UAE company, owner in the UK — accounts and tax handled remotely

The UAE side — handled without you travelling

• Corporate Tax. A company incorporated in the UAE is a UAE Resident Person for Corporate Tax, wherever its owner lives. It must register with the Federal Tax Authority (FTA), keep records for seven years and file an annual return; the rate is 0% up to AED 375,000 of taxable income and 9% above it.
• Free zone 0%. A Qualifying Free Zone Person pays 0% only on qualifying income, and only while it meets all the qualifying conditions — including carrying out its core income-generating activities in the free zone with adequate staff and assets, audited financial statements, the transfer pricing rules and the de minimis limit for non-qualifying revenue (5% of revenue or AED 5 million, whichever is lower). A company managed entirely from abroad may find the substance test hard to meet, so we review it every year.
• VAT. Registration is mandatory once taxable supplies pass AED 375,000 in 12 months and voluntary from AED 187,500. Returns are usually quarterly.
• Access to the FTA. FTA services are accessed through UAE PASS, the UAE's national digital identity, which is personal to each user. We help your authorised signatory set up their own access in line with FTA requirements, and prepare every filing for your approval.
• Beneficial owners. Changes to shareholders or beneficial owners must be recorded and filed within 15 days (Cabinet Resolution No. 109 of 2023).
• Withholding tax. UAE withholding tax is currently 0%, including on dividends the company pays to you abroad.
• Tax Residency Certificate. A UAE-incorporated company can apply for a certificate to claim treaty benefits; a newly incorporated company that has not yet filed a Corporate Tax return must have been established for 12 months first. The FTA asks for documents such as the trade licence and lease, and may ask for more — so the paperwork needs to be in order from day one. If your home country also treats the company as resident, the treaty's own residence rule decides, so a certificate alone may not secure treaty benefits.

All engagements are subject to our client due-diligence checks under UAE anti-money laundering law and applicable sanctions screening.

The UAE–UK tax agreement

• Signed on 12 April 2016 and in force since 25 December 2016; effective in the UAE from 1 January 2017 and in the UK from April 2017.
• If a company is treated as resident in both countries, there is no automatic tie-breaker: the two tax authorities try to agree its residence, looking at where senior management is carried on, where board meetings are held and where the headquarters are. Without agreement, the company cannot claim most treaty benefits.
• Dividends paid by a UAE company to a UK resident are generally not taxed in the UAE.

Points to watch in the UK

• Where the company is managed. A company incorporated outside the UK is UK resident if its central management and control is exercised in the UK. If the directors take the real decisions from the UK, a UAE company can also be UK resident — holding board meetings abroad is not enough on its own.
• Permanent establishment. A fixed place of business in the UK, or someone in the UK habitually concluding contracts for the company, can bring part of its profits into UK corporation tax.
• Owners. UK residents are normally taxed on foreign dividends. The remittance basis was abolished from 6 April 2025; the 4-year foreign income and gains regime is available only in the first four years of UK residence after ten years abroad.
• Anti-avoidance. The UK controlled foreign company rules apply to UK-resident companies with an interest of at least 25%; for individuals, the transfer of assets abroad rules can apply instead.

The UK points above are general information about how UK rules may interact with a UAE company. They are not UK tax advice; please confirm your position with a qualified UK adviser.

How you stay in control from the UK

• Client portal — upload invoices and bank statements, and see your filings and their status, from anywhere.
• Monthly report pack — profit and loss, balance sheet, your VAT and Corporate Tax position, and the deadlines coming up, sent to you every month (or quarter, if you prefer).
• Calls in your time zone — scheduled video calls with your named accountant at times that suit the UK.
• Nothing filed without your approval — you see every return and the tax figure before it goes to the FTA.
• Working with your UK adviser — we advise on UAE tax. For UK tax, we work alongside your own adviser and give them the UAE figures and documents they need.

Sources: Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022 on the Taxation of Corporations and Businesses, as amended (Articles 3, 11, 18, 45, 51 and 56); Cabinet Decision No. 116 of 2023; Cabinet Decision No. 100 of 2023, as amended; Ministerial Decision No. 229 of 2025; Ministerial Decision No. 84 of 2025; Federal Decree-Law No. 8 of 2017 on VAT, as amended, and Cabinet Decision No. 52 of 2017 (Executive Regulation, Article 7); Cabinet Resolution No. 109 of 2023; Ministerial Decision No. 247 of 2023 and FTA Tax Residency Certificate guide (TPGTR1, October 2024) and service page; FTA login page (UAE PASS); Ministry of Finance list of double tax agreements; UK–UAE Double Taxation Convention (2016) and Protocol; HMRC International Manual INTM120060, INTM120070, INTM120080 and INTM120210; Corporation Tax Act 2009 (sections 5 and 18) and Corporation Tax Act 2010 (section 1141); TIOPA 2010 Part 9A (sections 371AA and 371BD); Income Tax Act 2007 Part 13 Chapter 2; GOV.UK — 4-year foreign income and gains regime and Tax on foreign income.