Quick overview
| Standard Rate | Reduced Rate | Other Rates |
| 5% |
The local name for VAT in United Arab Emirates is Value Added Tax.
There is basically ony 1 VAT rate in United Arab Emirates.
- Standard VAT rate is 5%%
- There are no reduced rates.
Recent developments
For more information about (recent) rate change developments in United Arab Emirates, please click here.
Standard rate: 5%
This rate applies for all transactions that take place in United Arab Emirates, unless an exception applies (such as a reduced rate, the zero rate or an exemption, or a reason to treat the transaction as outside scope of VAT).
Zero rate (0%)
Examples of goods and services taxable at 0%
- A direct or indirect export of goods to outside of the GCC territory (with certain evidence and timings)
- A movement of goods into a Designated Zone from a place in the UAE or a supply of goods to a Designated Zone shall not be considered an export of those goods
- Export of services, where the following conditions are met:
- The services are supplies to a recipient of services who does not have a place of residence in the GCC and who is outside the UAE at the time the services are performed
- The services are not supplied directly in connection with real estate situated in the UAE or any improvement to the real estate or directly in connection with moveable personal assets situated in the UAE at the time the services are performed
- The renewal or variation of a debt security, equity security, or credit contract
- The provision, taking, variation or release of a guarantee, indemnity, security or bond in respect of the performance of obligation under a check, credit, equity security, debt security
- The operation of any current, deposit or savings account
- The provision or transfer of ownership of financial instruments such as derivatives, options, swaps, credit default swaps and futures
- The payment or collection of any amount of interest, principal, dividend or other amount whatever in respect of any debt security, equity security, credit and contract of life insurance
- Agreeing to do so, or arranging, any of the activities outlined above, other than advising thereon
- Supply of residential buildings, unless it is zero-rated, where the lease is more than six months or the tenant of the property is a holder of an ID card issued by the Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship
- Supply of bare land, meaning land that is not covered by completed or partially completed buildings or civil engineering works
- Supply of local passenger transport services in a qualifying means of transport by land, water or air from a place in the UAE to another place in the UAE
A global VAT/GST rate overview can be found here (note this is a work in progress).
This post was last updated on June 10, 2021.
