How do I become tax resident in the UAE?

You are UAE tax resident if you meet any one of three tests in the UAE's residence rules, in force since 1 March 2023. Most people moving here qualify on days spent in the country, either 183 days, or 90 days if they also have a residence permit and a home or work here.

The three tests

• 183 days. You are physically in the UAE for 183 days or more in the relevant 12-month period.
• 90 days, with status and ties. You are in the UAE for 90 days or more in that period, you are a UAE or GCC national or hold a valid UAE residence permit, and you also have a permanent place of residence in the UAE or work or run a business here.
• Your main home and interests. Your usual or primary place of residence, and the centre of your financial and personal interests, are in the UAE.

It doesn't end your old residence

Becoming UAE resident doesn't by itself make you non-resident in the country you left. That country applies its own rules. If both treat you as resident, a tax treaty between them may decide: see Two countries say I'm tax resident. Which one wins?

Keep the evidence

Your entry and exit record, residence permit, Emirates ID, lease and local bank statements. You will need most of them for a tax residence certificate.

An example

Sofia moves from Milan to Dubai in May 2026 on a residence visa and rents an apartment. Once she has spent 90 days in the UAE, she meets the 90-day test. Whether Italy still treats her as resident is a separate question, for her adviser in Italy.

Quick questions

Sources: Cabinet Decision No. 85 of 2022 on tax residency; Ministerial Decision No. 27 of 2023.

General information as at October 2026, not advice. The examples are fictional and simplified, and the rules have conditions and exceptions not covered here. Take advice on your own circumstances, in each country involved, before acting.