Awareness session for refunding VAT to UAE Nationals on building new residences

Abu Dhabi, UAE 28 August 2022 – As part of the lecture series at Majalis Abu Dhabi at the President’s Court, the Federal Tax Authority (FTA) held an awareness session that was broadcast live on Majalis Abu Dhabi’s Instagram account on the procedure for UAE nationals to recover the Value Added Tax (VAT) incurred on building their new residences.

 The session was held remotely, bringing Emirati citizens together with a team of experts from the FTA who explained the process for refunding VAT to UAE citizens on the construction of their new residences.

 Speakers at the session clarified the steps to take in order to recover VAT through the FTA’s e-Services, starting with submitting the refund request with all supporting documents, all the way to receiving the refund amount by bank transfer to the applicant’s account, upon informing them of the final approval.

During the session, the FTA’s team of experts outlined the criteria for submitting a request for a refund of the VAT incurred on the construction of new residences by UAE citizens, explaining the steps needed to create and verify an e-Services account for new users, as well as how to create a special refund requests account, submit and track a refund request, the deadline for submitting a request, and the required documents. They also highlighted which potential applicants are eligible to recover VAT on their new homes, as well as which taxes are refundable.

The FTA experts noted that the Authority acknowledges and reviews all suggestions received from its customers, and acts upon those that offer applicable measures that can drive further development. Recently, there have been continuous developments to provide additional facilities for the VAT refund mechanism for UAE citizens in building their new residences. The new measures were implemented after consulting concerned citizens and taking their Observations and opinions into consideration. This forms a central part of the Authority’s approach to engaging stakeholders in the ongoing development of tax systems.

The experts went on to explain that, as of last year, an amendment was introduced to increase the period for submitting a refund request to 12 months from the date of completion of the new residence, instead of six, as it previously was. The completion date precedes the occupancy date or the date of approval and announcement of its completion by the competent authority in the UAE, which would issue a certificate of completion of the building/residence. Source: gov.ae

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