Tax Residency Certificate Services in the UAE

Tax Residency Certificate in Dubai, UAE

A Tax Residency Certificate (TRC) also called a tax domicile certificate is the official document the UAE Federal Tax Authority (FTA) issues to confirm that an individual or a company is a UAE tax resident. It's the certificate you present to a foreign tax authority or bank to claim benefits under a Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA), or simply to prove your UAE tax residency status. Helen & Sons prepares and manages the full TRC application on EmaraTax for individuals and companies in Dubai from checking eligibility to filing, payment, and certificate delivery.

Who Needs a Tax Residency Certificate?

• Individuals who split time between the UAE and a home country and want to avoid being taxed twice on the same income
• UAE company owners who need to prove tax residency to a foreign client, bank, or tax authority
• Freelancers and remote workers based in Dubai with overseas clients
• Investors and business owners relying on one of the UAE's DTAA treaties to reduce or eliminate foreign withholding tax

Offshore companies generally cannot obtain a TRC, since they don't have the physical presence or management substance the FTA looks for. Branches of foreign companies registered in the UAE are also excluded. As business setup consultants in Dubai, Helen & Sons works with clients across every stage of this lifecycle so if your TRC need traces back to how your company was structured in the first place, we can address both in one conversation.

Do You Qualify? The 183-Day, 90-Day, and Centre-of-Interest Tests

Under Cabinet Decision No. 85 of 2022 (as clarified by Ministerial Decision No. 27 of 2023), an individual can qualify as a UAE tax resident in one of three ways:

1. 183-day rule

   You were physically present in the UAE for 183 days or more within the relevant 12 consecutive months. Every day or part of a day you're in the country counts.

2. 90-day rule

   You were physically present for 90 to 182 days within the 12-month period, and you're a UAE national, GCC national, or hold a valid UAE residence permit, and you either have a permanent place of residence in the UAE or carry on employment/business here. You don't need to own the residence it just has to be continuously available to you.

3. Centre of interest test

   No minimum day count, but your usual/primary place of residence and the centre of your financial and personal interests (work, family, economic ties) are in the UAE.

For companies, the general rule is straightforward: the entity must be incorporated or effectively managed and controlled in the UAE, and must have been established for at least 12 months before applying.

Documents Required

If the TRC is for DTAA purposes specifically, the exact document list can vary slightly by treaty; we confirm this against the relevant agreement before filing. If your bank statements, financial reports or source-of-income proof aren't already in order, our accounting & bookkeeping services team can prepare and organise them before you submit.

How to Get a Tax Residency Certificate in Dubai - Step by Step

1. Create or log into your account on the FTA's Tax Residency Certificate platform (via EmaraTax / UAE Pass)

2. Select "Other Services" → "Tax Residency Certificate"

3. Enter your Corporate Tax TRN if you have one

   This lowers the fee and auto-fills some details. If not, choose "No Tax Registration Number."

4. Choose the certificate type

   For a specific DTAA (select the treaty country) or for general/other purposes.

5. Complete the application form and upload the supporting documents for your case

6. Request a hard copy or FTA-attested international form here, if you need one

7. Pay the submission fee and the applicable review fee in full

8. Submit the application

9. Wait for FTA review

   Typically 10 business days for a standard electronic certificate.

10. Download the certificate from the portal once approved

    You'll also get it by email; hard copies are couriered.

Helen & Sons handles steps 1–9 for you, checks your eligibility test before you pay anything, and flags any document gaps upfront so the application isn't rejected and rejected applications don't get the fee refunded. This sits alongside our wider PRO services in Dubai, so government-facing paperwork like this doesn't have to become a separate errand for you.

Tax Residency Certificate Fees (UAE, Official FTA Rates)

These are the government fees set by Cabinet Decision No. 65 of 2020 and its amendments. They're the same no matter who files your application, and they are non-refundable if the request is rejected.

How Long Does It Take?

• Standard electronic TRC: 10 business days from a complete application
• Hard copy request: an additional 5 business days after the fee is paid
• FTA-attested international form: 10 business days from receipt of the completed form and fees
• The certificate covers one 12-month period you choose (a current or past Tax Period, or any other 12 months) it cannot be backdated beyond 12 months or issued for a future period that hasn't started
• Newly formed companies must wait until they've been established for 12 months before applying; individuals can apply as soon as they meet one of the residency tests

TRC for a DTAA vs. TRC for Other Purposes

• DTAA-purpose TRC - used to claim reduced withholding tax or exemption under a specific tax treaty the UAE has signed. You'll need to name the treaty country during the application, and some treaties ask for extra evidence beyond the standard document list.
• Other-purpose TRC - used for banks, immigration, foreign regulators, or simply to prove UAE tax residency where no treaty claim is involved.

Both are issued through the same EmaraTax portal and follow the same core process; the difference is mainly in the country selection and supporting evidence.

Why File Your TRC Through Helen & Sons

• We check which of the three residency tests you actually meet before you pay any government fee a common cause of rejected applications is picking the wrong case
• We prepare and cross-check every document against the FTA's current checklist so nothing is missing on first submission
• We track your application through EmaraTax and follow up with the FTA on your behalf
• We handle both individual and company TRCs, and both DTAA and general-purpose certificates

For company applicants, this often runs alongside our corporate PRO services in Dubai, so your TRC filing and your ongoing government-liaison work stay coordinated instead of handled by two different providers.

Frequently Asked Questions