UAE tax authority offers 30% reduction on unpaid penalties

Tax law violators in the UAE can benefit from a 30 per cent reduction on unpaid penalties as per a recent Cabinet decision, the Federal Tax Authority (FTA) said on Tuesday.

The FTA said the liberal move would boost the UAE’s global business competitiveness by establishing a tax legislation environment that encourages self-compliance and offers significant support to the national economy.

The Cabinet Decision No. 49 of 2021 on Amending Provisions of Cabinet Decision No. 40 of 2017 outlines 16 types of administrative penalties that have either been reduced or had the method of calculation amended. The amendments include administrative violations related to the application of Federal Law No. 7 of 2017 on Tax Procedures, Federal Decree-Law No. 7 of 2017 on Excise Tax, and Federal Decree-Law No. 8 of 2017 on Value Added Tax.

As part of its ongoing awareness-raising efforts, the FTA launched an awareness campaign last May. The FTA’s representatives communicated with the business sector to introduce the mechanism for implementing the new decision, the facilities it offers registrants, how to benefit from these facilities, and the conditions required to benefit from the redetermination of administrative penalties imposed on registrants to equal 30 per cent of the total unpaid penalties.

In a press statement, the FTA outlined a set of conditions that need to be met in order to benefit from the redetermination of penalties.

“First, the administrative penalty must have been imposed under Cabinet Decision No. 40 of 2017 before June 28, 2021, and that the administrative penalty due were not settled in full until June 27, 2021. Furthermore, the registrant should settle all due payable tax by December 31, 2021, and settle 30 per cent of the total unsettled administrative penalties imposed before June 28, 2021, no later than December 31, 2021.”

The FTA said that, should the registrant meet all these conditions, the administrative penalties will be redetermined to equal 30 per cent of the total unpaid penalties that will appear on the FTA’s electronic system after December 31, 2021.

The federal body urged registrants to use the “Payment Adjustment Type” feature when settling their due payments on the FTA’s e-Services portal. The feature allows taxpayers to allocate the amounts based on their payment preferences.

The FTA encouraged registrants to ensure that the tax return or the voluntary disclosure is submitted before making the payment.

“If the registrant made the payment before filing the tax return or submitting the voluntary disclosure, and they had outstanding administrative penalties in their account, the system will settle the payable administrative penalties first, since there is no outstanding payable tax in their account at the time of making the payment,” it said.

The FTA said it is essential for taxable persons to pay their due payable tax before the due date to avoid any late payment penalties. In the same regard, the FTA clarified that bank transfers can take two or three working days to process the payment; hence, the period must be taken into consideration to ensure that FTA receives the payment before the due date.

issacjohn@khaleejtimes.com

Issac John

Editorial Director of Khaleej Times, is a well-connected Indian journalist and an economic and financial commentator. He has been in the UAE's mainstream journalism for 35 years, including 23 years with Khaleej Times. A post-graduate in English and graduate in economics, he has won over two dozen awards. Acclaimed for his authentic and insightful analysis of global and regional businesses and economic trends, he is respected for his astute understanding of the local business scene.