GCC Product Labeling Rules: Arabic, Origin & Safety Marks

Want your product on a shelf in Riyadh or Dubai? The label is your first sales tool and your first customs check.

The rules are simpler than they look. Across the GCC, the core is the same: Arabic text, the country of origin, who made or imported it, and the safety marks your product needs.

Get that right once, at the factory, and one box can sell in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and on both big marketplaces.

You'll find the fields every label needs, what changes per country, how to handle stickers, and a checklist by category.

How labelling rules work in the GCC

GSO (the GCC Standardization Organization) writes Gulf standards and Gulf technical regulations. A standard on its own is voluntary. It becomes mandatory when a technical regulation points to it, or a member state adopts it.

Each country then enforces the rules through its own bodies:

• Saudi Arabia. SASO checks consumer goods through SABER, and the SFDA (Saudi Food and Drug Authority) checks food, cosmetics and health products.
• UAE. MoIAT (the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology) runs product conformity through ECAS, and the consumer law sets the Arabic information rules.

So the question is always: which technical regulation covers my product? Your certification body can answer that fast, or start with our SABER and SASO guide.

What every consumer product label needs

Most consumer goods sold in the Gulf carry the same core set of information. Think of it as your label's passport page:

• Product name in Arabic. Say what the product is, not just the brand name.
• Country of origin. A clear "Made in …" on the product and on inner and outer packs.
• Manufacturer and importer. Name and address, with the local importer for the market you sell in.
• Model, batch or lot number. Plus a barcode where relevant.
• Warnings and instructions in Arabic. Safety warnings, use and care, and storage.
• Conformity marks. Only the ones your product's regulation requires.

English is welcome next to the Arabic. The catch? Both must say the same thing, and the Arabic can't be a smaller afterthought that leaves out a warning.

Need a translator who knows Gulf product terms? Compare Arabic translation agencies.

Saudi Arabia vs UAE: what's different?

The core fields match. The national extras don't.

For the full picture per country, see Saudi consumer protection rules and UAE consumer protection law.

Which conformity marks go on the label?

Marks prove your product passed a safety scheme. Only use the ones you've actually been granted:

The G-Mark must be at least 5 mm high and show the notified body's number. A toy or a kettle can need the G-Mark and ECAS together, so plan space for both.

Fees and steps for the UAE scheme are in our ECAS certification guide.

Stickers or printed packaging?

Both can work. Your volume and category decide.

For food, the rule is strict. Only one manufacturer-supplied Arabic sticker is allowed, it can't peel off in normal handling, and it can't cover the original label.

For most other goods, a durable sticker works if it doesn't cover anything mandatory. So test with stickers, then switch to printed packs once a product sells.

Marketplace labels are a separate job

Amazon and noon barcodes help the warehouse find your stock. They don't tell a regulator anything.

• Amazon FBA. Each unit carries an FNSKU (Amazon's own barcode), and each carton gets a shipment ID label.
• noon FBN. Each unit carries a scannable barcode that matches its noon SKU. Cover old or conflicting barcodes.

Put the marketplace barcode where it doesn't hide the Arabic text, origin or marks. The marketplaces also check regulated categories for certificates and Arabic labels during listing review.

Prep details live in our guides to Amazon FBA in Saudi Arabia and noon fulfilment.

Worked example: one kettle box for Riyadh and Dubai

Say you sell an electric kettle made in China, through a Saudi importer and a UAE distributor. Here's what the printed box carries:

• Arabic and English product name: "غلاية كهربائية / Electric kettle"
• "صنع في الصين / Made in China" on the box and both cartons
• Saudi importer's name, address and CR number, plus the UAE distributor's name
• Model number, batch code and barcode
• A dual-frequency rating ("50/60 Hz") and a three-pin Type G plug, which both markets use
• Arabic warnings: don't immerse, keep away from children, unplug before cleaning
• G-Mark with the notified body number, plus the ECAS mark for UAE stock

One shared design covers both markets. The factory switches the importer block per batch, and the ECAS mark goes on once you hold the UAE certificate. The FNSKU or noon barcode goes on last, away from the warnings.

Label rules by category

Here's what changes per category on top of the core fields:

Run every product through this list before you sign off the artwork:

Notes for food and cosmetics brands

• Food follows GSO 9 for labelling and GSO 150-1 for expiry dates. Work from the latest GSO 9 edition, amended in 2025.
• Date format. Shelf life under three months shows day, month and year. Longer shelf life can show month and year.
• Cosmetics follow GSO 1943, with ingredients listed by INCI name and a barcode per size or shade.
• Don't mention SFDA on a cosmetics label, and skip medical claims.

The full SFDA process is in SFDA registration for cosmetics and food.

Notes for Chinese factories

• Print "Made in China" on the product, inner pack and outer carton.
• Leave an artwork block for the Saudi importer's name and CR, and swap it per buyer.
• Use the same test reports for SABER, ECAS and the G-Mark, so ask your lab to quote all three.
• Read SABER certification for Chinese exporters before the next production run.

Browse more rules in our regulations hub, or compare product certification consultants.