UAE tax, Saudi work visas, Bahrain activist freed

Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, has issued Decree No. 36 of 2017 on the Executive Regulations of Federal Law No. 07 of 2017 on Tax Procedures.

“The Federal Decree-Law issued by High Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed is the bedrock of the UAE’s planned tax system, which was designed to meet the most stringent of standards and best practices,” said Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, UAE Minister of Finance and Chairman of the Federal Tax Authority.

“The Value-Added Tax, which is set to be implemented across all GCC countries over the next two years, will bring a new revenue stream for the national economy and GDP. This, in turn, will ensure consistency in the high quality of government services, to mirror the UAE’s advanced position on several global competitiveness indexes.”

SAUDI ARABIA

• MYANMAR AID: Saudi Arabia, represented by the King Salman Center for Relief and Humanitarian Work (KSARelief), pledged to pay $20 million to resolve the Rohingya refugee crisis.

• WORK VISAS: The validity of employment visas issued by the Ministry of Labor and Social Development for the private sector firms has been reduced from two years to one year.

BAHRAIN

• ACTIVIST FREED: A Bahraini female political activist and two others have been freed from detention in the island kingdom. The Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy said early Monday that Ebtisam al-Sayegh had been freed after being detained since July 3.
source: Alarabiya