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High Growth Recorded in UAE’s Education Sector

The UAE government has been operating methodically on the task of diversifying the economy and is also investing in a big way in further developing the education and science sectors. They are utilizing new innovations and latest and progressive technologies, which are introduced via several start-ups. The number of schools and other institutes spread across UAE is set to increase in the coming few years. The main cause for this development is the continuous rise of the nation’s population. Going by the statistics, the country’s population has exceeded the 10 million mark last year.

Constant population growth contributes to the fact that more than 1 million children and people below the 25 years of age reside here. This calls for an enhanced demand for setting up additional schools and educational and training institutions at all levels, starting from pre-school, secondary schools, to universities and colleges. Though the increasing population also gives new workforce, but fresh investments, particularly in the education sector, are required for its proper development.

The nation has witnessed stable growth of GDP per capita as its GDP growth rates rank among the top-most not only in this region but also worldwide. With a constant rise in income, people tend to do extra investment towards their personality development and education, which in turn fosters further development of the educational sector in the UAE. Besides that, the overall development of the economy has also enabled the expansion of the educational sector at a higher level like professional courses, seminars, trainings, and other similar events aimed in increasing the competence and enhancing the skill-sets of the workforce.

Various educational programs are developed and executed here; an example could be the Emirati school model, or the government strategy named “Education 2020”. There have been innovations in this sector such as the new codes made for teachers and their new evaluation process, the all-new licensing process and the latest curriculum. The government has been planning to spend almost 10.4 billion Dirhams (2.83 billion Dollars) from the central budget for achieving this objective.

The UAE boasts of a developed sector offering premium services, which also applies to the education sector. Both Abu Dhabi and Dubai open new educational institutes and private schools every year; for example, last year 13 new private schools were opened in Dubai and 3 were opened in Abu Dhabi.

The government is aware of the fact that profits they gain from petroleum products’ sale would support the nation’s economy for many decades. However, the potential is limited and now the government needs to take care of newly-introduced income sources for the local budget. Developing the education sector is imperative for the diversification of the economy as the country requires educated and trained people who could help to develop new technologies, science, work in high-tech industries, in the medicine field and similar areas where specific skill-set and know-how is needed.

The government has also begun executing various new integrated programs with an objective to develop the education system of the country. Therefore, the Ministry of Education gives its unwavering support to educational institutions and schools and also helps them in their constant modernization. For instance, the state program called Programmed for International Student Assessment (PISA) and Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) are being executed here. These steps are being taken with an aim to bring up the standard of education in various schools, colleges, and its universities to match up to a global level or of the standard of some leading and top educational institutions located in Europe and the USA).

The authorities know that if they invest well in the education of younger generation today, they would reap the benefit of getting educated residents in the near future, who will, in turn work towards developing UAE’s economy.

The good news is that the education sector has been developing exponentially in the UAE in the last few years, and this rise is only expected to accelerate further in the next few years. So if you are wondering on how to open education institute in Dubai UAE, do get in touch with us, and our experts in this field would be happy to assist you.

Government Plans to Take a Larger Chunk of Risk in its Attempt to Support SMEs

The forthcoming Singapore Budget of 2019 is set to bring some good news for the SMEs. Yes, the Singapore government is planning to offer more help to their SMEs so that they could gain advantage from the policy assistance schemes and also help the businesses entering the Asean region, as per a report from DBS.

Irvin Seah, who is the DBS senior economist and has also authored the report, was of the view that there are some guidelines and policy measures that look like being “skewed in favour of bigger companies”. An example of this could be the schemes like the SME Working Capital Loan, which is being facilitated through various financial institutions (PFIs) which are participating, but the inclination for these PFIs are titled towards big businesses who have a sounder financial position.

Irvin Seah also mentioned that in spite of the fact that the government provides some risk coverage, the consequence is that small-size enterprises who require more financing assistance might not get the required assistance irrespective of their creative business ideas or product innovation.

The government is also thinking of taking on a larger share of the risk on itself, especially for small-size businesses who are asking for financial aid. This would also bring these assistance schemes within a closer reach, hence making company formation in Singapore easier.

Though this has been done for the Automation Support Package already, additional enhancements in the policy direction favoring smaller businesses can also be applicable to many of the current support schemes.

SMEs that are lower than a specific level of total sales turnover should be additionally provided with further attention in their grant applications; for instance by simplifying the requirements of documentation in the grant application procedure.

Seah was also of the opinion that the policy effectiveness should be sharpened by improving and quickening the grant approval process and lending better support to the trade associations (TACs).

A fast track scheme especially for getting grant approvals can be executed for some specific high-growth industries so as to encourage strengthening of investments in those particular clusters.

In addition, TACs would be given additional support in establishing new overseas offices so as to facilitate the local organizations that are getting into international markets, in a better manner.

Armed with an improved understanding of different types of enterprises and markets, the TACs will be able to pull in their resources and domestic contacts to assist their members in exploring the overseas markets. This can be probably more useful than Enterprise Singapore (ESG) overseas offices which are typically swarming with business-related and other bilateral relationship issues.

Seah was of the opinion that helping the businesses venture abroad, especially to Asean countries, might receive additional momentum in the Budget 2019.

With new trade and international investments expected to be diverted in this region in the coming few years, Singapore would be in a unique position provided its regional hub status, high level of enterprise sophistication and a wide free trade agreement network.

He also said that policy measures taken by the government to offer enhanced support for enterprises in enhancing their capabilities and offerings and in their attempt for internationalization is set to surely bring optimistic results in mid to long-term.

The government is expected to stay on track in its efforts of reformation to groom and prepare the economy for the future times, instead of using fiscal incentives as a counter-cyclical policy tool.

RBI Simplifies the ECB Policy, and Lifts Sectoral Curbs

RBI has recently announced a new regulation for all the foreign borrowings, thus permitting all the eligible companies to raise overseas funding under the regular route and remove the existing sectoral curbs. All the entitled borrowers would be now able to raise external commercial borrowings (ECB) up to the maximum limit of $750m per year under the regular route.

The “liberalization or rationalization” in the latest framework ECB and rupee-denominated bonds has been mainly done to simplify the process of doing any business, said the central bank. The RBI said that the Tracks I and II under the current framework have been combined as the ‘Foreign Currency denominated ECB’ and the Track III or the Rupee Denominated Bonds structure has been amalgamated as ‘Rupee Denominated ECB’ to replace the current four-tiered arrangement and the structure has now become instrument-neutral. Here, Track I, II, and III stands for the total amount and maturity of the funds that are raised.

In addition, all-in cost ceiling per year is quoted at ‘benchmark rate plus 450 bps spread’, where 100 basis points are equal to 1 percentage point. The minimum average maturity period (MAMP) is decided at three years, which is applicable for all the ECBs, whatever may be the borrowing amount in lieu of different layers of MAMPs currently, with an exception of the borrowers who are especially allowed in the circular to borrow only for a short period, the RBI norms said.

The list of qualified or eligible borrowers now includes all businesses eligible to get FDI. In addition, all the port trusts, businesses in SEZ, SIDBI, all registered companies involved in micro-finance activities, EXIM Bank, registered trusts, societies, cooperatives, and NGOs could also borrow as per the new framework. But, lending or borrowing as per the ECB framework conducted by Indian banks and their foreign branches would be subject to the prudential regulations, said the RBI.

ECBs are basically commercial loans that are raised by qualified resident organizations from recognized non-resident businesses or organizations and must comply with all the usual parameters like minimum maturity, permissible and not permissible end-uses, and also highest allowed all-in-cost ceiling.

However, there is also a negative list, where the ECB proceeds are not permitted to be utilized, and those include real-estate activities, equity, and capital market investment, purposes of working capital barring foreign equity holder, and repayments of Rupee loans barring foreign equity holder.

Bahrain Announces the VAT Registration Launch in Three Phases

The Bahrain Ministry of Finance or the MoF recently said that the VAT registration will be divided into three phases and launched separately, completely depending on the total value of the annual supplies of various businesses. The three registration phases are as follows:

 

Annual Supplies VAT Registration Deadline Effective Registration Date
Over and above BHD 5 million 20 Dec 2018 1 Jan 2019
Over and above BHD 500,000 but less than BHD 5 million 20 June 2019 1 July 2019
Over and above BHD 37,500 but less than BHD 500,000 20 Dec 2019 1 Jan 2020

This announcement has come after the MoF’s earlier announcement that the VAT registration’s first phase would be restricted to companies who have at least BHD 5 million annual sales.

Businesses which have an annual taxable turnover above the voluntary registration limit of BHD 18,750 could register for VAT but on a voluntary basis.

However, at a meeting conducted by the MoF with tax advisors regarding VAT implementation recently, the MoF has given its confirmation that the VAT regulations would be issued before the end of January. The MoF also provided additional details on the issues such as:

  • How frequently can be VAT returns filed;
  • How are the VAT groups divided;
  • What is the VAT treatment for the supply of buildings, food items, financial services, electricity, oil, gas and imports and also government entities;
  • What would be the content and prerequisites for tax invoices; and lastly
  • Who will be the tax representatives and agents.

Next steps

Companies should ideally consider the VAT treatment of their business transactions to establish if they are required to go for VAT registration or not. Though postponing the process of VAT registration for some firms would offer additional time to the businesses, the company should decide whether they should go for VAT registration so as to recover the VAT incurred on their procurement or not.

Need professional assistance?

If you are looking for professional VAT consultants in Bahrain who can advice you if you need to register for VAT or not and also need help for getting a VAT impact assessment done or conduct a second review to find out the VAT treatment of your business transactions, do get in touch with us.

Our team of experienced professionals at IMC will help you at every step in case you require any advice or assistance.

$2.2tn Worth Indian Economy is Opening up Investment Opportunities for Qatar

Do you know that the $2.2tn worth Indian economy has been growing at more than 7.5 percent? The Indian ambassador, P Kumaran shared the good news that India is now offering many investment opportunities to Qatar. He shared this at a recent annual networking event that was organized by the Qatar Financial Center (QFC) along with the Indian Business and Professional Council (IBPC).

Kumaran also said that India has a nominal gross domestic product of over $2tn (which is over $7tn on purchasing power parity basis) and a growth rate of over 7.5 percent, and it now ranks as one of the most rapidly-growing large economies of the world. India is now opening its doors and offering many opportunities to Qatar with regards to investment options, a highly-trained and educated workforce, and a market showing potential for business alliances.

He also said that the Indian embassy would continue to give its support to the QFC in promoting business and also form new commercial links. Yousuf Mohamed al-Jaida, who is the QFC chief executive, said that Qatar and India have always shared good and stable bilateral ties, and the QFC would continue to play its role in supporting the flourishing Indian business community located in Qatar, which influences further development of these relations.

There are about 24 fully-owned Indian companies based and operating in Qatar as of now. There is a forecasted 6,000 Qatar-India joint ventures functioning in the field of infrastructure, energy sector, ICT, and other areas, and the contribution that the Indian businesses play in the local economy is really huge and irrefutable.

QFC also houses 31 Indian businesses that include Tech Mahindra, a fintech firm named Goals101, and many others. K M Varghese, who is the President of IBPC said that IBPC feels that the QFC should be partnering with them in Qatar to fulfill their aim of attracting more and more Indian businesses and organizations into Qatar by using the very unique QFC platform.

Thinking of setting up your business, opening a branch office or company formation in Qatar? Just get in touch with our professionals and let us assist you in having a hassle-free experience.

Oman’s Al Mazunah Free Zone is Attracting New Investments

New doors are opening for more and more investments for the Al Mazunah Free Zone in Oman, which comes under the purview of the Public Establishment for Industrial Estates – Madayn, as various operating projects reached a number of 197 by the end of November 2018, stated Said bin Abdullah Al Balushi, who is the supervisor of business processes in this free zone.

Al Balushi said that Al Mazunah Free Zone has been fortunate to get 46 fresh investment applications with professionals wanting to do company formation in Al Mazunah Free Zone, which are now under the process of review. This free zone has been very instrumental in the establishment of many Small and also Medium Enterprises for the residents in the wilayat of Al Mazyunah. Approximately 14 SMEs were set up in the areas of import and export, shipping and unloading, hospitality, construction, and also in public services. What’s more? The free zone also provided 60 new job opportunities especially for the national cadres in the operating body of this free zone, some investing companies and the developer named Golden Hala Company.

Al Balushi also shared that Madayn is working on various projects as of now, which include developing the free zone in phase one (second package), and in phase two, the aim would be transmitting electricity to the various leased companies such as cables and transformers, and the broadband project.

According to the electronic system taken up by Al Mazunah Free Zone for managing the transfer of exported and imported products, the volume of imported products into the free zone has reached 155,666 tonnes by November 2018. In addition, the total number of imported vehicles, equipment, and machinery added to about 7,739 during this period.

Al Balushi also said that Madayn keeps making continuous efforts for promoting the Al Mazunah Free Zone among various investors by organizing events that focus on the new investment opportunities available in the free zone and how its strategic location contributes to the local and global trade and investment movement.

These efforts have been planned as per Madayn’s vision to further improve Oman’s status as a top regional hub of manufacturing, ICT, entrepreneurship excellence, innovation and its goal to bring in more industrial investments and keep on giving continued support by making locally and internationally competitive strategies, providing stable infrastructure and value-adding services, and simple governmental processes. These efforts also are in line with the Madayn’s key objectives such as luring fresh foreign investments into the Sultanate and localizing the national capital, while continuing to encourage the private sector to attain sustainable financial and social development, accomplishing environmental sustainability, and also contributing to adding new job opportunities for the national cadres.

Al Mazunah Free Zone was set up under Royal Decree no. 103/2005 to function under the administration of the Public Establishment for Industrial Estates. Its strategic location, which is on the border of the Sultanate and Yemen makes it the perfect Gulf gateway for transit trade especially to Yemen and Eastern parts of Africa. The free zone has a goal to bring in more domestic and international investments for enhancing the trade exchange, get more advanced technologies, and open for new job opportunities. Various incentives are given to investors, which include customs’ exemptions, full or 100 percent foreign ownership, no capital requirements at all, and the Omanisation rate at 10 percent.

So if you are planning of company formation in Oman in near future, get in touch with us at IMC and we will be happy to assist you.

DIFC Company Regulations Highlights

Do you know that the DIFC was the first-ever financial Free Zone in the UAE? It is one of two free zones in the country and is also internationally-known for its world-class facilities and services. The initial set up was done in 2004, and today, it has expanded and developed into one of the most recognizable and successful free zones in the kingdom.

It provides all the benefits of a free zone like 100 percent foreign ownership along with no income or profit tax at all. In addition, DIFC especially caters to all the financial companies and is governed by the Dubai Financial Service Authority (DFSA).

It does not actually rely on the rules and legislation found on the UAE or Dubai mainland, because the DFSA makes provisions that are specific to the particular free zone.

The New Version of the DIFC Companies Law

The new law was announced and enacted by the DIFC President, who also happens to be the Vice President of the UAE, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

The amendments include:

  1. There are two new company forms that can be established in the DIFC;
  2. New duties can be added, or changes can be made to the current responsibilities of the directors of companies;
  3. New ultimate beneficial ownership registration information has been added, which all the companies should provide to the DIFC authorities.

Now, the new company types introduced would actually replace LLCs and share limited companies and are PLC’s, which are typically public companies; LTD’s which are basically private companies; and other recognized company forms like branch companies.

The director duties and roles were not so clear earlier, but now, an expansion of the same has been provided. There are some new responsibilities, which involve the promotion of a company’s achievements, avoiding conflicts of interest, and also applying their knowledge and experience in helping their business to grow.

The general changes though are not on a large scale but aim to work upon the already built foundation provided by the DIFC. The amendments are expected to be received well, especially because it would not require too much effort from current companies and would ensure a more regulated and controlled environment in the free zone.

In case you need to know more about new company regulations, any information about how to set up a company in the free zones, or professional assistance for company formation in Dubai, do get in touch with us and we would be happy to help.

Three Major Developments Awaited in the Middle East in this New Year

Compulsory health insurance, some new life rules and enforcement of new regulations will be the top agenda.

Yes, this New Year is going to be a buzzing one for the insurance market in the Middle East and there are three major developments that we can forecast.

The first one is that an obligatory health insurance will continue to be rolled out in the GCC region. Recently, a new law has been announced in Bahrain and Oman which will be implemented in 2019, according to which all the employers need to necessarily offer health insurance to their staff members. However, with compulsory health insurance being a major factor of growth and upsurge in markets like the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, and Dubai, many others are surely going to follow suit.

Secondly, the UAE is soon going to put into practice the much-awaited Life Insurance Regulations. This step was announced back in 2016 end, but the Insurance Authority needs to still publish and announce the final draft of these regulations before its implementation. These regulations will surely have a very positive effect on the industry. It is also predicted that they will put a cap on the total fee and commission that is to be paid by policyholders, limit the usage of indemnity commission, and execute some obligatory disclosures and Pro-forma product illustrations. In all probability, the regulations would also help in short to a medium-level reduction in the total number of life insurance intermediaries and will further drive more consolidation.

Thirdly, all the regulators in the market will get tougher. In 2018, there were a lot of proactive steps taken by insurance sector regulators, be it in terms of the issuing of new regulations or better level of enforcement. Many official bodies in the KSA and UAE have suspended insurers and other intermediaries from doing business which is pending the investigation process and remediation of several regulatory breaches. It seems that these authorities and regional regulators would continue the same thing in this year too, as the regulators want to push further compliance and augment consumer protection.

UAE is Now Implementing New Laws Like 100% Ownership and 10-year Residency Visa for Expats

Some new regulations are anticipated to pull in foreign investors and also retain the expats in the Gulf country.

The cabinet of the UAE has started implementing laws like 100 percent foreign ownership and 10-year visas for the expats, entrepreneurs, and investors.

Though the full ownership of companies set up in the Gulf country is limited to only the free zones as of now, this new law is anticipated to bring in new foreign investors who want to establish or take over local companies in the UAE.

This year, new long-term visas will be introduced, which will be granted for up to 10 years to entrepreneurs, investors, and specialists working specifically in fields of medicine, science or research.

In addition, exceptional students would be eligible for getting a long-term visa under the new amendments, so as to motivate them to reside in the UAE after completing their education. The students scoring an average of a minimum of 95 percent grades in school and a grade point average of minimum 3.75 on graduation from the UAE universities and abroad would qualify for getting a five-year visa for themselves and also their families.

All the people looking to invest in the UAE, would be eligible to get a five or 10-year residency visa dependant on how big is their investment. The investor’s spouse, family or children, one executive director and also one adviser would also get long-term visas.

Entrepreneurs and businesses who have had a former business worth at least $136,000 (AED500,000), or those who to get approval of an accredited business incubator in the UAE, would also be given a five-year residency visa. They can also upgrade to an investor visa soon depending on certain pre-set conditions.

The visa would also be offered to the entrepreneur’s spouse, family or children, firm’s or business partners and also to three executive directors.

All the professionals such as doctors, inventors, scientists, specialists in the field of culture and art and the people involved in research in science and knowledge would be given a 10-year visa. The researchers, doctors, and scientists are also permitted to include their spouses and children under their residency visa.

Expatriates who are 55 years of age or above are allowed to live in the UAE after their retirement once they obtain a five-year retirement visa meeting certain pre-set criteria, which includes the ownership of property for a minimum valuation of $545,000 (AED2 million). There are other conditions such as the ownership of a minimum valuation of $272,260 (AED1m) in savings or the person should be having an active income or earning of over $5,445 (AED20,000) every month.

Besides this, a new quota system will be announced in 2019, which guarantees 50 percent of seats reserved especially for women in the Federal National Council (FNC) taking effect during elections. This move means, if there are 40 members in the FNC, there will be 20 women appointments in that for sure.

So if you are looking for DMCC company formation or company setup in Dubai, do get in touch with our team of professionals who will assist you according to your specific needs.

Companies to get set for the upcoming audits in 2019

All the UAE businesses should be prepared for the upcoming tax audits by the Federal Tax Authority (FTA) conducted for checking their resources and how accurately they are keeping their records.

The FTA has started sending e-mails to organizations notifying them that they would be audited within five working days of when they get an e-mail, for the tax periods of January 1, 2018 till April 30, 2018 and May 1, 2018 till July 31, 2018.

Getting through VAT audits could be a challenge for companies who are not prepared and have not been maintaining their tax records in accordance with the FTA guidelines.

The companies have to show that every business expense they have made is legitimate and they must possess proper documents for it. In addition to expenses, every revenue should be properly accounted for and the due tax amount should be paid on time regularly.

The FTA has recently enhanced its attention on VAT compliance for companies and has also announced guidelines to some important issues to clear out the doubts. Some businesses have also requested for tax audits recently, that cover one to two tax periods.

Tourist VAT refund

The UAE has announced its tourist VAT refund scheme – first phase on November 18, which permits the visitors to the country to claim the VAT refund on whatever they buy from the three busiest airports, namely Dubai, Sharjah, and Abu Dhabi when they fly out of the country within a period of 90 days.

Phase two was announced on December 16, being rolled out from the following locations: three airports like Al Ain International Airport, Ras Al Khaimah International Airport, and Al Maktoum International Airport; two ­sea ports like Port Rashid in Dubai and the Zayed Port in Abu Dhabi; and also four land ports such as Hili Border Port and Al Madheef Border Crossing in Al Ain, Al Ghuwaifat Border Post in Abu Dhabi, and Dubai’s Hatta Border Exit.

The data showed the number of retail outlets that were linked to this refund scheme totaled to 6,903 with almost 3,800 digital transactions being processed every day by December 10.

The UAE is forecasting that revenues will go up to Dh20 billion through VAT in the year 2019. This way, the government will be able to diversity the revenues away from the petrodollars as the falling crude prices encouraged the UAE and some other oil-producing countries to find alternatives due to unstable prices.

But the UAE has now rolled back the announced VAT on investments done in the sector of precious metals like gold, platinum, and silver used in business as per globally-accepted standards having purity levels of 99 percent or more.

This regulation was imposed under the framework that was agreed upon by the GCC states and some verticals in major sectors like healthcare, transport and education got an exemption under the new tax system.

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