Taxes

Previously, member countries of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) were known as tax-free countries. However, this changed in 2018, primarily to reduce budget deficits due to subsidies and low crude oil prices.

On January 1, 2018, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia implemented a value-added tax (VAT) of 5%. The VAT is established under the Unified Agreement for Value Added Tax of the GCC, which contains the general principles and rules on VAT agreed at the GCC level.