The United Arab Emirates (U.A.E) has one of the most dynamic Economies in the Gulf with booming Oil Industry ,Free Trade Zone with 100 % foreign ownership ,Stock Exchange , privatization ,Industrial Zones, And open Banking system.

Tariff

Tariff Is still the lowest In the World ,Trade Barriers, Including Tariffs, Non-Tariff Barriers, and Import Taxes Tariffs in the UAE were raised from one percent to four percent ( 4 % )of the C.I.F Value ( Cost,Insurance,and Freight).

However, over 75 percent of imports still enter duty free.

Tariffs and general policies are coordinated through a national committee,also

Each Emirate operates its own customs authority.

Only firms with the appropriate trade license can engage in importation. Documentation requirements follow international standards and delays in custom clearance have been infrequent. The competition for business between the port facilities of the different emirates has kept user rates to a minimum and put a premium on services.

There are no duties on exports.

For religious and security reason ,there are various restrictions on import of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Pork products.

The UAE maintains non-tariff barriers to trade and investment, in the form of restrictive agency/sponsorship/distributorship requirements and there is still a lack of adequate intellectual property rights protection.

Doing Business:

In order to do business in the UAE outside of one of the free zones :-

- A foreign business must have a UAE national sponsor, agent, or distributor. Once chosen, sponsors, agents, or distributors have exclusive rights. They cannot be replaced without their agreement.

-To be registered, a company must have 51 percent UAE ownership

Tenders

Government tendering is conducted according to generally accepted international standards. Some time Retendering is done. Majority of tenders is for local Companies, Some Done Internationally to Supply spar parts For Power generators .

To bid on federal projects, a supplier or contractor must either be a UAE national or a company in which at least 51 percent of the share capital is owned by UAE nationals.

Federal tenders are required to be accompanied by a bid bond in the form of an unconditional bank guarantee for five percent of the value of the bid.

The UAE has no requirement that a portion of any government tender be subcontracted to local firms.

There is a ten percent price preference on procurement and tenders.

The UAE requires a company to be registered in order to be invited to receive government tender documents ,However, these rules do not apply on major project awards or defense contracts, where there is no local company able to provide the goods or services required.

Intellectual Property Law

UAE passed laws protecting intellectual property: a copyright law, a trademark law, and a patent law.

Implementation of the copyright law began in September 1994. As a result, pirate versions of western audio and video tapes are no longer present in the market. Unfortunately, legitimate versions of western video tapes are also largely absent from the market, as producers have hesitated to fill the vacuum left by the pirates.
As of July 1995, the UAE had not joined the World Trade Organization (WTO). The UAE had reached agreement with the other GATT contracting parties on its services schedule, but not on its market access schedule for goods. An April 26 deadline was missed, and it was apparent that the process could last into the fall at least. The three UAE IPR laws do not conform with GATT TRIPS standards. The UAE is not a member of any international IPR convention. It is a member of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), and has hosted WIPO IPR seminars.

Agricultural Trade

The UAE Currently levies a four percent import duty on all processed food products from non-GCC countries. Bulk agricultural commodities and semi-processed food products are exempt from the duty. In May 1995, UAE officials announced that the duty on processed food products would be eliminated,
possibly as soon as July 1, 1995.

Customs

Maximum duty in the UAE is 4% of C.I.F value for most goods, with duties of from 25 to 50 percent levied on alcohol and tobacco products. Many essential items, including food stuffs and pharmaceuticals, are allowed duty free status.

Import Licenses:

The U.A.E is hevily dependent on Imports and this is reflected in its Import Regulation. Import licenses are generally not required for Import Of googs intended for personal use. Importers of products intended for resale may only import those products for wich they are Licensed for in there trading business .

Imports from Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries recive favourable Treatment and are not subject to any custom duty.

All imported beef and poultry products require a health certificate from the country of origin and a halal slaughter certificate issued by an approved Islamic center in the country of origin.

Export Controls:

All goods exported or reexported from the UAE must have proper documentation issued by the Ministry of Economy and Commerce and the various Chambers of Commerce in the respective individual emirates.

Import/Export Documentation:

Standard trade documentation, including certificates of origin, bills of lading and various government/embassy attestations must be presented for all imports and exports.

Temporary Entry:

Goods may be imported duty free and stored in any of several free zones in the UAE. Goods which enter the UAE from these free zones must pay the (minimal) duty noted previously.

There is no provision for duty free entry of parts or components which are intended for manufacture of products which are subsequently exported. In practice, as duties are already so low, this has not been a major impediment to manufacturing industries in the UAE.

Labeling

All products must be labeled with the following:

Country of Origin, Appropriate storage temperature, production & Expiration dates (month, day, year),Shelf life ,net weight, ingredients.

Food labels must contain product and brand names, production and expiry dates, country of origin, name of the manufacturer, net weight in metric units, and a list of ingredients and additives in descending order of importance. All fats and oils used as ingredients must be specifically identified on the label. Regulations require that labels be in Arabic or Arabic/English, but English only labels are currently permitted.

All Imports of fresh and frozen meat must be accompanied by a Health Certificate And A certified statement that animals have been slaughterd according to Islamic law.

Pharmaceutical products must first be approved by ministry of Health In the U.A.E any drug not registered with the Ministry Of health is prohibited .

Import of live Plant & animal Must be certified by the Department of Agriculture as Free from disease or pests or some from radiation and or certain pesticides.

Prohibited Imports

Irradiated food products are prohibited. Imports of alcohol and pork products are strictly regulated.

Standards:

The UAE currently has no central standards authority. However, both the national and emirate governments, as well as professional associations are reviewing standards requirements. This is particularly true for the construction industry. Currently, government agencies and private firms stipulate the standards required on a project-by-project basis. This allows for a wide range of acceptable product performance, makes health and safety monitoring difficult, and permits the use of low quality products and manipulation of tender specifications. A UAE company first qualified for ISO 9000 certification in 1993. Since then, more have received the designation, and the EU is funding a standards center in the UAE to implement ISO 9000 certification.

Free Trade Zones

There are at present six free zones , three are operating in the UAE. Since UAE tariffs are low and are not levied against most imports, the chief attraction of the free zones is the waiver of the requirement for majority local ownership. In the free zones, foreigners may own up to 100 percent of the equity in an enterprise.
The largest and most successful of the free zones is the Jebel Ali Free Zone (JAFZ) in Dubai. Each free zone offers special incentives to attract tenants, such as no taxation for many years, subsidized energy rates, and full repatriation of capital and profits. In addition, for a nominal fee the zone authorities provide significant support services, such as sponsorship, worker housing, dining facilities, recruitment,
and security.

Within the JAFZ, three types of licenses are issued. The licenses are valid while a company holds a current lease from the free zone authority and are renewable annually as long as the lease is in force. They are the general license, the special license, and the national industrial license. The special license is issued to companies incorporated, or otherwise legally established, within the free zone or outside the UAE. In such cases, no other license is required, and the ownership of the company may be 100 percent foreign. The license is issued for any activity permitted by the free zone authority, including manufacturing. A company with a special license can operate only in the Jebel Ali Free Zone or outside the United Arab Emirates, but business can be undertaken and sales made in the UAE through or to a company holding a valid Dubai Economic Development Department license. However, a company with a special license can, itself, purchase goods or services from within the UAE.

Taxes :

The U.A.E has no income , sales ,property , or value added taxes.Corporate taxes are applied only to oil-producing companies and branches of foreign banks . the rate is determined by the government agreement with the firm .there are some government fees charges . Membership in Free Trade Arrangements:

The UAE is a member of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). In 1981, the GCC issued the Unified Economic Agreement, a plan for complete economic integration among the six member states (Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, and Oman). In practice, the provisions of this agreement have not all been implemented.

Under the agreement, all agricultural, animal, industrial, and natural resource products from member states are exempt from duties and other charges when traded among member states. To qualify as a GCC national product, the value added in a GCC member state must not be less than 40 percent of the final value, and produced kin a factory with at least 51 percent local ownership, unless 100 percent is owned by GCC nationals, and licensed by the respective ministry of finance and industry. All intra-GCC shipments claiming this exemption must be accompanied by a duly authenticated certificate of origin.

The GCC has been conducting talks with the European Community on the subject of establishing a free trade agreement between the respective blocks for a number of years, but so far with little progress. The GCC also conducts economic dialogues with Japan and the U.S.