For many years, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was known as a “tax-free” country, meaning people and companies didn’t have to pay income or corporate taxes like in other countries.

But things have changed in recent years. To follow international rules and support the country’s growth, the UAE government has introduced some types of taxes:

Value Added Tax (VAT): A small tax (5%) added to most goods and services. It started in 2018.

Excise Tax: This tax was introduced in 2017 on products that are harmful to health, like tobacco, soft drinks, and energy drinks.

Corporate Tax: A new tax started in 2023. It is a 9% tax on business profits, but only if the profit is more than AED 375,000 per year.