FTA, DLD to enhance tax compliance for real estate, commercial land sales

The Federal Tax Authority (FTA) and the Dubai Land Department (DLD) have strengthened their strategic partnership to provide innovative digital solutions that enhance the user experience related to real estate sales parties in the emirate, ensuring compliance with the relevant tax laws.

The first phase of the partnership has been completed through data sharing via electronic linkage outlets, and work is underway on the remaining digital features, which will be announced in the upcoming period.

The announcement of the joint collaboration between the Federal Tax Authority and the Dubai Land Department was made on the sidelines of "GITEX Global 2024" at the Dubai World Trade Centre.

This initiative seeks to establish a streamlined mechanism for ensuring tax compliance by collecting the applicable VAT on real estate and commercial land sales. This will be achieved through the integration of procedures for VAT-related real estate transactions, classification of services, categorisation of property types, and identification of transaction parties. Additionally, it will align real estate processes and operations with the electronic systems of the Federal Tax Authority.

Khalid Ali Al Bustani, Director-General of FTA, stated, "This joint collaboration paves the way for enhanced cooperation between the FTA and the Dubai Land Department. With a clear and effective framework, this collaboration supports delivering seamless digital services through innovative models that showcase the leadership and excellence of the government’s work ecosystem. Additionally, it enhances value by saving time, and effort while simplifying procedures.”

He added, "This collaboration contributes to providing a regulatory and legislative tax environment that encourages self-compliance according to the best governance and transparency standards, in coordination with our partners in all relevant sectors to continue expanding digital transformation across all FTA's services. These advanced services integrate with the new services provided by other relevant government entities, and this coordination led to the electronic linkage between the two parties to ensure that real estate transactions are linked to the collection of the applicable VAT.”

For his part, Marwan Ahmed bin Ghalita, Director-General of the Land and Property Department in Dubai, said, "The extensive digital transformation in Dubai necessitates strong collaboration among all government entities, a principle we prioritise through our partnership with the Federal Tax Authority. Through this partnership, we aim to enhance the integration of digital systems for both parties to ensure improved tax compliance in the real estate sector while providing innovative solutions that simplify procedures and enhance transparency in line with the aspirations of our wise leadership.”

Bin Ghalita added, "This strategic partnership represents a fundamental step towards realising Dubai's comprehensive economic vision. It emphasises sustainable real estate investment through the creation of an integrated digital infrastructure that enhances the efficiency of government operations and provides investors and clients with seamless access to advanced services.”

This initiative seeks to enhance collaboration between the Federal Tax Authority and the Dubai Land Department across various domains. This includes sharing essential data for joint initiatives, organising awareness campaigns to foster a tax culture within the community - particularly in the real estate sector - introducing real estate procedures along with the corresponding tax processes, in addition to strengthening joint coordination to ensure tax compliance and enforcement related to real estate transactions.

Additionally, the joint collaboration outlines the plans for joint training sessions and activities, the exchange of ideas, and the execution of supportive projects and initiatives that align with the strategic goals of both parties, ensuring they remain in sync with government directions.

WAM