UAE taxes 2026: 9% corporate tax and relief until 2029

UAE corporate tax: 0% up to AED 375,000 and 9% above it. Small business relief now runs to 2029. The 15% top-up only touches groups above €750m.

5 September 2026 · 5 min read

Key points

Corporate tax rates: 0% on profit up to AED 375,000 and 9% above that. The rules apply to tax periods beginning on or after 1 June 2023.
Small business relief, with its AED 3,000,000 revenue threshold, has been extended to tax periods ending no later than 31 December 2029. Plenty of articles still say it expires in 2026.
The 15% global minimum tax only touches multinational groups with consolidated revenue of €750 million in at least two of the four preceding financial years.
The UAE introduced only a domestic top-up tax. It did not adopt the income inclusion or undertaxed payments rules — it collects the top-up itself rather than taxing foreign subsidiaries.

In three years the tax system of the UAE went from a zero rate to a full architecture with rates, returns and a global minimum tax. Here is what applies in September 2026, and who it does and does not touch.

Corporate tax: the base rates

The tax is paid by companies and by individuals carrying on business under a commercial licence.

Taxable profit	Rate
Up to AED 375,000	0%
Above AED 375,000	9%

The dating is regularly repeated inaccurately, and it affects the calculation. The law applies to tax periods beginning on or after 1 June 2023. For a company on a calendar financial year the first tax period was 2024, and the first return was due by 30 September 2025.

An individual falls within the tax if turnover from their business activity exceeds AED 1,000,000 in a calendar year. Employment income and income from personal and real estate investment do not count as business activity at any amount.

Small business relief: the deadline moved three years

A company with revenue up to AED 3,000,000 may elect Small Business Relief and pay no corporate tax for the period.

The relief was originally set to run to tax periods ending 31 December 2026. Ministerial Decision 131 of 29 July 2026 extended it to periods ending no later than 31 December 2029.

The practical conclusion: a company with revenue under three million dirhams probably pays no corporate tax for 2027, 2028 and 2029 either. The reporting obligation stays either way.

Free zones: the zero is not free

A free zone company can pay 0% on qualifying income. The conditions are strict: genuine economic substance in the zone, audited accounts and transfer pricing documentation.

The key detail that free zone marketing leaves out: the AED 375,000 threshold does not apply to such a company. All non-qualifying income is taxed at 9% from the first dirham.

Condition	Ordinary company	Free zone company
AED 375,000 threshold	applies	does not apply
Qualifying income	no such concept	0%
Other income	9% above the threshold	9% from the first dirham
What is required	records and a return	substance in the zone, audited accounts, transfer pricing documentation

A de minimis rule also applies: non-qualifying revenue must not exceed the lower of AED 5,000,000 or 5% of total revenue. Exceed it and the preferential rate is lost.

The global minimum tax: who it applies to

It helps to rule people out straight away. The global minimum tax rules apply to multinational groups whose annual revenue in the parent's consolidated accounts reaches €750 million in at least two of the four financial years immediately preceding the one under review.

Small and medium UAE businesses, local companies with no foreign parent or subsidiary, freelancers and owners of a single free zone company fall outside these rules entirely.

The mechanism was introduced by Cabinet Decision 142 of 31 December 2024, the text of which the finance ministry published in February 2025. The top-up rate is 15%.

An important feature: the UAE introduced only a domestic top-up tax on structures inside the country. It declined the income inclusion rule and the undertaxed payments rule. In plain terms, the UAE keeps the top-up for itself and does not tax the foreign subsidiaries of Emirati holdings.

Global tax reporting: two different filings

Who files the information return

Ministerial Decision 133 of 3 August 2026 set out who files the global minimum tax information return. The rules apply to financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2025.

The return is filed by group entities in the UAE other than investment entities, and by joint ventures and their subsidiaries in the country. Reverse hybrids file only if they are created under UAE law.

When the return can be skipped

The exemption looks convenient, but it is read wrongly. The information return can be skipped if it has already been filed by the parent or a designated entity in a country with a qualifying agreement to exchange such reporting with the UAE. The tax authority must be notified in that case.

The exemption removes only that return. The obligation to file the top-up tax return and to register with the tax authority remain in force.

Deadlines: a fork worth knowing in advance

What is filed	Deadline under the rules	For calendar year 2025
Global minimum tax information return	15 months after the financial year ends	31 March 2027
Top-up tax return	15 months, 18 in the first transition year	30 June 2027

What smaller businesses should do

For an ordinary UAE company the order has not changed:

1Register with the tax authority.
2Keep records.
3File the corporate tax return.
4Register for VAT once turnover passes AED 375,000.

The practical side is covered by three services: a tax number and FTA registration from $324, preparing and filing returns from $216, and accounting with tax records.

If you are unsure whether your structure falls under small business relief or the free zone rules, it is cheaper to find out before the financial year ends: a one-off consultation with a tax expert costs $194, while getting the regime wrong costs nine per cent of profit.

Common questions

Who pays the 9% corporate tax in the UAE?

Companies and individuals carrying on business under a commercial licence. The 0% rate applies to taxable profit up to AED 375,000 and 9% to the amount above it. For an individual the tax arises only if business turnover exceeds AED 1,000,000 in a calendar year.

Is it true that small business relief ends in 2026?

Small Business Relief, with its AED 3,000,000 revenue threshold, originally ran to tax periods ending 31 December 2026. Ministerial Decision 131 of 29 July 2026 extended it to periods ending no later than 31 December 2029. The tax authority's page does not yet reflect the extension, so check the current wording before electing the regime.

Will the 15% global minimum tax affect my company in Dubai?

Only if your company belongs to a multinational group with consolidated revenue of €750 million in at least two of the four preceding financial years. Standalone local companies, single-owner free zone firms and freelancers fall outside these rules.

Is a UAE free zone still zero tax?

The zero applies to qualifying income and requires genuine substance in the zone, audited accounts and transfer pricing documentation. The AED 375,000 threshold does not apply to such a company: all non-qualifying income is taxed at 9% from the first dirham. If non-qualifying revenue exceeds AED 5,000,000 or 5% of total revenue, the relief is lost.

Sources

Links checked on 5 September 2026