FDL 47/2022 — Corporate Tax Law

Factual summary

The federal law that introduced Corporate Tax in the UAE. It defines who is a taxable person, how taxable income is derived from accounting income, the exemptions and reliefs — including Small Business Relief (Art. 21) — and the compliance cycle: registration, records kept for seven years (Art. 56), and a tax return and payment within nine months of the end of each tax period (Arts. 53 and 48). It applies to tax periods commencing on or after 1 June 2023 (Art. 69). The Ministry of Finance consolidated text includes three amending decree-laws issued in 2023, 2024 and 2025.

What it means in practice Professional insight

Who: companies and other juridical persons, and individuals whose business turnover exceeds the threshold set by Cabinet decision. What to do: register with the FTA within the set timeline, keep records, prepare financial statements, and file and pay for every tax period — including a period in which a relief is elected. The deadlines are computed in the Tax Calendar from the rules listed with this record.

Key provisions

• Art. 3 Two rate bands: 0% up to an amount set by Cabinet decision, 9% above it (see Cabinet Decision No. 116 of 2022).
• Art. 21 Small Business Relief: a resident person may elect to be treated as having no taxable income when its revenue for the period and every previous period does not exceed a threshold set by the Minister.
• Art. 51(1) Registration with the FTA within the timeline the Authority sets (see FTA Decision No. 3 of 2024).
• Arts. 48, 53 Tax return and payment no later than nine months after the end of the tax period, unless the FTA sets another date.
• Art. 56(1) Records kept for seven years after the end of the tax period they relate to.