Qualifying Free Zone Person status under Cabinet Decision 100/2023 and Ministerial Decision 265/2023. The five qualification tests, the qualifying-activities list, the de minimis cliff edge that kills more QFZP claims than any other rule, substance requirements scaled to revenue, and the four specific patterns that lose 0% status for an entire tax period. For Free Zone entity directors and their tax advisors.
Watch in order — Free Zone tax is dense and lessons build on each other. The de minimis lesson (4) is the single most-important practical lesson; the substance lesson (5) is the most-misunderstood. The pitfalls lesson (7) is what you watch before signing off on a QFZP election. Every lesson cites Cabinet Decision 100/2023 or Ministerial Decision 265/2023 article-by-article.
Videos publish Q2 2027 (April-May) — after the first wave of Free Zone CT-201 filings completes and we have real audit-cycle observations to share.
The economic logic behind a 0% rate for some Free Zone income but not others. The OECD BEPS (Base Erosion and Profit Shifting) pressure that shaped Cabinet Decision 100/2023. Why a flat 0% would have triggered global retaliation and what the UAE got right.
Substance, qualifying income, election, transfer pricing, audited financials. All five must pass — binary, not graded. The interaction between the tests and why failing the easiest can cost you the entire 0%.
The 13 activities in Ministerial Decision 265/2023 Article 2. What each one means in practice, the documentation that supports it, the activities most Free Zone businesses think apply but actually don't (e.g., "consulting" is rarely qualifying, "Headquarters services to related parties" has specific structural requirements).
5% of revenue OR 5 million — whichever is lower. The single most-important practical rule in the QFZP regime. Why this kills more 0% claims than any other condition. Live tracking patterns that prevent the cliff.
Premises, employees, expenditure scaled to revenue. The outsourcing carve-out and its limits. What MOHRE inspections (substance has labour-side implications too) and FTA-style substance reviews actually look for. The flexi-desk question.
The VAT designation under Article 51 (different concept) vs the Free Zone status for Corporate Tax. Why a Free Zone might be one but not the other. The Cabinet Decision 100/2023 references to Designated Zones for the "Distribution" Qualifying Activity.
Real anonymized cases from the first wave of UAE Free Zone CT filings. The mainland-customer trap, the home-office trap, the passive holding trap, the no-audit trap. Each comes with the specific mitigation that the operators should have implemented earlier.
Videos publish Q2 2027 (Apr-May) — after the first Free Zone CT filing wave with real audit observations baked in.
Subscribe to release alerts →