According to Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE's Minister of State for Foreign Trade, income tax is not on the agenda. The minister told Bloomberg TV that, for now, the UAE will not implement income tax.

“It is not at the table at all now,” Thani Al Zeyoudi was quoted as saying by Bloomberg in a reply to a query about income tax.

The interview follows UAE's Ministry of Finance's announcement on January 31 regarding the introduction of a corporate tax effective for financial years beginning on or after June 1, 2023. The UAE corporate tax regime will be among the most competitive in the world with a standard tax rate of nine per cent on taxable profits up to Dh375,000 and a zero per cent tax rate on taxable profits over that amount.

As the new tax will replace a majority of the fees companies now pay, the minister said corporate tax was received positively by the country's corporate sector.

As per the Ministry of Finance's Corporate Tax FAQs, individuals conducting business in the UAE under a commercial license (e.g., as independent contractors) will also be subject to corporate tax.

The UAE had earlier introduced a five percent value-added tax (VAT) in 2018 as part of the GCC framework.

SOURCE KHALEEJTIMES