United Arab Emirates capital gains tax: none for individuals
The UAE has no personal income tax and no capital gains tax, so the tax on your investment gain is zero. Shares, crypto and property alike, personal investment gains are outside the scope of tax. What matters instead is whether your activity counts as a licensed business, and property transfers carry emirate registration fees on the price, not the gain.
Verified as of 2026-09-17 against u.ae and the Federal Tax Authority.
Current rules
Taxes on selling shares, crypto and property in United Arab Emirates
What you pay when you sell
| Asset | Tax on the gain |
|---|---|
| Shares (personal investment) | Nothing. No personal income tax exists |
| Crypto | Nothing |
| Property (personal investment) | Nothing on the gain |
| Gains from a licensed trade or business activity | 9% federal corporate tax on profits above AED 375,000, and only once the business turnover of an individual passes AED 1,000,000 a year |
| Property transfer | Emirate registration fees (about 4% of the price in Dubai), a transaction cost |
Figures are from the official records retrieved 2026-09-17; each table links back to the authority page above.
Questions
United Arab Emirates capital gains tax questions
Does the UAE have a capital gains tax?
No. There is no personal income tax of any kind in the UAE, so gains on shares, crypto or property held as personal investments are never taxed, however large or however soon after buying you sell. There is no inheritance or estate duty either.
What about the 9% corporate tax?
The federal corporate tax applies to companies, and to individuals conducting a licensed trade or business activity, on their profits above AED 375,000 a year. For individuals there is a second boundary set in 2023: corporate tax only reaches you once your total turnover from business activities exceeds AED 1,000,000 in a calendar year, and wage, personal investment income and real-estate investment income are neither taxed nor counted toward that threshold. Buying and holding investments as an individual is not a business activity, so investment gains stay outside the tax entirely.
I own investment property in the UAE. Does its rent or resale gain fall into corporate tax?
No. The Federal Tax Authority's guidance for natural persons counts wage, personal investment income and real-estate income as neither subject to corporate tax nor taken into account when computing the AED 1,000,000 business-turnover threshold. Rent you receive and the gain on a resale therefore stay outside corporate tax for a private individual investor.
What does buying and selling property cost?
Registration fees set by each emirate, roughly 4% of the price in Dubai plus fixed admin fees, whether you make a gain or a loss. Those transaction fees, not a gains tax, are the cost of a disposal.
Is crypto taxed in the UAE?
No. For individuals, disposing of crypto as a personal investment is not a taxable event. There is no withholding on exchange sales.
What exactly do the federal sources say?
The UAE levies no personal income tax and no capital gains tax on individuals: gains on shares, crypto and property held as personal investments are outside the scope of tax. Source: https://u.ae/en/information-and-services/finance-and-investment/taxation
When does the corporate tax apply?
The 9% federal corporate tax (0% below AED 375,000 of profits) applies to businesses and to individuals conducting a licensed trade or business activity, not to personal investment gains.
What fees apply to property transfers?
Property transfers carry registration fees set by each emirate (for example about 4% of the price in Dubai plus fixed fees), which are transaction costs, not a gains tax.
Is there an inheritance or estate duty?
There is no inheritance or estate duty.