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Regulatory updates

Federal Tax Authority: latest updates.

New rules, circulars, consultations and notices from UAE regulators, each summarised with who is affected and what to do. Collected by Arakan Lexara from the regulators' own websites.

Arakan Lexara Weekly

The week's changes, what they mean and the deadlines ahead. Every Monday, free.

12 Dec 2025Cabinet DecisionHigh impact
Cabinet Decision No. 197 of 2025 on Excise Goods, Tax Rates and Calculation Methods (Sweetened Drinks)
Replaces the flat 50% excise tax on sweetened drinks with a tiered, sugar-content-based rate (AED 0 / 0.79 / 1.09 per litre depending on sugar content per 100ml), requiring MOIAT-accredited lab reports per product, with a transitional over-tax deduction available through 30 June 2026. Issued 27 November 2025; published 12 December 2025.
8 Dec 2025FTA DecisionMedium impact
FTA Decision No. 8 of 2025 on Tax Compliance Timelines for Qualifying Investment Funds and their Investors
Sets registration deadlines (3–12 months), tax-return filing timelines (9–12 months) and annual declaration deadlines (extended to 10 months) for Qualifying Investment Funds and their non-resident investors, implementing Cabinet Decision No. 34 of 2025's shift of QIFs from tax-transparent to tax-exempt status. Issued 18 September 2025; published 8 December 2025.
3 Dec 2025Cabinet DecisionHigh impact
Federal Decree-Law No. 16 of 2025 Amending the VAT Law

Updates are found automatically on regulators' websites and summarised by AI. Check the official source before relying on any item.

Past weekly briefings

Amends the VAT Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 8 of 2017): clarifies reverse-charge self-invoicing, introduces a five-year limitation period to claim excess recoverable input tax, adds Article 54 provisions denying input tax recovery where connected to tax evasion, and repeals the former Article 79(bis) limitation provision. Effective 1 January 2026; also the legal basis referenced in Public Clarification VATP046. Issued 25 November 2025; publish date 3 December 2025.

25 Nov 2025Cabinet DecisionHigh impact

Federal Decree-Law No. 17 of 2025 Amending the Tax Procedures Law

Amends the Tax Procedures Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 28 of 2022): caps the FTA's period to allocate credits/overpayments at five years, revises the voluntary disclosure framework to selective FTA application, sets a five-year deadline for taxpayer refund requests, and expands statute-of-limitations exceptions for audits. Effective 1 January 2026. Date shown is the decree's issue date per secondary legal sources; the exact Official Gazette publish date was not independently confirmed — flagged.

11 Nov 2025Cabinet DecisionHigh impact

Cabinet Decision No. 129 of 2025 Amending the Administrative Penalties for Violation of Tax Laws

Major overhaul of administrative penalties across VAT, Excise Tax and Corporate Tax: replaces the compounding late-payment penalty (capped at 300%) with a flat 14% per annum rate calculated monthly, reduces voluntary-disclosure penalties to 1% per month, and lowers several fixed-amount penalties (e.g. the incorrect-return penalty cut from AED 1,000–2,000 to AED 500). Issued 9 October 2025; effective 14 April 2026.

10 Oct 2025Ministerial DecisionMedium impact

Ministerial Decision No. 96 of 2025 on Conditions to Exempt Certain Real Estate Investment Trusts

Sets the conditions REITs must satisfy to qualify for Corporate Tax exemption as Qualifying Investment Funds, feeding into the later FTA Decision No. 8 of 2025 on investor-level compliance timelines. Issued 14 April 2025, published on FTA's Official Gazette listing 10 October 2025 — flagged for date uncertainty.

10 Oct 2025Ministerial DecisionMedium impact

Ministerial Decision No. 84 of 2025 on Audited Financial Statements Requirements

Prescribes which categories of Taxable Persons must prepare audited (rather than merely reviewed) financial statements for Corporate Tax purposes, underpinning subsequent guidance such as Public Clarification CTP007 on Tax Group audited statements. Issued 25 March 2025, published on FTA's Official Gazette listing 10 October 2025 — flagged for date uncertainty.

10 Oct 2025Ministerial DecisionLow impact

Ministerial Decision No. 230 of 2025 on Specification of Recognised Price Reporting Agencies

Designates the price-reporting agencies whose published commodity/benchmark prices Taxable Persons may rely on for transfer pricing purposes, e.g. for commodity transactions priced by reference to independent indices. Issued 29 August 2025, published on FTA's Official Gazette listing 10 October 2025 — flagged for date uncertainty.

10 Oct 2025Ministerial DecisionHigh impact

Ministerial Decision No. 229 of 2025 on Qualifying Activities and Excluded Activities (Free Zone Corporate Tax)

Updates the list of Qualifying Activities and Excluded Activities used to determine whether a Free Zone Person's income qualifies for the 0% Corporate Tax rate. Free Zone businesses must re-check activity classification against the revised list. Note: the FTA's Official Gazette listing shows this decision published 10 October 2025 though issued earlier (28 August 2025); the underlying rule content should be treated as applicable from issuance — flagged for date uncertainty.

1 Oct 2025Ministerial DecisionLow impact

Ministerial Decision No. 249 of 2025 Exempting Smoking Cessation Products from the Definition of Tobacco Products

Excludes designated smoking-cessation/nicotine-replacement products from the Excise Tax definition of tobacco products, removing the 100% excise tax on qualifying products in support of public-health smoking-cessation policy. Issued 22 September 2025; published/effective 1 October 2025.

29 Sept 2025Ministerial DecisionHigh impact

Ministerial Decision No. 243 of 2025 on the Electronic Invoicing System

Establishes the legal framework for the UAE's mandatory e-invoicing (e-Billing) system: scope (B2B/B2G), exclusions (B2C, sovereign government activities, certain airline/goods-transport and VAT-exempt financial services), and the role of Accredited Service Providers (ASPs). Foundational legislation for the e-invoicing rollout, paired with Ministerial Decision No. 244 of 2025 on timing.

29 Sept 2025Ministerial DecisionHigh impact

Ministerial Decision No. 244 of 2025 on the Implementation of the Electronic Invoicing System (Phased Timeline)

Sets the phased rollout schedule for mandatory e-invoicing: voluntary pilot from 1 July 2026; large taxpayers (revenue AED 50 million or more) must appoint an Accredited Service Provider by 31 July 2026 and comply from 1 January 2027; smaller taxpayers and government entities follow through 2027. This is the master compliance calendar for UAE e-invoicing (later amended — see FTA-2026-008).

26 Sept 2025Public ClarificationMedium impact

CTP009 – Application of the Valuation Method under the Transitional Rules on Disposal of Qualifying Immovable Property by a Real Estate Developer

Clarifies how real estate developers that are Taxable Persons must apply the market-value valuation method under Ministerial Decision No. 120 of 2023 transitional rules when disposing of Qualifying Immovable Property acquired before the Corporate Tax regime began.

19 Sept 2025Public ClarificationMedium impact

CTP008 – Corporate Tax Treatment of Family Wealth Management Structures

FTA clarifies how family wealth/investment holding structures (family foundations, trusts, holding vehicles) are treated under UAE Corporate Tax Law, including conditions relevant to transparency/exemption elections for family offices and private wealth structures.