UAE Small Business Relief Checker
Small Business Relief: businesses with annual revenue under AED 3M can elect to be treated as having zero taxable income — effective 0% corporate tax. Available through 2026.
| Current year revenue | — |
| Prior year revenue | — |
| Revenue threshold (AED 3,000,000) | — |
| Year in scope of relief (through 2026) | — |
| Business type qualifies | — |
| Eligible for Small Business Relief? | — |
| CIT with relief (effectively 0%) | — |
| Hypothetical CIT without relief | — |
UAE Small Business Relief is a temporary measure (effective through tax periods ending December 31, 2026) allowing businesses with annual revenue below AED 3 million to elect to be treated as having zero taxable income. Practically, this means effective 0% corporate tax for qualifying small businesses, regardless of actual profitability. The relief is designed to ease the transition into the UAE corporate tax regime introduced in 2023.
Qualifying Conditions
To qualify for Small Business Relief: (1) Annual revenue must be AED 3,000,000 or less in the current tax period AND all previous tax periods (cumulative test). (2) Business must be a natural person or juridical person (excluding Qualifying Free Zone Persons). (3) The tax period must end on or before December 31, 2026. (4) Cannot be involved in qualifying business activities of multinational enterprise groups in scope of OECD Pillar Two. The election must be made on the tax return for each tax period; it is not automatic.
Effect of Election
Once elected, the business is treated as having no taxable income for that tax period — even if it actually earned profit. Implications: (1) No corporate tax payable. (2) No deductions, allowances, or reliefs (since taxable income is zero by definition). (3) No tax losses are generated (so can't be carried forward to future years). (4) Transfer pricing documentation requirements may still apply. Businesses must still file a tax return and maintain accounting records, but the calculation is simplified.
Strategic Considerations
Small Business Relief is most useful for businesses with high effective tax rates (high margins, low expenses) — they save the most by electing relief. For businesses with low or negative profits, relief may not be optimal because they would otherwise generate tax losses (carry-forward usable in future years). Once relief is elected in a tax period, prior-period losses cannot offset current revenue. Plan multi-year strategy carefully. After December 31, 2026, the standard 9% CIT regime applies — businesses crossing AED 3M revenue threshold mid-2026 should track carefully. Source: UAE Federal Tax Authority, Ministerial Decision No. 73 of 2023.
Last updated May 2026. Sources: UAE Federal Tax Authority.