UAE Expands Scope Of Excise Duty Regime

by Mary Swire, Tax-News.com, Hong Kong

06 December 2019

The United Arab Emirates's amended excise tax regime entered into force on December 1, and now covers sweetened drinks and electronic smoking devices and liquids.

The excise tax was introduced from October 2017 on tobacco and tobacco products, energy drinks, and carbonated beverages. The scope of the tax has been expanded to include sweetened drinks and electronic smoking devices and related tools, and the liquids used in such devices.

"Sweetened drinks" refers to any beverage where any type of sugar or sweeteners are added, whether it is supplied ready-to-consume as a drink or in the form of concentrates, powders, gels, or solutions that can be converted into sweetened drinks.

Liquids for use in electronic smoking devices will be taxable regardless of whether they contain nicotine or tobacco.

When registering to provide excisable goods, registrants must provide information on the products they intend to distribute, an ingredients list for such, and pricing details. They will also need to provide information on their marketing campaigns and may be required to provide a lab analysis report.

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