The Ministry of Finance’s portal for the filing of the Notifications and Economic Substance Reports is now live!

The due date for filing the ESR notification and report (for the reporting period ending 31st December 2019) is 31st December 2020.

In August 2020, the UAE Cabinet issued updated economic substance regulations which revoked and replaced the previous economic substance regulations introduced in 2019. The new ESR is accompanied by updated guidance on the application and interpretation of the new ESR and notice regarding the deadline for submission of notification and reporting under the new ESR.

The new ESR together with the supporting documents have introduced important changes to the economic substance regime. All entities should re-assess whether they fall within the scope of the new ESR and if so, will be required to submit (or resubmit) notification to the Ministry of Finance portal.

Given that the ESR notification and ESR report are due less than a month from now, businesses should start concluding their ESR assessments as soon as possible.

Failure to comply and submit the Notification and Substance Report within the allotted time frame shall result in penalties.