The Council of Ministers Approves an Amended System to Simplify and Expedite Electronic Litigation Procedures

Approval of the settlement of 970 pending cases between taxpayers and the Income and Sales Tax Department.

The Council of Ministers, in its session held today Sunday, under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Dr. Jafar Hassan, approved an amended system for the use of electronic means in civil judicial procedures for the year 2026.

The system comes in implementation of the Justice Sector Strategy 2022 - 2026, which aims to develop, simplify, and expedite litigation procedures by enhancing reliance on electronic means, including the use of visual and audio communication means in civil judicial procedures, court sessions, and removing some procedural requirements related to electronically submitted documents.

The application of the system will eliminate the need for paper procedures conducted in courts and the need to submit files in paper form after they are sent electronically to the courts.

The Council of Ministers also approved an amended system for the Fund for Insured Persons and Beneficiaries of Insurance Contracts for the year 2026.

The system aligns with the objectives of the Economic Modernization Vision and the executive programs stemming from it; to enhance the protection of the rights of insured persons and beneficiaries of insurance contracts, and to maintain confidence in the insurance sector by reducing the likelihood of liquidation of insurance companies.

The system supports the transition from a model of addressing the difficulties of insurance companies to a preventive model that limits the likelihood of their occurrence, by encouraging insurance companies with good financial solvency to merge companies that suffer from weakness in their financial position and do not meet solvency requirements; in accordance with the provisions of the applicable legislations.

The merging company or the resulting company from the merger will benefit from a reduction or exemption from its contributions to the Fund, according to the duration, controls, and conditions determined by a decision issued by the Central Bank for this purpose, alongside enhancing the efficiency of the Fund's resources management.

The Council of Ministers also decided to approve the reasons for the draft administrative organization system for the Royal Academy for Inclusive Education for Persons with Disabilities for the year 2026, in preparation for sending it to the Legislation and Opinion Office to complete the procedures for its issuance according to the rules.

The draft system aims to raise the level of institutional performance and improve the quality of outputs in line with the directions of modernizing the public sector, enhance the adoption of best practices in public administration, and consolidate the principles of efficiency, effectiveness, and sustainability in providing services related to inclusive education.

It also aims to enable the Academy to undertake the tasks and competencies assigned to it under the Royal Academy for Inclusive Education for Persons with Disabilities System No. (29) for the year 2025, through establishing a flexible and integrated organizational structure that contributes to enhancing the efficiency of executive management, improving the distribution of human resources, and enhancing the ability to respond to development requirements.

The draft system works on developing an effective institutional governance system that ensures the clarity of decision-making paths and the soundness of its procedures, thereby ensuring the smooth operation, simplification of administrative procedures, reduction of complexity, and enhancement of organizational flexibility to keep pace with the nature of the Academy's work and competencies.

It also works on accurately and clearly defining the roles, responsibilities, and functional authorities to enhance institutional accountability, limit overlap and duplication of competencies, and contribute to improving internal coordination efficiency among organizational units and achieving performance integration.

On another note, the Council of Ministers decided to approve the settlement of 970 pending cases between taxpayers and the Income and Sales Tax Department.

The decision comes as a continuation of the government's approach to alleviate the burdens on economic activities, investors, taxpayers, and citizens, stimulate economic activity, improve the business environment, and assist taxpayers in settling their tax situations.