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Tax

Tax news from the Middle East. All the important stories, exclusive interviews, plus authoritative opinion and analysis

Bahrain tax

Bahrain’s expat tax move ‘likely to be replicated GCC-wide’

Bahrain is proposing to levy a tax on expatriate remittances, a move an industry expert believes is likely to be replicated in other neighbouring Gulf countries. Members of parliament in the kingdom this week supported a revised proposal which would mean expat remittances face a two percent tax. “It would not surprise me if other […]

Oman ruler Sultan Haitham bin Tariq (2nd L) pictured at a meeting in Brussels in December. The draft of the new personal income tax now moves to the sultan for final approval

Oman makes key changes to draft income tax law

Oman has issued a new draft personal income tax law with key amendments, raising the exemption threshold and lowering proposed tax rates. The timeline for the law’s implementation remains uncertain. The latest draft, which was delayed last year, has been approved by the State Council and Majlis Al Shura and will now move to Sultan […]

Tax specialists in the GCC are curious as to how Trump's stance will affect their compliance

GCC weighs impact of Trump’s global corporate tax moves

Tax professionals in the Gulf are assessing how President Donald Trump’s pull-back of US support for an international corporate tax framework might affect GCC states’ implementation of it. In a day-one executive order last week, the returning US president repudiated “any commitment” made by the previous Biden administration toward the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and […]

UAE economy minister Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri speaking at Davos, where he said UAE income tax 'is not coming anytime soon'

Income tax ‘not on the table’ says UAE minister

The UAE has no plans to introduce income tax, economy minister Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri has said, dismissing speculation the country was in discussions to end its traditional tax-free status. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, the minister also criticised the EU for keeping the Gulf nation on its blacklist of countries […]

Mature old Chief Executive presents a young male speaker that is supposed to conduct a business presentation while standing in the board room with pan

Kuwait expects tax income to soar by 79%

Kuwait expects its tax income to soar by nearly 79 percent annually when all taxes take effect within an International Monetary Fund-proposed tax reform programme. In a report published on Wednesday, the Arabic language daily Alqabas said taxes are projected to fetch Kuwait around 613 million dinars ($2 billion) in its 2024-2025 budget, which started […]

Kuwait sin tax Noora Al-Fassam

$660m a year ‘sin tax’ target set by Kuwait

Kuwait hopes to raise 200 million dinars ($660 million) a year through a “sin tax” on unhealthy products as part of tax reforms proposed by the International Monetary Fund, the country’s finance minister said on Wednesday. Noora Al-Fassam told the official Kuwaiti news agency that her ministry was working on a new law for a […]

Men gather at Mubarakiya Market in Kuwait City. The country's finance minister says it is 'serious in going ahead with reforms'

Kuwait’s multinationals tax to raise $825m a year, says minister

Kuwait expects its tax on multinational businesses to generate nearly $825 million a year, the country’s finance minister has said. Noora Al Fassam told state television on Tuesday that the 15 percent tax would affect nearly 300 companies – 45 from Kuwait and the other GCC states and about 250 from other countries. Fassam described […]

Dubai alcohol tax

Dubai distributors to swallow 30% tax on alcohol brands

Dubai’s two main alcohol distributors have promised to absorb most, and in some cases all, of the 30 percent tax that was reinstated on alcoholic drinks from January 1. The Dubai Municipality tax on alcoholic beverages was suspended from the start of 2023, continuing into 2024. It was widely seen as an attempt to make […]

More than 170 productions have been shot in Abu Dhabi since 2013, among them films from the hit franchises Star Wars, Dune and Mission: Impossible

Abu Dhabi raises TV and film rebate to lure studios

Abu Dhabi is hoping to attract the best of Hollywood, Bollywood and the Arab world to the emirate via an increased TV and film rebate that could save studios as much as $10 million on each production. Abu Dhabi Film Commission increased its refund for productions from 30 percent to 35 percent in October as […]

A shopper at a Dubai street market. The indirect tax revenues bolster economic growth, the ministry of finance said

UAE indirect taxes generate up to $3bn per year

Indirect taxes in the UAE generate between AED10 and AED11 billion ($2.72 billion-2.99 billion) annually, contributing substantially to the Gulf state’s AED65 billion federal budget, a senior government official has said. These tax revenues bolster economic growth and fortify the federal government’s financial position, the UAE state-run Wam news agency reported, quoting Younis Haji Al Khoori, […]

Saudi finance minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan and IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva at a meeting in Washington, DC in October

More taxes could shield GCC from protectionism, says IMF

GCC countries should consider new taxation options to shore up their public finances and shield their economies from rising global protectionism, according to the International Monetary Fund.   That means regional governments need to continue diversifying away from fossil fuels and boost the role of the private sector, all the while identifying new tax revenues and […]

Implementing the new tax rules will vary in complexity depending on a company's structure

UAE’s corporate tax rules pose a complex challenge  

Corporate tax changes in January 15% of profit for multinationals Many businesses underprepared Companies operating in multiple countries with differing tax regulations face a complex challenge to comply with the UAE’s higher corporate ... Register now: It’s easy and free This content is available for registered members only. Register for your free account today for […]

Shoppers in Nizwa. Oman already has VAT and a corporate income tax, but has now postponed its plans for personal income tax for high earners

Oman delays introduction of personal income tax

Oman’s plan to introduce personal income tax for high earners has been put on hold following a meeting on Wednesday of the sultanate’s State Council. Under the initial draft bill, first introduced in 2022, foreign nationals in Oman who earn over $100,000 would be taxed between 5 to 9 percent from 2026. Omani citizens would […]

The e& booth at Mobile World Congress 2024 in Barcelona. Experts believe a rise in the company's tax bill would be 'harsh'

Doubt surrounds e&’s earnings as UAE tax rise looms

There is uncertainty over whether e&, the UAE’s former telecom monopoly, will pay more of its profit in taxes after the federal government announced it would raise corporate tax for multinational companies operating in the country from 2025. Emirates Telecommunications Group, which rebranded as e& but is better known under its previous name Etisalat, is […]

UAE deputy prime minister and finance minister Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. The ministry said the tax system is "aligned with global standards"

UAE to introduce 15% tax on large multinationals

The UAE is to increase corporate tax on large multinational enterprises (MNEs) to 15 percent from January 1 2025, the Ministry of Finance has announced. MNEs currently pay 9 percent of their profits in the Emirates. The domestic minimum top-up tax (DMTT) will apply to multinational enterprises with consolidated global revenues of €750 million ($793 […]

Alcohol tax in Dubai was suspended in 2023

Dubai to reintroduce 30% alcohol tax

Dubai will reintroduce the 30 percent sales tax on alcohol in January, according to an email sent by a local alcohol distributor to venues in the city.  The correspondence sent by MMI, which also operates off licences in the city, said: “Please note, Dubai Government have informed us the 30 percent municipality tax on alcoholic […]

A view of Dubai Marina. The overall value of property transactions in Dubai in 2023 reached AED322 billion (nearly $88 billion)

Buoyant property market puts billions in Dubai’s coffers

Dubai authorities have recorded a five-fold surge in the sums they earn from fees related to real estate transactions over the past five years to almost $4 billion, as the emirate’s property market grows stronger and prices rise sharply, AGBI has calculated. The transfer fee, payable to the Dubai Land Department (DLD) upon a sale, […]

Finance minister Mehmet Şimşek said “Bakeries are the places where the most tax evasion occurs" in Turkey but those in the industry dispute this

Turkey targets butchers, bakers and tax law breakers

Ankara has opened a new front in its war on tax avoidance, as the Turkish finance minister flags a crackdown on small and medium-scale businesses to help balance the budget and increase transparency. Just weeks after announcing a major offensive against tax avoiders in the corporate world, with hundreds of state auditors to be deployed […]

Church Street in Twickenham. Aldar is building homes in the affluent district of southwest London

Aldar Properties reports ‘strong pickup’ for London projects

Aldar Properties remains bullish about London’s property market despite high interest rates and fears that tax rises will be announced in the UK budget on Wednesday. The government-owned Abu Dhabi company bought British developer London Square in a deal worth AED1.07 billion ($291 million) last year – its first acquisition outside the Middle East and […]