Federal Law Federal Law No. 7 of 2017 President of the UAE (federal legislation)

FL 7/2017 — former Tax Procedures Law

Federal Law No. 7 of 2017 on Tax Procedures

Superseded Issued 11 June 2017

English translation (unofficial) (opens in a new tab)

Replaced by FDL 28/2022 — Tax Procedures Law from 1 March 2023 — read the current text →

Document type
Federal Law
Number
7
Issued by
President of the UAE (federal legislation)
Administered by
Federal Tax Authority
Issued
11 June 2017
Entry into force
30 days after publication in the Official Gazette (Art. 54).
Current position
Repealed and replaced by Federal Decree-Law No. 28 of 2022 with effect from 1 March 2023 (Art. 55(1)). Kept for periods and events governed by the old law.
Topics
Tax Procedures & the FTA · Record keeping · FTA audit
Official text
Official Arabic text · English translation (unofficial)

Factual summary

The first UAE federal tax procedures law. It set the common rules for VAT and Excise Tax on record keeping, tax registration, returns, tax audits, voluntary disclosure, objections and tax agents. It was repealed and replaced by Federal Decree-Law No. 28 of 2022 from 1 March 2023; its Executive Regulation stayed in force, where consistent, until replacement regulations were issued (FDL 28/2022, Art. 55(3)).

What it means in practice Professional insight

Historical. Use it only for periods and events governed by the old law (for example, procedures that began before 1 March 2023). For current obligations, use Federal Decree-Law No. 28 of 2022.

What changed

  1. 11 June 2017 Issued
  2. Entry into force: 30 days after publication in the Official Gazette (Art. 54).
  3. 16 September 2021 Amended by Federal Decree-Law No. 28 of 2021 (effective 1 November 2021)
  4. 1 March 2023 Replaced by FDL 28/2022 — Tax Procedures Law: Federal Law No. 7 of 2017 repealed and replaced.

Relationship chain

Law → decisions made under it → amendments → guidance and announcements; oldest first within each level.

  1. 30 September 2022 Federal Decree-Law FDL 28/2022 — Tax Procedures Law In force — amended
    1. 11 June 2017 Federal Law FL 7/2017 — former Tax Procedures Law — Replaced by this law from 1 March 2023 Superseded
    2. 12 September 2025 Ministerial Decision MD 243/2025 — E-invoicing system — Made under e-invoicing provisions In force (see E-Invoicing)

Official sources

English translation (unofficial) (opens in a new tab)

Last verified against official sources: 5 October 2026 · اقرأ بالعربية

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General information, not tax advice. Each record is checked against the official source; where they differ, the official Arabic text prevails.