The Board of Directors of the Federal Tax Authority (FTA) held its ninth meeting today (Wednesday, July 24, 2019) headed by FTA Chairman His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, UAE Minister of Finance, at the Ministry of Finance’s headquarters in Dubai.

The Board looked into the performance of the FTA’s various systems, which facilitate registration, the submission of Tax Returns, and refunding tax to legally eligible groups through multiple Schemes, including the VAT refunds for nationals building new residences in the UAE, the Tax Refunds for Tourists Scheme, and the VAT Refunds for Business Visitors.

The FTA Board of Directors ratified the Authority’s financial statements for 2017 and 2018, and approved several executive decisions regarding the FTA’s internal regulatory and administrative policies and operations. Attendees at the meeting then went on to showcase the Authority’s recent accomplishments, where the various tax schemes have exhibited improved performance, and the number of businesses and tax groups registered for VAT surpassed 307,000, while the number of those that registered for Excise Tax totalled 724.

Furthermore, the figures revealed that the user base for the tax system is expanding rapidly, which compelled the Authority to authorise more than 123 clearing and forwarding companies, increase the number of accredited Tax Agents to 395, and commission 28 accredited tax accounting software vendors.

H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum applauded the FTA’s performance and achievements, which were also lauded by experts, as well as local and international institutions. H.H. went on to highlight the Authority’s efforts to achieve the tax system’s stated developmental, economic, and social objectives, citing the strategic partnerships the FTA has forged with government and private entities, which catalysed the drastic increase in self-compliance rates and in tax awareness among taxpayers and the public.

“The tax system has begun achieving many of its main objectives, most notably the diversification of the UAE’s resources,” H.H. added. “This allows us to continue providing high-quality services for future generations, in line with the UAE Vision 2021 and its objectives to build a sustainable ecosystem and integrated infrastructure.”