Picture for illustrative purposes only. ARCHIVE

The UAE’s Federal Tax Authority (FTA) has seized 7.26 million tobacco products and soft drinks as part of a crackdown on tax evasion, the authority announced on Wednesday (August 14). According to the FTA, the goods were seized during the first six months of 2024 and included 5.52 million packs of tobacco and tobacco products as well as 1.74 million other excise goods, including soft drinks, energy drinks and sweetened beverages. "The inspection visits carried out by the Federal Tax Authority rely on advanced electronic monitoring processes to prevent the sale, trade, or storage of products that do not meet Excise or Value Added Tax obligations," said Sara AlHabshi, Executive Director of the Tax Affairs Sector at FTA. "A 'Marking Tobacco and Tobacco Products Scheme', requires Digital Tax Stamps to be placed on packages of tobacco products and recorded in the authority's database. Each stamp contains electronically registered information that can be read with a dedicated device used by authorised inspectors to ensure the tax due on these products has been paid," AlHabshi added. The FTA carried out 40,580 field inspection visits across the UAE in the first six months of 2024 to ensure that companies comply with tax laws, particularly in terms of issuing tax invoice for sales, displaying full prices inclusive of tax and paying due taxes on products. Khalid Ali Al Bustani, Director-General of the FTA, said that the authority is making “intensive efforts to enhance market oversight, ensure compliance with tax legislation, and prevent the sale of contraband products in UAE markets.” ICA/Expat Media
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