Excise Tax in Dubai

Scope includes scope and product review, registration and return support, stock and designated-zone controls, and audit and correction support. The proposal confirms entities, periods and exclusions.

Start when the obligation, transaction, notice or deadline is known. Regent will issue a focused request list beginning with scope and product review, entity details, records and dates.

Yes. Use the Excise Scope Check for an initial indication, then route the result to the appropriate Regent advisor.

Excise Tax is an indirect tax imposed on specific goods considered harmful to health or the environment. Current categories include tobacco and tobacco products, electronic smoking devices and tools, liquids used in those devices, energy drinks and sweetened drinks. The tax is generally due when excise goods are imported, produced for UAE consumption, released from an excise designated zone or, in some cases, held as stockpiled goods. Source: UAE Federal Tax Authority: What is Excise Tax?; UAE Federal Tax Authority: Excise Tax registration.

The categories include tobacco products, electronic smoking devices and tools, vaping liquids, energy drinks and sweetened drinks. From 1 January 2026, sweetened drinks moved to a tiered volumetric model based on sugar content. Product classification depends on ingredients, presentation and legal definitions—not only the product's marketing name. Importers and producers should maintain product files and approved laboratory or conformity evidence where required. Source: UAE Federal Tax Authority: What is Excise Tax?; UAE Federal Tax Authority: 2026 sweetened-drink rates and conformity certificates.

From 1 January 2026, a high-sugar drink containing at least 8 grams of sugar per 100 millilitres is taxed at AED 1.09 per litre. A moderate-sugar drink containing at least 5 but less than 8 grams per 100 millilitres is taxed at AED 0.79 per litre. A low-sugar drink below 5 grams per 100 millilitres is taxed at AED 0 per litre. Drinks sweetened only with artificial sweeteners can also fall in the zero-rate tier, subject to the rules. Source: UAE Federal Tax Authority: 2026 sweetened-drink rates and conformity certificates.

Energy drinks, tobacco products, electronic smoking devices and tools, and liquids used in those devices are generally subject to Excise Tax at 100% of the applicable excise price. Sweetened drinks use the separate 2026 volumetric sugar-tier system. The taxable value and retail selling price rules should be reviewed for each SKU, especially where products are bundled, discounted or imported through related parties. Source: UAE Federal Tax Authority: What is Excise Tax?; UAE Federal Tax Authority: 2026 sweetened-drink rates and conformity certificates.

Registration can apply to a person that imports excise goods, produces them for consumption in the UAE, releases them from an excise designated zone or stockpiles them in specified circumstances. There is no general turnover threshold for Excise Tax registration. A business should therefore assess the activity before the first import, production run or release, rather than waiting for sales to reach a particular amount. Source: UAE Federal Tax Authority: Excise Tax registration.

No general minimum turnover threshold applies to Excise Tax registration. Even a business with low sales can have an obligation if it imports, produces, stockpiles or releases excise goods in a way covered by the law. Limited exceptions may depend on the facts, but “small business” status alone is not an exemption. The product, transaction and person responsible for the release should be mapped before import. Source: UAE Federal Tax Authority: Excise Tax registration.

The sugar concentration determines the sweetened-drink rate, so importers and producers must support classification with approved conformity evidence. The FTA has warned that failing to submit an approved conformity certificate may result in the product being classified as a high-sugar sweetened drink, affecting registration and import procedures. Each SKU should be matched to its laboratory results, ingredients and product registration data. Source: UAE Federal Tax Authority: 2026 sweetened-drink rates and conformity certificates.

An excise designated zone is a secured area that can allow Excise Tax to remain suspended while goods are stored or moved under prescribed controls. It is not simply any free-zone warehouse. Approval, security, record-keeping, stock controls and movement documentation are critical. Tax can become due when goods leave the suspension arrangement or when conditions are breached. Source: UAE Federal Tax Authority: Excise Tax registration; UAE Federal Tax Authority: What is Excise Tax?.

A robust file should identify every excise SKU and support its classification, excise price, sugar tier where relevant, quantities imported or produced, stock movements, designated-zone transfers, releases, exports, returns and tax paid. It should also retain customs records, commercial invoices, product registrations and conformity certificates. Excise returns should reconcile to customs and warehouse records at product level. Source: UAE Federal Tax Authority: Excise Tax registration; UAE Federal Tax Authority: 2026 sweetened-drink rates and conformity certificates.

Common risks include importing before registration, using the wrong product category or rate, missing conformity evidence, failing to reconcile customs quantities to stock, treating an ordinary free-zone location as a designated zone, and releasing goods without accounting for tax. Businesses should also control product master-data changes because a new formulation, pack size or SKU may change the classification and reporting. Source: UAE Federal Tax Authority: Excise Tax registration; UAE Federal Tax Authority: 2026 sweetened-drink rates and conformity certificates.