How to get a UAE tax residency certificate: the 90 and 183-day rules in practice

If you have moved to the UAE to be taxed here rather than in your old country, you will eventually need a tax residency certificate to prove it. The rules are clearer than most people think: there are three domestic tests, and the day-count thresholds are 183 days or, in narrower circumstances, 90 days. The catch is that the certificate you need to claim a double-tax treaty benefit is stricter than the one that establishes UAE residency at home, and getting that distinction wrong is where founders lose relief they were entitled to.

This piece walks through the tests under Cabinet Decision No. 85 of 2022, which certificate does what, and how to apply.

What a tax residency certificate is, and why you need one

A tax residency certificate, issued by the Federal Tax Authority, is an official statement that you are a tax resident of the UAE for a given period. You need it for two very different jobs. The first is to prove to a foreign tax authority that you have genuinely shifted your tax residence to the UAE, which matters when your old country is testing whether it can still tax you. The second is to claim benefits under a double-tax agreement between the UAE and another country, such as a reduced withholding rate on dividends or interest.

Those two jobs have different evidence bars, and the difference is the single most important thing in this article.

The three residency tests under Cabinet Decision 85 of 2022

Cabinet Decision No. 85 of 2022 sets out when an individual is a UAE tax resident. You qualify if you meet any one of three tests.

The centre of interests test looks at where your life actually is. If your main personal and economic relationships, your work, your family and your financial affairs are centred in the UAE, you are resident here regardless of exact day counts.

The 183-day test is the straightforward one. If you are physically present in the UAE for 183 days or more across a consecutive 12-month period, you are a UAE tax resident. The days do not have to be consecutive, and any part of a day spent in the country counts as a full day.

The 90-day conditional test is narrower. If you are present for 90 days or more in a 12-month period and you are a UAE or GCC national or a UAE resident, and you either have a permanent home available to you in the UAE or carry on a job or business here, you qualify. This route recognises that someone with a genuine base in the UAE can be resident without spending half the year here.

The treaty trap: 90 days is not always enough

Here is the point that catches people. The 90-day route is enough to be a UAE tax resident under domestic law, but it is not enough for a treaty-purpose certificate. When you apply for a certificate to claim double-tax agreement relief, the FTA requires you to show 183 days or more of physical presence in the relevant period.

So if you spent, say, 110 days in the UAE, have your home here and run a business here, you are a UAE tax resident and can say so at home. But if you then try to use a treaty to cut withholding tax on a foreign dividend, the FTA will not issue the treaty-purpose certificate on a 90-day count. Plan your days with the harder 183-day bar in mind if treaty relief is part of your structure. This is exactly the kind of point that decides whether a cross-border structure works, and it is worth reading alongside our guide on what European founders should do before moving to the UAE.

Companies can get a certificate too

A UAE company can also obtain a tax residency certificate, which is often needed to access treaty benefits on cross-border payments. A company is generally treated as UAE resident if it is incorporated here, or effectively managed and controlled from the UAE. In practice the FTA will expect to see real substance behind the claim: a genuine office, local decision-making and proper records, the same substance story that runs through UAE corporate tax generally. A brass-plate company with no local activity should not assume it will get a certificate.

How to apply

Applications are made online through the FTA portal. In broad terms you will need proof of UAE residency (Emirates ID and residence visa), a passport, an entry-and-exit report from the immigration authorities to evidence your days in the country, proof of a permanent place of residence such as a tenancy contract or title deed, and, for the 90-day route, evidence of your job or business. Companies submit their trade licence, proof of address, financial statements and ownership documents.

The FTA charges a fee and issues the certificate once it is satisfied the conditions are met. Applying early matters, because you cannot claim treaty relief retrospectively if you never held the certificate for the period in question.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between the 90-day and 183-day rules? The 183-day test makes you a UAE tax resident on presence alone. The 90-day test also works, but only if you are a UAE or GCC national or resident with a permanent home or a job or business in the UAE. For a treaty-purpose certificate, you need 183 days regardless.

Do the days have to be consecutive? No. The FTA counts total days across a consecutive 12-month period, and any part of a day in the UAE counts as a full day.

Can I get a certificate for a past year? You apply for a specific period and must have met the test in that period. You cannot manufacture residency after the fact, so keep your travel records and apply for each year you need.

Does my company need its own certificate? Yes, if the company itself wants to claim treaty benefits on payments it receives or makes. Individual and company certificates are separate.

Is a UAE residence visa the same as tax residency? No. A residence visa lets you live here; a tax residency certificate proves where you are taxed. You can hold a visa and still fail the day-count or substance tests.

This is general information, not tax advice. Residency rules and evidence requirements change; confirm your position with a qualified adviser and check the current FTA requirements before applying.