Dubai Customs present the best practices on VAT applications

In a workshop attended by representatives of GCC countries

Dubai 21st May 07: In the framework of their continuous efforts to contribute in the economic and social development of the UAE in general and Dubai in specific, and following their strategy which reflects a systematic planning stemming from the UAE strategy aiming at enhancing the growth and the competitive abilities of the national economy and activating the implementation of the financial and monetary policies, and following their efforts in raising the awareness on the Value Added Tax (VAT)Project, Dubai Customs presented today ,in the workshop organized by the ministry of finance and industry ,and in the presence of representatives from the GCC countries and different Customs administrations, the best practices on Value Added Tax applications.

Mr. Abdul Rahman Al Saleh, the Executive Director of Business Support Services at Dubai Customs and who also heads the UAE team on the VAT project, gave during the workshop , a brief on the VAT project proceedings in the UAE as well as the ad hoc committees in charge of following up.

Mr. Al Saleh presented the progress of the project while shedding the light on the best practices on VAT applications especially in Singapore, Australia and New Zealand which were visited by the Customs team to study on the latest leading advances on these kinds of taxes.

The threshold allowing the registration of the companies well as and excluding small businesses were among the topics presented on Mr. Al Saleh intervention.

"The project will include a mechanism for tourists' tax refund and I want to clarify that the VAT will be a substitute for Customs tariffs which will be abolished as soon as the Free Trade Agreements between the UAE and its main trade partners will come into effect in addition to the fact that this new tax will not constitute a burden on traders and investors," he added.

This workshop comes after several workshops that were organized by Dubai Customs in order to raise the awareness and clarify the facts to the major sectors in the UAE on VAT project and how it matches the economic and social development strategy of the UAE.

An integrated team including Dubai Customs and different relevant agencies like Ministry of Finance and Industry, Ministry of Economy, Federal Customs Authority and different Customs administrations was established to study the project.

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