While summer is still in full swing, (surprisingly) so is the continuously changing tax landscape of the GCC region. The UAE Ministry of Finance’s public consultation on the classification of Qualifying Activities and Excluded Activities for Free Zone companies got extended and DLA Piper’s tax team submitted several questions and comments based on practical client cases. It will be very interesting to see if the public consultation will result in changes to the scope of the mentioned activities for Free Zone companies.
We have also taken a closer look at the UAE’s new Tax Procedures Law, which includes various changes to the recent set of regulations. Noteworthy changes include amendments to the voluntary disclosure regime, new tax agent criteria, the introduction of new “tax crimes”, the addition of a tax assessment review in the dispute resolution process and new exceptions to the standard statute of limitation periods. This article serves as Part I in our two-part series covering the recent changes to the UAE’s tax procedures. Stay tuned for part II, in which we will cover the new Executive Regulation of the Tax Procedures Law, which was issued on 31 July 2023.
In Saudi Arabia, the already successful tax amnesty scheme was extended until December 31, 2023. Until that time, businesses have the opportunity to address any discrepancies in tax registration, tax return submissions and other tax records, without the looming threat of penalties.
In an unexpected move, Russia has suspended crucial provisions of its Double Tax Treaties (DTTs) with 38 jurisdictions that Moscow considers “unfriendly” due to the imposition of various sanctions. At the same time, Russia has recently stepped up its efforts in strengthening its DTT network with countries in the Gulf, such as Oman and the UAE, which it considers as “friendly”.
Finally, from an international tax perspective, the GCC member states continue to expand their DTT networks with various other jurisdictions.
We hope you enjoy this month’s newsletter, and as always, your comments and feedback are highly appreciated
