Maktoum approves Federal Tax Authority financial statements

Sheikh Maktoum Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, First Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Finance, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Federal Tax Authority (FTA), chaired the second meeting of the FTA Board of Directors for the year 2023.

During the meeting, the Board approved the Authority’s financial statements for 2022, and reviewed its performance indicators and development plans for the next stage, which aim to continuously raise the operational efficiency of tax systems and improve the quality of services provided to customers.

The FTA Board of Directors was briefed about developments related to the implementation of the Federal Decree-Law on the Taxation of Corporations and Businesses (the “Corporate Tax Law”), as well as the Authority’s plans, preparations, and procedures in this regard. The meeting also covered the policies and decisions to be implemented in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance to ensure the smooth execution of the Corporate Tax Law, which is effective as of the first fiscal year beginning on or after 1st June 2023. The Law aims to strengthen the UAE’s position as a leading global hub for business and investment that maintains the highest international standards of tax transparency.

The Board of Directors of the Federal Tax Authority was also briefed about the progress of the FTA’s transformational projects, which form part of its contribution to implementing the new approach to government work, in line with national priorities and FTA’s key objectives.

The Authority is launching specific projects aimed at enhancing the country’s competitiveness and realising its vision for the future. Key projects include the Muwafaq package, designed to boost ease of doing business and tax compliance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) sector, the Specialised Tax Agent, the Electronic Invoicing System, and the Corporate Tax System. These rapid transformational projects aim to have a positive impact across all sectors in a short period of time.

During its meeting, chaired by Sheikh Maktoum Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the FTA Board of Directors reviewed the progress made in implementing the integrated tax system, as well as the results of the successful launch of the FTA’s advanced integrated digital tax services platform, EmaraTax. The platform was activated in December 2022, with all services now available for taxpayers. A comprehensive report reviewed by the FTA Board of Directors on the achievements, results, and developments of the Authority’s existing projects reveals that the number of registrants for Value Added Tax (VAT) has reached 351,514, while there are 1,549 registrants for Excise Tax, and 467 Tax Agents. The report also outlines key statistics regarding VAT and Excise Tax, periodic returns, the payment of taxes, and refund requests that have been processed.

According to the report, the Federal Tax Authority has approved new applications from citizens requesting refunds on the tax they incurred for building their new homes, worth a total of Dhs131,056,249 in February and March 2023, a growth of 13.92 per cent from last year. This is a direct result of the seamless procedures implemented by the FTA to enable citizens to recover the tax incurred on building their new homes.

Meanwhile, as the global airport industry, comprising over 40,000 ICAO-coded airports and revenues exceeding US$173 billion, work its ways to become carbon net-zero by 2050 through enhancing infrastructure, technology-based operational efficiencies, robust controls and benchmarked excellence, the Airport Show, from May 9 to 11, will have a sharp focus on sustainability and innovation.  Together in Innovating Future Sustainable Airports will be the theme of the world’s largest annual airport industry B2B platform. Over its three-day run at the Dubai World Trade Centre, it will highlight ways sustainable aviation can contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals and Airports Council International’s Sustainability Strategy through improved service quality, widening infrastructure development, and ensuring safe and efficient operations by all the stakeholders.

As the expanded, evolved version of the e-Apron at 2022 edition, the Sustainable Apron, in continued partnership with dnata, will feature ground handling equipment and services that enable airports in their sustainability goals.  Innovation Trail will be a bespoke customer experience which includes an impressive line-up of breakthrough innovations from leading airport suppliers in more than 20 countries. Sustainability Trail will have a strong focus on products and services that enable regional airports to shape their roadmaps to sustainability this year. The products that will be considered in this trial are those supporting airports in reducing CO2 emissions and promoting operational efficiencies at airports.