UAE Has No Plans To Tax Individuals – Finance Minister

The UAE has no immediate plans to impose tax on individuals, Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai’s deputy ruler and Minister of Finance has confirmed.

However, the ministry has been conducting studies on the economic effects of levying taxes on companies, official news agency WAM quoted him as saying.

It is also mulling the imposition of fees for newly introduced services at federal ministries and bodies, Sheikh Hamdan said.

The ministry is also considering imposing taxes on certain harmful goods such as tobacco products. “The ministry is committed to announcing any taxes once an agreement is reached with relevant and concerned parties,” he said.

Sheikh Hamdan added that the ministry is studying the impact of imposing a fee on remittances sent abroad. If imposed, the ministry will review proposals regarding the mechanism on how to collect such fees, he said.

His statements came as the ministry announced that the estimated value of the UAE’s budget for 2014-2016 touched Dhs140 billion, up 15 per cent compared to the budget for 2011-2013, which amounted to Dhs122 billion.

Sheikh Hamdan said the total cost of the projects to be implemented by the ministries and federal institutions during 2014-2016 was estimated at Dhs23.8 billion, including Dhs10.4 billion towards the cost of the federal ministries, Dhs8.2 billion for development projects of electricity and water and Dhs5.2 billion for the Zayed Housing Programme projects. A total of Dhs1.8 billion has been allocated for the implementation of 11 projects by the Ministry of Health, he added.

The general budget for the fiscal year 2014 stood at about Dhs46.2 billion, up Dhs1.6 billion compared to the last year, during which the total estimated revenues and expenses were of the same value and without deficit, WAM reported.