The Federal Tax Authority (FTA) has launched its digital innovation platform named ‘Tax 10’, designed to strengthen and encourage innovation, excellence, and professional creativity among its employees, as well as to upgrade its services, drive sustainable development, enhance corporate and individual performance, and promote a culture of innovation.

The Authority stated that the new platform was built to incorporate the latest technologies and smart programmes used in the field, in an effort to create a framework that encourages the active participation of all FTA employees in designing and developing future tax initiatives, or projects in other areas related to the Authority’s operational and service systems.

The platform includes a rich digital observatory featuring more than 3,000 international government innovation practices, documented and classified into 15 different categories, including tax and financial innovations, government services, and future skills.

The FTA indicated that the Tax 10 platform for innovation was launched during an introductory seminar attended by Khalid Ali Al Bustani, Director General of the Federal Tax Authority, with the FTA team from all sectors joining. The seminar introduced the new platform, its contents, procedures, and the incentives it offers to innovative employees.

The session also highlighted a set of topics related to innovation tools, the Authority’s innovation roadmap, and ways for FTA employees to effectively participate in future innovation plans in order to keep pace with the rapid technological development in the tax field.

The authority stressed the importance of launching the Tax 10 digital innovation platform to support its strategy to accelerate its innovation and digital transformation by promoting and adopting the best and most advanced international practices in the field of taxation and financial services.

The Federal Tax Authority explained that the new platform is the first of its kind in the region, and is expected to drive a major shift in the Authority’s innovation tools and activities by stimulating creative ideas, discovering and developing employees’ capabilities and talents, and adopting innovative methods to ensure sustainable financial diversification for the UAE and its future generations.

The Federal Tax Authority was established by Federal Decree-Law No. (13) of 2016 to help diversify the national economy and increase non-oil revenues in the UAE through the management and collection of federal taxes based on international best practices and standards, as well as to provide all means of support to enable taxpayers to comply with the tax laws and procedures.

Since its inception in 2017, the FTA has been committed to cooperate with the competent authorities to establish a comprehensive and balanced system to make the UAE one of the first countries in the world to implement a fully electronic tax system that encourages voluntary compliance, with simple procedures based on the highest standards of transparency and accuracy – beginning from registration, to the submission of tax returns, to the payment of due taxes through the Authority’s website.

Meanwhile following remarkable turnout, the Tax Support initiative – launched by the Federal Tax Authority (FTA) in January 2023 to establish direct and continuous communication with business sectors – continued with its second phase in Al Ain with the aim of raising awareness among taxpayers and promoting voluntary compliance with tax legislation.

The second workshop under the Tax Support initiative was held on 14 and 15 February, as a collaboration between the FTA and Tadbeer Centre at Hili Mall in Al Ain.

During the workshop, a team from the Authority answered enquiries from participating business owners, shared knowledge with them, and offered them support, to overcome any obstacles they may encounter while going through online registration procedures, submitting tax returns, paying due taxes, and recovering refundable amounts.

The Federal Tax Authority asserted that the first workshop under the Tax Support initiative, which was held in Dubai in January, achieved remarkable success and great turnout from business sectors, noting that FTA experts are always available during the initiative’s activities to answer questions from representatives of business sectors about registration and other tax obligations, in addition to encouraging taxpayers who have not registered to expedite registration in order to avoid fines.

The Authority’s team also introduces attendees to the procedure for submitting Tax Returns, paying taxes within the specified deadlines, and other processes available through the EmaraTax platform for digital tax services.

Meanwhile the Federal Tax Authority (FTA) announced that the single sign-on feature of UAE PASS – the first national digital identity– has been introduced to the EmaraTax platform, which tax system registrants can use in all procedures and services on the platform, available through the official FTA website, further advancing the sweeping digital transformation taking place across the UAE.

The Authority stated that the new feature was launched in collaboration with relevant authorities, and designed to meet the highest standards of security, confidentiality, and accuracy of information and procedures, in an effort to to speed up processes, improve user experience, and meet customers’ aspirations.