Natural person (self-employed) — 0% up to AED 375k, 9% above
activeSole proprietorWhat you pay
- Corporate Tax on natural person (0% / 9%) — progressive on profit (allowance 375,000): 9% above
Eligibility
- Activities: business or business activity conducted by a natural person (freelance/self-employment permit)
- Corporate Tax obligations for a natural person are triggered only where total Turnover from business/business activities in the UAE exceeds AED 1,000,000 in a Gregorian calendar year (Cabinet Decision No. 49 of 2023). Below that turnover the person is outside the Corporate Tax regime entirely. Wage/employment income, personal-investment income and personal real-estate-investment income are always out of scope. There is no personal income tax. When in scope, taxable income (profit) up to AED 375,000 is taxed at 0% and the excess at 9% (Cabinet Decision No. 116 of 2022). Applies to financial years beginning on or after 1 June 2023.
Net income examples
| Gross/year | Net/year | Burden |
|---|
| 30,000 EUR | 30,000 EUR | 0.0% |
| 60,000 EUR | 60,000 EUR | 0.0% |
| 120,000 EUR | 117,233 EUR | 2.3% |
Computed by our open tax engine — assumes no deductible expenses, full-year tax residency. Rules as of Jun 1, 2023.
The AED 1,000,000 turnover gate (Cabinet Decision No. 49 of 2023) that switches Corporate Tax on for natural persons is expressed in notes, not in the engine: below the gate the person is fully outside the regime (tax 0), and the 0% allowance in the model already returns 0 for such small freelancers, so the modelled result is correct. The model applies the 0% band to the first AED 375,000 of profit and 9% above. No personal income tax and no mandatory social security for foreign nationals (expatriates receive end-of-service gratuity, not pension contributions). VAT (5%) on taxable supplies, registration mandatory above AED 375,000 of taxable turnover, is a consumption tax not modelled here. The tax.gov.ae (Federal Tax Authority) site was under maintenance at verification time; rates and thresholds are corroborated by the u.ae government portal and the Ministry of Finance.
Qualifying Free Zone Person — 0% on qualifying income
activeCompanyWhat you pay
- Corporate Tax on Qualifying Income (0%) — 0% of profit
Eligibility
- Activities: free-zone company earning Qualifying Income (e.g. remote services to clients outside the UAE / other free-zone persons)
- A Qualifying Free Zone Person (QFZP) pays 0% Corporate Tax on Qualifying Income and 9% on non-qualifying taxable income (Cabinet Decision No. 100 of 2023). Conditions: incorporated in a Free Zone, adequate substance (assets, qualified staff, opex in the zone), audited financials, does not undertake Excluded Activities, and non-qualifying revenue stays within the de minimis (lower of 5% of total revenue or AED 5,000,000). Failing any condition forfeits QFZP status for that tax period and the following four. A common freelancer route is a free-zone freelance permit + company; whether a solo remote worker meets the substance test should be confirmed case by case. Small Business Relief is NOT available to QFZPs. Effective for financial years beginning on or after 1 June 2023.
Net income examples
| Gross/year | Net/year | Burden |
|---|
| 30,000 EUR | 30,000 EUR | 0.0% |
| 60,000 EUR | 60,000 EUR | 0.0% |
| 120,000 EUR | 120,000 EUR | 0.0% |
Computed by our open tax engine — assumes no deductible expenses, full-year tax residency. Rules as of Jun 1, 2023.
Modelled only for the fully-qualifying case (0% on Qualifying Income), which is the reason freelancers use a free zone. Non-qualifying income above the de minimis, or loss of QFZP status, is taxed at 9% above AED 375,000 (see ae-mainland-company-ct for that mechanic) and is not modelled in this scheme. Substance and audit requirements are real ongoing costs not captured as a levy. No personal income tax on distributions to the individual owner. Rates corroborated via u.ae and Ministry of Finance; tax.gov.ae was under maintenance at verification.
Mainland company / standard Corporate Tax — 0% up to AED 375k, 9% above
activeCompanyWhat you pay
- Corporate Tax (0% / 9%) — progressive on profit (allowance 375,000): 9% above
Eligibility
- Activities: mainland company or taxable business (standard corporate tax rates)
- Standard Corporate Tax: 0% on taxable income up to AED 375,000 and 9% above (Cabinet Decision No. 116 of 2022; Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022). Resident businesses with revenue at or below AED 3,000,000 may ELECT Small Business Relief and be treated as having no taxable income for tax periods ending on or before 31 December 2026 (Ministerial Decision No. 73 of 2023) — i.e. 0% tax, still must register and file. This scheme models the standard rates WITHOUT the Small Business Relief election. Effective for financial years beginning on or after 1 June 2023.
Net income examples
| Gross/year | Net/year | Burden |
|---|
| 30,000 EUR | 30,000 EUR | 0.0% |
| 60,000 EUR | 60,000 EUR | 0.0% |
| 120,000 EUR | 117,233 EUR | 2.3% |
Computed by our open tax engine — assumes no deductible expenses, full-year tax residency. Rules as of Jun 1, 2023.
Corporate profits distributed to a UAE-resident individual owner are not subject to any further personal tax (no dividend tax, no personal income tax), so the modelled net is also the amount reaching the owner's pocket. Small Business Relief (revenue ≤ AED 3m, elective, sunsets for periods ending after 31 Dec 2026) would reduce the tax to 0 and is described in eligibility but not applied in the examples. A 15% Domestic Minimum Top-up Tax applies from 2025 to large multinationals (global revenue ≥ EUR 750m) and is out of scope for freelancers. Rates corroborated via Ministry of Finance and u.ae; tax.gov.ae was under maintenance at verification.