Middle East
Regional headquarters, Abu Dhabi (Mainland), UAE
Abu Dhabi competes with Dubai for regional HQ status. Lower cost office space and growing talent base attract groups consolidating MENA operations.
No personal income tax for staff and foundersDirect flights to Europe, Asia, and Africa from AUHFederal CIT at 9% from June 2023
Start setup {placement} 4 min · no card required
Corp tax
9%
Fastest setup
4-6 weeks
Tax treaties
115
Region
Middle East
What you'll need
- No resident director required
- Local registered office required
- Economic-substance test applies
- Minimum capital: No minimum capital
- Administrative language: Arabic and English
- Legal system: Civil law
Tax and treaty profile
- Corporate tax 9%
- Tax treaties 115
- VAT rate 5%
- Withholding on dividends 0%
Key treaty partners
UKFranceGermanyIndiaChinaSingapore
Banking and payments
- Banking takes 2 to 4 weeks with KYC
- Stripe supported
- Mercury supported
- Wise supported
- Crypto banking available
- EMI license framework available
Considerations
Pure holding structures
A mainland Abu Dhabi licence cannot use the QFZP 0% regime. Pure holding vehicles pay 9% above AED 375,000, and dividends to non residents have to flow through a treaty network.
9% federal CIT applies on net profitParticipation exemption requires substanceNo 0% rate available on mainland