Land Investment Administration verifies the following foundations as a first step before conducting surveys, as detailed for each:

A- The land must not be owned by individuals, companies, or associations, nor should it be detained. This is achieved by the Land Investment Administration contacting the Ministry of Finance and National Economy in the regions where it has land, in addition to contacting local authorities and experts in each area.

B- The land must not be subject to dispute and must be free from individual and collective rights, whether these are ownership rights or lesser rights such as the right of exclusivity to the land or preference over it. Collective rights here include: gardens, rain-fed areas, and other collective facilities that groups of individuals share in benefiting from and exploiting in common. However, with the approval of the Ministry of Agriculture and Water, some gardens and rain-fed areas, including floodplains, may be exempted if the necessity of public interest requires it based on specific justifications, for example, if those areas exist in large sizes or numbers in one region or if there is a lack of sufficient arable land in that area.

The components of this foundation are verified by the Land Investment Administration through inquiries with the Ministry of Agriculture and Water and in consultation with the local committees to be formed, whose tasks are detailed in (Fourth) below, and by questioning local government departments.

C- The land must be outside the boundaries of urban development and related interests in cities and villages. This is done through ongoing communication between the Land Investment Administration at the Ministry of Agriculture and the Urban Planning Office at the Ministry of Interior for each area where a survey is planned to be conducted, prior to starting it. This ensures prior agreement on the direction of the survey and distribution in a manner that does not conflict with the planning of residential areas and the public facilities associated with them, thus avoiding wasting time and effort on surveys that do not align with urban expansion.

To identify uncultivated lands with economic viability that can be distributed according to the Law. After defining economic feasibility as the availability of soil suitability and water abundance, the following steps are followed:

• A- For the lands that have already been surveyed: and where the soil has been analyzed and classified by the Land Investment Administration, the following actions are taken:

  • 1) The Land Investment Administration completes the analysis and classification of the soil for the remaining lands that have been surveyed.

  • 2) The Water Resources Development Administration studies those lands that have been surveyed to determine the water potential available for economic exploitation, and through these studies, the two aspects of economic feasibility (that is, soil suitability and the availability of water in a manner that can be economically exploited) are completed, thus determining the areas that can be distributed to the residents.

• B- For the lands that have not yet been surveyed, the following steps are followed before and during the survey:

  • 1) The Land Investment Administration determines, as a preliminary step, the area and location of the uncultivated lands in accordance with the three initial criteria mentioned above.

  • 2) This is verified through communication between the Land Investment Administration and the Water Resources Development Administration to decide the feasibility of starting the survey of this land, i.e., the areas where financial, human, and time costs can be expended for surveying before starting the survey operations, based on the water potential available. The intended meaning of this step is that coordination and work between the two administrations should be joint and temporally aligned before conducting the survey operations.

  • 3) In implementing the previous step, communication is also established between the Land Administration and the consulting companies contracted with the Ministry to verify the following points:

    • A- Are there studies by the company regarding the concerned area?

    • B- To what extent are these studies detailed, if they exist, and thus to what extent can they be utilized and relied upon (this is determined jointly by the Land Investment Administration and the Water Resources Development Administration).

    • C- If there are no studies for the area - is there an intention to conduct a study for it, and when? And what is the extent of its detail?

  • 4- Based on the information obtained and the consultations according to the steps above, it is decided:

    • A- To start the survey and its scope - then ..

    • B- To determine the area of economically viable land and classify it. That is, to identify the land that can be distributed according to the Law. The Land Investment Administration and the Water Resources Development Administration undertake this according to the powers granted to them.

  • 5- Coordination is carried out between the Land Investment Administration and the Water Resources Development Administration through direct communication between the directors of the two administrations.

  • 6- The Land Investment Administration prepares a phased program for surveying the areas gradually according to the previous rules and in line with its current and expected technical capabilities.

  • 7- Currently, the focus is on the soil and water elements as the main factors for determining economic feasibility (other factors such as the proximity or distance of the land from marketing centers have been addressed in the attached explanatory memorandum).

  • 8- The Ministry of Agriculture and Water has the authority to distribute agricultural lands with limited water if it sees economic feasibility in exploiting them for agriculture, provided that the water is of good quality and in areas determined by the Ministry according to the quantity of water.

  • 9- The Ministry of Agriculture and Water has the authority to distribute agricultural lands where the water is expected to be of relatively poor quality if its production is not less than one hundred gallons per minute and its soil is light in texture and well-drained according to the Ministry's assessment.

  • 10- The Ministry of Agriculture and Water may limit distribution to large agricultural projects in areas where there is concern about water depletion and require the owners of those projects to drill limited wells and use modern irrigation methods specified by the Ministry to reduce water depletion and protect water resources.

‎1- Whoever cuts land under this Law shall have only the right of specialization on it during the investment period specified by the Law, which ranges from two to five years.
This means that during this period, they do not have ownership rights over the land, but they have priority over others regarding it, and they shall have, according to the conditions of this Law and its procedures, the right to own it at the end of the investment period if they prove the seriousness of their investment in it. Before that, and during the investment, the cutter may not dispose of the land in any manner that transfers ownership or leads to its transfer, such as sale, gift, or mortgage, nor may they lease it, all of which is prohibited unless there is a written order from the Minister of Agriculture and Water. 
It is not permissible for the transfer of the right of specialization through waiver to exceed the minimum and maximum limits specified by the Law and this Regulation regarding the area of distributed lands, and any violation of this shall be a reason for the cancellation of the specialization according to the procedures stipulated in Article Eight of the Law.

• 2- The investment period (i.e., the period of specialization) is determined to be between two years as a minimum and five years as a maximum, and the Land Investment Administration at the Ministry of Agriculture and Water must determine the period specifically (two or five) for each piece of land, based on the surrounding factors of each case, and relying on the following general criteria:

  • أ) The type and classification of the soil, and the availability of water in it.

  • ب) The degree of ruggedness of the piece of land, and the possibility of reclaiming it.

  • جـ) The nature and type of agriculture that can be established on it.

  • د) Its location (proximity to marketing centers and the availability of facilities and supporting services in the surrounding area).

  • ‎After the Land Investment Administration determines the periods of specialization based on the aforementioned criteria, it shall provide the Ministry with the information from its survey and identification of the lands to place it in the hands of the local committees, which will make the initial proposal for distribution as detailed in Section Five below.

1- After identifying the lands eligible for distribution according to the rules mentioned in the first and second sections above, the Land Investment Administration shall announce them divided by each region in the main media and local newspapers, if available.
2- Local committees shall be formed in the regions and a central committee in Riyadh, which will take steps to facilitate the distribution process, and its formation and tasks shall be as detailed in sections 3 and 4 below.

• 3- A- The local committee in each region where distribution is intended shall consist of:

  • 1- A representative from the Ministry of Agriculture and Water.

  • 2- A representative from the Ministry of Interior.

  • 3- A representative from the Ministry of Finance and National Economy.

  • 4- A representative from the Ministry of Justice appointed by the Minister of Justice.

  • 5- Two members with expertise.

  • The members shall be appointed from among the employees by a decision from the competent minister, and the two members with expertise shall be appointed by a decision from the Minister of Agriculture and Water.

• B- The task of this committee is:

  • 1- To consider the investment requests submitted by the locals, which must be submitted on two types of forms.

    • Type One:

  • It is called Form No. (1) Request for Agricultural Land Investment, which pertains to requests in which the applicants specify the locations of the land they wish to invest in.

    • Type Two:

It is called Form No. (2) Request for Agricultural Land - which pertains to requests in which the applicants do not specify the locations of the land they wish to invest in.

• This step means that all investment requests are primarily submitted to the branches of the ministry in the regions, which in turn refer them to the local committees. Additionally, all existing requests with the ministry will also be referred to the branches to be forwarded to the local committees.

  • 2- The local committees must consider the investment requests mentioned in (1) in light of the information received from the Land Investment Administration regarding the determination of areas and the estimation of periods of jurisdiction according to what was stated in the first and fourth sections above, as well as based on the local information they have regarding the preliminary distribution rules mentioned in the first section above, alongside the conditions and rules of priorities in distribution detailed in section three above.

• Based on these combined foundations, the local committees express their views on the requests submitted to them and provide their suggestions regarding the following:

  • A) The individuals they choose for the distribution of land to them.

  • B) The area and location of the land they see fit to allocate (for each between 5 and 10 hectares + location).

  • C) The period of jurisdiction for each (two or five years).

  • Then the local committee sends its views and suggestions to the central committee at the ministry's headquarters in Riyadh, along with justifications for each, accompanied by all the requests submitted above, whether excluded or accepted, with each category separated from the others.

  • 4- A) The central committee at the ministry's headquarters in Riyadh consists of:

    • 1- The Undersecretary of the Ministry of Agriculture for Agricultural Affairs as the Chair.

    • 2- The Director General of the Land Investment Administration as a member.

    • 3- One of the legal advisors of the ministry as a member.

    • 4- A specialist from the ministry's water affairs as a member.

    • 5 and 6 - Two specialists from the ministry's agricultural affairs as members.

    • Provided that the specialists appointed to the committee are highly qualified.

  • B) The task of this committee is:

    • 1- To review and audit the views and suggestions of the local committees.

    • 2- Then to submit its recommendations to the Minister of Agriculture and Water for him to make a decision on that.

    • 3- In the event that the Minister of Agriculture and Water approves the distribution proposal, he issues his decision accordingly, which includes the area of the land, its boundaries, and the investment period, accompanied by a map that specifies its location, and the person in whose favor this decision is issued shall receive the land immediately and commence work on it.

    • If any disputes or grievances arise at that time, they shall be left to follow their legal and temporal course and shall be considered by the judge appointed in the ministry according to the law, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Water shall not bear any responsibility towards the person to whom the land was handed over if the judgment is issued against him.

    • This meaning is ensured by a declaration from the person in whose favor the distribution decision was issued, which he signs before receiving the land.

C- The central committee also considers the requests submitted by companies according to the rules and conditions outlined in section (three) (B) above and refers them after preliminary filtering, accompanied by its recommendations, to the local committees in each region. The latter shall express their views regarding them and then return them to the central committee to forward them to the Minister of Agriculture for the necessary decision.
D- In cases that require obtaining permission from the Council of Ministers, the central committee shall raise this to the Minister of Agriculture and Water to take it upon himself to present it to the Council of Ministers if he is convinced of the justifications provided by the committee.

The Minister of Agriculture and Water may directly raise matters to the Council of Ministers without the need for a proposal from the local committees or the central committee in cases of large companies, whether Saudi or foreign, that submit requests for investment in large areas of land exceeding the limit set by the law (paragraph B - 4 of section three above).
 

1- The individual who has received the distribution decision and granted the right of jurisdiction over the land subject to the decision must invest in the land within the period specified in the decision.
2- The seriousness of an individual in agricultural investment is established if the individual invests during the period specified in the decision by irrigating no less than 25% of the area of land allocated to them, which contributes to actual agricultural production.
The seriousness of an individual in animal investment is also established if, during the specified investment period, they prepare and develop no less than 25% of the allocated area in a manner that produces livestock or its products, or in a manner that produces crops and materials necessary for animal consumption.
Similarly, the seriousness of an individual in joint agricultural and animal investment is established if, during the specified investment period, they prepare and develop no less than 25% of the allocated area in a manner that contributes to the actual production of crops for human and animal consumption or their products.
3- The seriousness of a company in agricultural or animal investment is established if it prepares and develops no less than 35% of the allocated area during the specified investment period in a manner that contributes to the actual production of crops and products for human or animal consumption.

1- ‎The technical supervision of the distributed lands is carried out, and the seriousness of the specialists in investing them is monitored according to the detailed foundations in section six, by following the steps below:
A) Organizing inspection tours every six months by the employees of the Ministry of Agriculture assigned in the region, and reports are submitted to the Land Investment Administration at the Ministry.
‎B) The Land Investment Administration, in turn, sends one or more of its specialists to carry out this task, with the participation of the agricultural director of the relevant area in the specific tour. 
C) The Land Investment Administration submits its observations based on the reports it receives from the previous two steps to the central committee stipulated in paragraph (4) of (Fifth) above.

• D) The committee's task is: ‎

  • 1) In the case of proving the lack of seriousness in the investment:  

    • A- Proposing the cancellation of the specialization to the Minister of Agriculture and Water, who issues a decision in this regard if he agrees to it in the accompanying format (Decision to Cancel Specialization). 

    • B- Estimating the expenses incurred by the specialist whose specialization is intended to be canceled.

    • ‎C- Referring its estimate to the Land Investment Administration to obtain the necessary commitment to be fulfilled by whoever is intended to be granted the right of specialization again, provided that this is done immediately upon the issuance of the Minister's decision to cancel the previous investor's right of specialization.

    • D- Not accepting any request for land investment from individuals who have previously obtained lands under this ‎law and have proven their lack of seriousness in investing them during the period of specialization, and the Ministry has issued cancellation decisions regarding their specialization.

    • Those who have had a decision issued against them to cancel their specialization on land due to the lack of proven seriousness in their investment are not entitled to submit a new specialization request for another land.

  • 2) In the case of proving the seriousness of the investment at the end of the specified investment period:

  • ‎Proposing the ownership of the land to the specialist to the Minister of Agriculture and Water, who issues a decision in this regard if he agrees to it in the accompanying format (Decision of Ownership).

E - For the decision of ownership issued by the Minister of Agriculture and Water to become effective, it is submitted to His Majesty the King or to whomever His Majesty delegates for approval.

The appeals and disputes arising from the application of this law shall be decided by a person with the rank of judge appointed by the Minister of Justice, who works in the Ministry of Agriculture and Water, and his rulings shall be enforced by a decision from the Minister of Agriculture and Water.

The Minister of Agriculture and Water has the right to delete, add, or amend the provisions of this Regulation or to exempt certain cases from it if necessary, provided that this does not conflict with the provisions of the Law.

The Deputy Minister for Agricultural Affairs and the competent authority shall take the necessary measures to implement this.