The Double Taxation Agreement (DTA) signed between Jersey and the United Arab Emirates earlier this year is just one of a number of deals signifying the growing collaboration between the two jurisdictions.

Jersey Finance established a regional office in the UAE five years ago and has been very proactive ever since in raising awareness of Jersey in the Emirates. UAE-based investors and high net worth individuals look to Jersey to assist with the structuring of their wealth and investments through the use of Jersey-based trusts, foundations and companies.

Client teams at TMF Jersey frequently assist clients from the UAE and elsewhere in the Middle East with investments in, and the development of, real estate; often located in the United Kingdom. Sharia-compliant investments such as Murabaha financing is quite often used to partly or wholly fund the acquisition or development of property. The DTA falls in line with the UAE Ministry's emphasis on strengthening international relations, particularly with regard to the avoidance of double taxation on income.

Obaid Humaid Al Tayer, Minister of State for Financial Affairs, emphasised the significance of the agreement in enhancing economic and financial cooperation between Jersey and the UAE. He noted that the UAE is committed to adopting the highest economic standards of transparency and the exchange of information for tax purposes – as per G20 decisions – as well as the terms and conditions of agreements on the avoidance of double taxation with other countries, which now total 96 agreements with key economic and trading partners.

There are many agreements in place between Jersey and the UAE, particularly in relation to financial services, with the DTA being the most recent. Earlier this year, the Jersey Financial Services Commission, JFSC, the island's financial regulator, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of the Abu Dhabi Global Market, to exchange confidential regulatory information and cooperate with each other regarding the supervision and regulation of financial systems under their respective authority. Other MoUs between the Commission and UAE bodies include agreements with the Dubai Financial Services Authority in 2006, the UAE Central Bank in 2011, and the Emirates Securities and Commodities Authority in 2014.

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