Automatic Exchange of Information - FATCA and CRS

What is Automatic Exchange of Information (“AEOI”)?

AEOI is the Automatic Exchange of Information between competent authorities of different jurisdictions pursuant to international agreements as implemented into domestic law to cooperate in the global effort towards tax transparency.

The UAE is committed to the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (“FATCA”) and the Common Reporting Standard (“CRS”) regimes as a form of AEOI in the UAE.

FATCA and CRS regimes require UAE Reporting Financial Institutions (“UAE RFIs”) to report information on certain financial accounts maintained by reportable account holders and/or controlling persons to the UAE Ministry of Finance (“UAE MoF”) on an annual basis.

UAE MoF then exchanges the data with the IRS and peer jurisdictions for FATCA and CRS, respectively. The UAE MoF may also have adhoc requests from time to time pursuant to the FATCA and CRS regimes.

FATCA / CRS System

All UAE Reporting Financial Institutions are required to register on the CRS/FATCA system using the link: https://fatcacrs.mof.gov.ae and submit data and risk assessment by the stipulated domestic reporting deadline.

For system related support and queries, please contact 800533336 or info@mof.gov.ae

User Manual and FAQ Document

For more information or queries related to FATCA and/or CRS, please reach out to your Regulatory Authority

1

UAE Ministry of Finance (UAE MoF)
+971 4 393 9000
info@mof.gov.ae

2

UAE Central Bank (UAE CB)
+971 2 691 5555
crs.fatca@cbuae.gov.ae

3

Abu Dhabi Global Markets (ADGM)
+ 971 2 333 8532
fatca.crs@adgm.com

4

Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC)
+971 4 362 2222
info@difc.ae

5

Securities and Commodities (SCA)
sca_fatcarp@sca.ae

FATCA / CRS System Walkthrough Videos

Common Reporting Standard (“CRS”)

Introduction

The CRS was developed in response to the G20 request by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (“OECD”) during the Global Forum held in Berlin and came into force in October 2014.

The UAE signed the Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters (“MAC”), the Declaration of Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement on Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information (“MCAA”) and the Unilateral Declaration in April 2017.

Both the MAC and MCAA form the legal basis for the implementation of The Standard for Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information (“AEOI”) in Tax Matters, Second Edition (“OECD Standard”) in the UAE. The MAC was ratified by the UAE according to Federal Law No. 54 of 2018 and the MCAA according to Federal Law No. 48 of 2018.

The OECD Standard sets out the required information to be exchanged, the types of entities required to report, the different types of financial accounts and account holders in scope and the common due diligence procedures to be followed by UAE RFIs. (“FIs”).

The CRS went live in the UAE with an effective go-live date of 1 January 2017.

Certain UAE authorities and UAE MoF have issued UAE CRS legislation (collectively referred to as “UAE CRS Regulations”).

The content provided on this webpage does not constitute legal or tax advice in respect of the matters set out herein. For advice on tax and legal matters, please consult a professional tax or legal advisor.

​​​​​​​​​​​​ ​Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (“FATCA”)​

Introduction

FATCA is a United States (“US”) automatic exchange of information regime designed to curb offshore tax evasion by US persons. It was enacted by the US in 2010 as part of the Hiring Initiative to Restore Employment (“HIRE”) Act. FATCA requires Foreign Financial Institutions (“FFIs”) outside the US to report information on financial accounts held by US persons.

The UAE signed an Intergovernmental Agreement with the United States of America on 17 June 2015 with an effective (“go-live”) date of 1 July 2014 (“UAE-US IGA”). The UAE-US IGA is a Model 1B IGA and accordingly does not provide for reciprocal information sharing by the US.

The UAE-US IGA was ratified pursuant to Federal Law No. 9 of 2016 and establishes the framework for the exchange of information between UAE Reporting Financial Institutions (“UAE RFIs”) and the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”).
The UAE-US IGA sets out the required information to be exchanged, the types of entities required to report, the different types of financial accounts and account holders in scope and the due diligence and account holder onboarding procedures to be followed by UAE RFIs.

Certain UAE authorities and the UAE MoF have issued FATCA legislation (collectively referred to as “UAE FATCA Regulations”) to govern FATCA.

The content provided on this webpage does not constitute legal or tax advice. For advice on tax and legal matters, please consult a professional tax or legal advisor.”