AED 646 million in tax refunds issued to 7,200 UAE citizens for construction of new homes in 2025

Khalid Al Bustani: Continuously enhancing services related to Emirati families remains among the Authority’s top priorities

Abu Dhabi, 26 January 2026: The Federal Tax Authority (FTA) announced that the number of approved applications submitted by Emirati citizens to recover the Value Added Tax (VAT) paid on the construction of their newly built homes exceeded 7.2 thousand applications during the past year, with a total value of AED 646 million.

His Excellency Khalid Ali Al Bustani, Director General of the FTA, stated: “We are keen to ensure that continued attention to – and ongoing enhancement of – Emirati family-related services remain among the Authority’s top priorities, in particular the Tax Refund for UAE Nationals Building New Residences service, which is continuously developed through the latest innovative and user-friendly digital systems. This aligns with the vision of the UAE’s wise leadership to strengthen social stability and support the country’s comprehensive development journey, particularly in relation to family housing stability, in line with the designation of 2026 as the Year of Family.”

His Excellency added: “These numbers of UAE Nationals benefiting from the Tax Refund for UAE Nationals Building New Residences service, reflects greater tax awareness and further confirms the success of the Authority’s ongoing development and enhancement efforts. These include introducing additional initiatives to simplify and accelerate the refund procedures for eligible UAE Nationals who meet the legal requirements for VAT refund, as part of the Authority’s strategy to contribute to strengthening a modern housing ecosystem for citizens, and to provide them with the highest standards of quality of life and wellbeing.”

He continued: “The service witnessed a number of development operations during 2025 aimed at offering further procedural facilitation to citizens. These included reducing the number of fields relating to bank account details during the submission process via the smart Maskan application, as well as reducing the number of fields related to personal data. In addition, electronic integration was implemented with municipalities to enable the proactive submission of applications on behalf of citizens. These efforts form part of the Authority’s comprehensive strategy to support the Zero Government Bureaucracy programme, enhance efficiency, quality and flexibility, simplify and streamline government procedures, and eliminate unnecessary requirements and processes.”

H.E. Al Bustani reaffirmed the FTA’s commitment to providing clear, transparent standards, procedures and mechanisms to facilitate citizens’ refund of VAT paid on the construction of homes, while continuing its development plans and awareness campaigns to promote the accessible digital services available for tax refunds. This includes awareness sessions conducted via remote video communication, offering consultations and clarifications, responding to enquiries, and providing citizens with the opportunity to directly engage with specialised FTA employees to support them in completing requirements and finalising their applications as quickly as possible.