Tourists visiting UAE do not have to bear the burden of VAT, commencing from November 2018. Even though they will have to pay VAT while making the purchase, they can reclaim the amount upon leaving the UAE.

VAT refund scheme makes it possible for eligible tourists to receive a portion of the VAT as a refund for products bought at registered stores. VAT amount can be reclaimed via an electronic system, at designated spaces, without any human interference. Once you submit the required documents, the digital system decides whether the taxes are eligible for refund and if yes, reimburses the tourist via cash or credit card.

Planet, the exclusive tax refund operator of FTA, will operate the scheme. For this, a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) has been set up, where local partners will also collaborate with the international operator, Planet, to execute the project.

Procedure for retailers to join the scheme

• Need to submit request to join the scheme online and be subject to a credit check
• Issue a sales receipt at the point of sale and affix a Tax-Free tag
• Adjust the VAT applicable under tourist refund scheme while submitting the VAT return

Who can issue tax free tags?

• Any retailer registered for VAT with FTA, and who is regular in filing the return and paying due tax to authority
• Seller of goods eligible to receive tax refunds as determined by the FTA

How we can help?

Please contact HLB Hamt for any assistance in complying with the VAT tourist refund scheme. Our professionally qualified team will assist you in registering, complying, documentation and filing the VAT return as required by the scheme.

HLB HAMT has attained the status of Registered Tax Agency in United Arab Emirates. Hisham Ali Mohamed Taher, founder member & Chairman of HLB Hamt, is the registered tax agent and the tax agency number is (FTA) 30002166.

A tax agent is usually appointed on behalf of another person to represent him before the Federal tax authority. A tax agent takes care of the client’s tax obligations and performs various legal activities prescribed by the laws and orders

Designating a Tax Agent will help share the obligation/responsibility on tax compliance and deal with all tax related affairs.

How can HLB as Tax Agent help you?

• Negotiating with FTA on fines and penalties, revision of the VAT returns, refund claims etc.
• Get written clarification for complex transaction
• Verification of accounting data as per the terms of agreement
• Maintenance of FTA Audit File (FAF)
• VAT computation
• Comply with refund procedures
• VAT registration
• Attending any queries from FTA

Our service dimensions

1. Retainership: Preparing and filing tax return, addressing adnoc queries and filing voluntary disclosure if required.
2. Specific support: Making appeals and appearing in FTA.
3. Accounting and records maintenance: End to end accounting of transactions in approved tax accounting software and preparing Tax return.
4. Return filing: Filing error-free return within due date based on accounting records.

UAE, one among the fastest progressing countries in the world, is on a constant lookout for strategies and programs that will take the nation to the next era of development. These strategies focus on developments in almost every sector, be it healthcare, education, energy or economy.

• UAE Vision 2021
  UAE Vision 2021, launched in 2010, aims to provide the highest possible standards of welfare to the nationals. The program “sets the key themes for the Socio-economic development of the UAE” and calls for “a shift to a diversified and knowledge-based economy”.
• UAE Centennial 2071
  The purpose of the project which is based on four aspects, Education, economy, government development, and community cohesion, is to make UAE the best country in the world by the year 2071.

UAE Water Security Strategy 2036

Ensuring sustainability and continuous supply of water throughout is the major aim of water security strategy. The objectives of the strategy are:

• Reducing total demand for water
• Increasing the water productivity index
• Reducing the water scarcity index
• Increasing the reuse of treated water
• Increasing national water storage capacity

The strategy focuses on Water Demand Management Programme, the Water Supply Management Programme and the Emergency Production and Distribution Programme.

• UAE Energy Strategy 2050
  Energy Strategy 2050 was launched in the year 2017, with the objective to increase the contribution of clean energy in the total energy mix. The other aims include reducing the carbon footprint of power generation and increasing consumption efficiency of individuals and corporates.
• Artificial Intelligence Strategy
  The government of UAE launched the country’s first Artificial Strategy in the year 2017, a first of its kind in the region and the world. According to reports, Artificial Intelligence is expected to enhance economic growth by 1.6 percentage points and add US$182 billion to the national economy by 2035.

Objectives of the strategy

• To meet the goals of UAE Centennial 2071
• Improve government performance at various levels
• To use an integrated smart digital system
• Make UAE excel in the field of AI investments
• Build a new & vibrant market of great economic value

EXPO 2020

Dubai is on its way to astonish the world, with EXPO 2020, a festival of human ingenuity. The universal exhibition that will commence from October 20, 2020, will be hosted by Dubai and the theme is ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’. The staging of the exhibition and the related preparations are expected to produce nearly 300,000 jobs and a surge in the number of visitors, from at least 25 million to 100 million.

These strategies will definitely prove to be helpful in steering the nation’s growth by recognizing future requirements and challenges.

When global expos started in 1851, they were the only major international fairs in the world, and some of the world’s most famous and successful inventions were launched at these events. Look back as far as 1876, and the telephone was launched in Philadelphia. The x-ray machine was debuted in Buffalo in 1901, the broadcast TV in New York in 1939 and the world’s first touchscreen at Knoxville in 1982. The world’s finest creations haven’t just been confined to US launches, with Maglev – magnetic levitation-based rail travel – launched in Aichi, Japan in 2005. Fast forward to the present day, and now we are spoiled for choice with exhibition options, and Dubai finds itself with a huge opportunity – to truly make its mark with Expo 2020. The city faces huge competition to impress, but if it does, Expo 2020 could be remembered as a landmark event of its kind.

There are a whole host of benefits that hosting a successful Expo can bring, chief among them increased tourism, both during and after the event. Expo will gain significantly more international attention for the UAE. The period chosen to host the Expo – October 2020 until April 2021 – represents Dubai’s most hospitable weather, and that is ideal for impressing tourists. Equally, those already visiting Dubai in that period may be inclined to visit the Expo site.

In the same way that the Expo will serve as a platform to entice tourists, it’s also an excellent shop window and catalyst for increasing foreign investment into the country during and after the event. The world’s most innovative companies are keen to be seen at the cutting-edge, and if Expo lives up to its name then it is undoubtedly an attractive platform for large companies to be a part of.

The third major benefit is one that arises only if the situation is well managed by the government, and that is the long-term legacy of the Expo site itself. Whoever is able to inherit the space will get a new facility at the centre of Dubai South – effectively a city within a city. Progress has already been made in that regard – half of the Expo site has already been leased to Siemens to make it their worldwide logistics hub, which represents an early coup. However, if the right decisions aren’t made about what to do with the rest of the Expo site after the event, that’s a risk. South China Mall in Dongguan should be a cautionary tale – the site had the largest amount of leasable shopping space in the world, but signed almost no merchants for 10 years.

The 2000 Expo in Hannover, Germany, is an example that should also serve as a warning to Dubai, the event selling less than half of the anticipated 40 million tickets on offer. Ticket pricing was seen as a significant reason for many people not attending the event, with it being much more expensive than many other family days out. It also moved away from the traditional Expo focus on new technology, to one more based on developing sustainable ways of living for the future with the theme “Man, nature and technology”.

Arguably the biggest challenge that Dubai faces is making sure that the right content is on display at Expo 2020. The event has to show significant technological breakthroughs that will be used by people in the future. The last five world Expos haven’t really offered anything which has caught the world’s attention. Dubai needs to deliver something of serious magnitude that will live on for decades.

The technology industry is now abuzz with talk of artificial intelligence, and I believe this is something that Dubai could exploit. We all know that the UAE has appointed the world’s first minister of AI, and this could serve as a great platform for the country to promote itself as a global AI hub. If Dubai can indeed promote itself as becoming an AI hub, why couldn’t it hold mega-events around AI in the future? This could serve as a platform to position Dubai as something that it isn’t yet. Dubai already hosts some of the world’s biggest exhibitions – Arab Health, GITEX and The Big 5 chief among them – and Expo could serve as an opportunity to launch other niche exhibitions that aren’t already there worldwide.

Ultimately, Dubai can make a real success out of Expo 2020 because the city’s government has a can-do attitude, and is determined to build the biggest and best of everything. I genuinely believe Expo 2020 can allow Dubai to carve out a global niche. The government now has the opportunity to position Dubai however they want, and that’s a such a big advantage. The government has already given its strong backing to Expo, and that has already put Dubai off to a good start in making the necessary infrastructure changes for the show.

All teams involved in planning Expo now need to investigate the risks the project will face, including operational, financial and business interruption risks, and actively mitigate and manage them. Public-private partnerships tend to offset financial risks facing host governments, and this is something Dubai has already been keen to embrace. Early deadlines need to be set for testing all technologies related to the Expo. Tech providers should test crowd management, security, ticketing, and all other systems way before construction begins, to avoid delays in building and implementation.

Tourists still flock to Montreal 51 years after its 1967 Expo because they had such a positive, enduring memories of the event. Now, Dubai has to finish laying the foundations and install long-term plans to make sure Expo 2020 is truly unforgettable and leaves a legacy that the city can be proud of.