🇦🇪 UAE Tax Residency: Cabinet Decision 85/2022, Golden Visa and 0% Personal Income Tax

Concept

UAE tax residency for a natural person is governed by Cabinet Decision No. 85 of 2022 (in force since 1 March 2023), clarified by Ministerial Decision No. 27 of 2023. The treaty TRC track — Ministerial Decision No. 247 of 2023.

0% personal income tax on all worldwide income of natural persons. No CGT for individuals. No wealth, inheritance or gift tax at the federal level. No CFC rules for individuals. VAT 5%. Corporate Tax 9% since 1 June 2023 — only for business activity with turnover above AED 1m a year.

For HNWIs exiting strict CFC regimes (Russia; US Subpart F/GILTI; UK TIOPA Part 9A; EU ATAD), UAE residency is the flagship 0% regime with a 140+ DTT network. It requires real substance: an Ejari residence, family ties, banking, economic activity.

The Residency Tests (Cabinet Decision 85/2022, Art. 4)

A natural person is a UAE tax resident if at least one of three tests is met:

Test 1 — Habitual / centre of interests. The UAE is the "usual or primary place of residence" and the "centre of financial and personal interests". MD 27/2023 defines:

• Primary place of residence — the jurisdiction where the person spends most time, with a settled routine, more than transient.
• Centre of financial and personal interests — occupation, family, social ties, political/cultural activities, place of business, place from which property is administered.

Test 2 — 183 days. Physical presence in the UAE of ≥183 days in a consecutive 12-month period. No other conditions.

Test 3 — 90 days. Physical presence of ≥90 days in a 12-month period and the person is:

• a UAE national, or
• the holder of a valid UAE residence permit, or
• a GCC national,

and the person:

• has a permanent place of residence in the UAE (owned/rented, continuously available), or
• carries on employment or business in the UAE.

Day counting (MD 27/2023, Art. 3): any day (or part of a day) of presence = a UAE day. Days need not be consecutive. Days spent in the UAE due to "exceptional circumstances" may be excluded by the FTA on application.

For HNWIs structuring out of CFC regimes, Test 3 is the lever: a 10-year Golden Visa + an Ejari residence + 90 days = TRC.

The Tax Residency Certificate (TRC)

Two tracks:

• Domestic TRC — for UAE domestic purposes (banks, CRS).
• Treaty TRC (MD 247/2023) — to invoke a DTT; the specific country is named.

Channel: the EmaraTax portal (trc.tax.gov.ae) since July 2023.

Documents (natural person):

• Passport copy + Emirates ID / UAE residence visa
• ICA entry/exit report
• Test 3: salary certificate / business licence, or title deed / Ejari / utility bills
• Test 2: the ICA report suffices
• Bank statements for 6 months (requested in practice)

Fees (FTA schedule):

• AED 50 — submission
• AED 500 — already tax-registered
• AED 1,000 — non-registered natural person
• AED 1,750 — non-registered legal person
• AED 250 — additional hard copy

Validity — 1 calendar year, fresh application each year. Processing — about 5 business days; the certificate covers at most 12 months and is never issued for a future period.

Test 3 in practice: in its "employment" evidence list the FTA also accepts a continuing relationship with a single foreign employer where the work is performed from the UAE — the remote-worker profile (the remote work visa) fits the 90-day test directly.

The UAE Resident's Tax Profile

• Personal income tax — 0% (all salaries, professional income, investments, dividends, interest, rental).
• No personal CGT (personal investments in securities, real estate).
• No wealth, inheritance or gift tax at the federal level.
• VAT 5% (FDL 8/2017) — a consumption tax.
• Corporate Tax 9% (FDL 47/2022, since 1 June 2023): only for individuals carrying on Business with turnover above AED 1,000,000 per calendar year (Cabinet Decision 49/2023). Wages, personal investments and personal real-estate income are excluded.

Corporate Tax (FDL 47/2022)

• 0% up to AED 375,000 of taxable income
• 9% above AED 375,000
• Natural persons: CT registration at business turnover >AED 1m — by 31 March of the following year; late penalty AED 10,000. Small Business Relief (revenue ≤AED 3m) — for periods ending on or before 31 December 2026.
• QFZP (Qualifying Free Zone Person) — 0% on Qualifying Income, 9% on non-qualifying (CD 100/2023; MD 229/2025). Conditions: substance, qualifying income, no election into standard CT, arm's length + TP documentation. De minimis: non-qualifying revenue ≤5% of revenue or AED 5m (the lower).
• DMTT / Pillar Two (CD 142/2024) — a 15% Domestic Minimum Top-up Tax on UAE constituent entities of MNE groups with consolidated revenue ≥€750m in ≥2 of the 4 preceding fiscal years. Fiscal years from 1 January 2025. IIR/UTPR not introduced.

Routes to a UAE Residence Permit

• Golden Visa (10 years, renewable) — FDL 29/2021 + Cabinet Resolution 65/2022. Categories:
  • Real-estate investors: property ≥ AED 2,000,000 (including off-plan and mortgaged)
  • Public investment: a deposit ≥ AED 2,000,000 in an accredited UAE fund, or a licence with capital ≥ AED 2,000,000, or an FTA letter on tax contribution ≥ AED 250,000
  • Specialized talents: scientists, doctors, executives, creatives, athletes
  • Entrepreneurs of accredited start-ups
  • Outstanding students

  No local sponsor; covers dependants and domestic staff.

• Blue Visa (10 years) — February 2025, for environmental contributors.
• Investor Visa (2 years) — commercial activity / shareholding.
• Property Investor Visa (2 years) — property ≥ AED 750,000.
• Green Visa (5 years) — self-employed, freelancers, skilled employees.
• Retirement Visa (5 years) — 55+ with 15 years of work + property ≥ AED 1m / savings ≥ AED 1m / monthly income ≥ AED 20,000.
• Employment / free-zone visas (2–3 years).
• Dependent visas for spouse, children, parents.

Free Zones for HNWIs

• DIFC — common law, DIFC Courts, DFSA. Family offices, fund management.
• ADGM — common law, English law (ADGM Application of English Law Regulations 2015), FSRA. Family offices, foundations.
• DMCC — commodities, business setup.
• JAFZA — trade, logistics.
• RAK ICC — international holding/SPV.
• DAFZA — logistics, aviation.

DIFC / ADGM Family Office

DIFC Family Arrangements Regulations 2023 (31 January 2023). An SFO serving a single family by way of business:

• Outside DFSA financial-services licensing
• Outside DNFBP registration
• Registered with the DIFC Registrar of Companies
• Structured through DIFC Prescribed Companies + DIFC Foundations (Foundations Law, DIFC Law 3/2018)
• No minimum AUM in the regulations; practice USD 50m+

ADGM — Companies Regulations 2020 + Single Family Office Regulations 2022 + Foundations Regulations 2017 + SPV Regulations.

CFC Implications

The UAE has no CFC rules for natural persons. The UAE CT Law (FDL 47/2022) contains no IIR for individuals or UAE companies. The UAE's confirmed stance: DMTT only (CD 142/2024), no IIR/UTPR.

• Foreign-source personal income — not taxed.
• WHT — 0% on outbound dividends, interest, royalties.
• DTT network — 140+ DTAs, among the widest in the world.

Substance for an HNWI Relocation

Test 3 is the most attractive but requires substance:

• Permanent residence: owned property (title deed) / long-term lease registered with Ejari (Dubai) / Tawtheeq (Abu Dhabi). Continuously available.
• Family ties: dependent visas for spouse and children; school enrolment in the UAE.
• Banking: a UAE-resident bank account (Emirates NBD, ADCB Private, FAB Elite, HSBC UAE, Standard Chartered Priority, Julius Baer DIFC). Recurring debits.
• Economic activity: a UAE-licensed business / DIFC/ADGM Prescribed Company / SFO, real estate held personally or via a holding, employment.
• Physical presence: 90+ days for Test 3 (buffer 120+); Test 2 — 183+ days.
• Utility and consumption footprint: DEWA/ADDC bills, Salik, Etisalat/du, healthcare, a UAE driving licence.
• Severing the competing residence — critical on the source side.
• Documentation: annual TRC refresh, travel logs, boarding passes.

FATF and Banking Compliance

The UAE exited the FATF grey list on 23 February 2024 (listed since March 2022), and in mid-2025 the EU removed the country from its own AML high-risk third-country list. For HNWIs this removes much of the friction in account opening and enhanced due diligence at European banks. The next FATF mutual evaluation is set for June 2026; the regime is anchored by the new Federal Decree-Law No. 10 of 2025 (in force 14 October 2025).

The UAE remains a participant in CRS automatic exchange. Banks need the domestic TRC for correct CRS classification: UAE residency changes the reporting country, not the transparency itself. Severance of the previous residency and a clean UBO profile remain critical.