UAE VAT refund for foreign businesses

The deadline for non-resident businesses to submit requests for Value Added Tax (VAT) refunds in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is fast approaching.

Applications must be submitted by 1 October 2019 to the UAE Federal Tax Authority (FTA) to recover VAT incurred during the 2018 calendar year. Foreign businesses should assess whether they qualify for a refund and start calculating the amount of UAE VAT they can reclaim.

This scheme is open to businesses which meet the following criteria:

• No place of establishment or fixed establishment in the UAE;
• Not a taxable person in the UAE;
• Not carrying on a business in the UAE; and
• Carrying on a business and registered for VAT (or equivalent) overseas.

Businesses in the following countries are eligible:

• Austria
• Bahrain
• Belgium
• Denmark
• Finland
• France
• Kuwait
• Iceland
• Isle of Man
• Lebanon - in certain circumstances
• Luxembourg
• Namibia - refunds only available for business goods that are exported and not for services consumed in the UAE.
• Netherlands
• New Zealand
• Norway
• Oman
• Qatar
• Saudi Arabia
• South Africa - refunds only available for expenses relating to goods that are exported from a designated UAE port within 90 days and does not apply to services.
• Sweden
• UK
• Zimbabwe
• Switzerland