Samsung cuts through the flaff with its Galaxy Tab S6 Lite, providing all the essential features you need at an affordable price
tech reviews9 hours ago
Policy makers in the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council are aiming to introduce a 5 percent value-added tax at the start of next year, despite administrative and technical obstacles, a senior United Arab Emirates finance official said on Sunday.
The GCC, its finances strained by low oil prices, has long planned to adopt the tax in 2018 as a way to increase non-oil revenues, but economists and officials in some countries have said privately that simultaneous introduction in all countries may not be feasible.
That is because of the complexity of creating the administrative infrastructure to collect the tax and the difficulty of training companies to comply with it, in a region where taxation is minimal.
However, Younis al-Khouri, under-secretary at the UAE finance ministry, said GCC governments were planning for early, simultaneous adoption.
"By 2018, January 1, we are aiming to adopt 5 percent VAT across the GCC," he said in a joint interview with Reuters and fellow Thomson Reuters company Zawya. Other GCC members are Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Bahrain.
Asked whether some sectors in the UAE might be exempt from the tax to reduce the drag on the economy, Khouri said the government was aiming for a 5 percent rate across the board but parts of seven sectors - education, healthcare, renewable energy, water, space, transport and technology - might get special treatment.
"There might be areas ... but currently, as the Ministry of Finance, we are not aiming towards exemptions, which could create some leakages, some confusion."
Khouri said the government expected around 12 billion dirhams ($3.3 billion) of revenue from the tax in its first year. That would be about 0.9 percent of the UAE's gross domestic product of $371 billion in 2015, official data shows.
From the start, authorities will seek to register all companies with annual revenues exceeding $100,000 for the tax, and anticipate 95 percent or more of companies will comply in the initial stage.
Revenues from the tax may increase gradually with economic growth but the government is not at present considering any increase of the tax above 5 percent, and would not raise it in the future without a thorough study of the economic and social impact, Khouri said.
Debt Law
To broaden its fund-raising options, the UAE has been working on a debt law that would allow the federal government, not just the seven individual emirates, to issue sovereign bonds.
Khouri said authorities had wanted the law to pass at the end of last year but unspecified issues within the ministry had prevented this. "The sooner for the UAE, the better it will be for the country," he said.
Once the law is passed, the federal government will aim to start issuing debt within six months, but its minimal budget deficit means the debt will not be used to fund the budget. Instead, it will be issued in conjunction with the central bank to manage liquidity in the banking system, he said.
Samsung cuts through the flaff with its Galaxy Tab S6 Lite, providing all the essential features you need at an affordable price
tech reviews9 hours ago
The country has several beaches and with that comes countless options to indulge in a hearty breakfast
food9 hours ago
In a touching Instagram post, Bipasha shared adorable pictures of themselves
entertainment9 hours ago
In this opulent saga, Bhansali delves into the world of Basra pearls
entertainment10 hours ago
The news comes just two days after his rape conviction was overturned by the New York Court of Appeals
entertainment10 hours ago
The AFI Life Achievement Award is the highest accolade granted by the American Film Institute
entertainment10 hours ago
The paths of these two stars have intersected on several occasions due to their association with the luxury brand Bulgari
entertainment10 hours ago
The students' demands range from a ceasefire in Israel's war with Hamas to calls for universities to stop investing in Israeli enterprises
world10 hours ago