How do people in MENA pay online?
In the Gulf, cards and wallets dominate. Saudi Arabia is built around mada, the national debit scheme, used on its own and through Apple Pay, and SAMA reports that electronic payments reached 85% of retail payments in 2025. The UAE is a Visa and Mastercard market where much of the card spending now runs through Apple Pay, and the Aani instant payments platform passed 12.5 million registered users in 2026. In both countries buy now, pay later is mainstream, with Tabby and Tamara offering interest-free instalments at many checkouts, and stc pay is a widely held wallet in Saudi Arabia.
Egypt follows a different pattern. Many shoppers still prefer cash, and Fawry turns cash into an online payment through reference codes paid at retail points or in apps. Mobile wallets are growing fastest, reaching 60 million by the end of 2025 according to the Central Bank of Egypt, with Vodafone Cash the best known. Meeza, the national card scheme, and international cards serve banked shoppers.
What rules shape online payments across MENA?
VAT reaches foreign sellers in all three markets. Saudi Arabia charges 15% and the UAE 5%, and in both a non-resident selling to consumers has no registration threshold, according to PwC. Egypt charges 14% on e-services under its simplified vendor registration, which a non-resident joins once its Egyptian revenue reaches EGP 500,000 in 12 months, according to Deloitte.
Consumer rules differ. Saudi Arabia’s E-Commerce Law of 2019 lets a consumer cancel within seven days of receiving an unused product and covers sellers outside the Kingdom that sell to Saudi consumers. Egypt’s Consumer Protection Law, No. 181 of 2018, allows cancellation within 14 days of receipt and requires the seller to refund within seven days of the return. In the UAE, collecting from customers goes through acquirers and payment providers licensed by the Central Bank under its 2021 retail payment services regulation.
Currency matters most in Egypt. Banks restricted foreign currency card spending during the 2023 dollar shortage and raised limits again from 2024, with the National Bank of Egypt and Banque Misr lifting international credit card limits to USD 5,000 in September 2024. Limits still vary by bank, so charging in EGP through local acquiring is the safer route. The country guides give the detail.
How does Omno route payments in MENA?
Omno connects the region’s methods through one API. Routing rules send mada cards only to providers that process the domestic scheme, route international cards by BIN to the acquirer your rule sets for that issuer, and offer Tabby, stc pay, Fawry and Vodafone Cash in the hosted checkout where they fit the customer and basket. If a provider is unavailable or rejects the request, the payment moves to the next provider in the rule until one accepts. Webhooks confirm the final status of every payment, and the routing-decision log supports reconciliation in AED, SAR and EGP.