Indirect tax developments across the GCC

Indirect tax requirements continue to evolve across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), with changes to VAT rules, growing e-invoicingElectronic invoicing - widely referred to as e-invoicing - is the exchange of a digital document between a supplier and a buyer. E-invoices are issued, transmitted and received in a structured data format that enabled automatic and electronic processing. They contain data in a machine-readable format so that an AP system can read an invoice without manual data entry, leading to faster and more efficient invoicing. requirements and increased focus on compliance. Recent developments across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Oman highlight why businesses operating across the region need to keep their tax processes and systems up to date.

In the United Arab Emirates, amendments to the VAT Executive Regulations came into effect on 1st October 2026, introducing changes affecting input tax recovery, employee expenses, composite supplies and input tax apportionment. Businesses should review their existing VAT processes to understand how the changes affect their recovery calculations and supporting documentation. In addition, the UAE has continued finalising details and requirements for the first wave of e-invoicing mandates due to go live from 1st January 2027.

Saudi Arabia continues to expand its e-invoicing requirements, with the latest phase bringing additional taxpayers into the integration process with the ZATCA FATOORA platform. New regulations and detailed tax and customs procedures have also been introduced for the Kingdom’s Special Economic Zones (SEZs), clarifying the tax treatment of goods and services, available incentives and customs duty arrangements.

Meanwhile, Oman has established the legal framework for mandatory e-invoicing, with implementation scheduled to begin in April 2027 for businesses with annual taxable supplies exceeding OMR 5 million, followed by businesses below that threshold in October 2027.

Elsewhere, Bahrain has updated its VAT guidance covering areas including the profit margin scheme, real estate invoicing and financial services.

In Qatar and Kuwait, recent developments include changes to customs duties and procedures, reinforcing the importance of monitoring indirect tax and wider trade requirements across the region.

For businesses operating across multiple GCC countries, these changes bring different requirements and deadlines to manage. Reviewing VAT recovery processes, maintaining accurate transaction data and preparing systems for new digital reporting obligations can help businesses stay on top of their responsibilities as the regional tax landscape develops.