Amendments are expected to be made to the UAE Excise Tax legislation to enable transition to a tiered-volumetric model for the calculation of Excise Tax on Sweetened Drinks.
This Public Clarification outlines the key aspects of the upcoming changes that Taxable Persons should be aware of, to enable them to prepare for the changes that may come into force as soon as 1 January 2026.
Under the new rules, a Sweetened Drink will be defined as a product to which a source of sugar, artificial sweeteners or other sweeteners is added that is produced for consumption as a drink, whether ready to drink, in the form of concentrates, powders, gels, extracts, or any form that can be converted into a drink.
A tiered-volumetric model for calculating Excise Tax will be implemented for Sweetened Drinks, whereby Excise Tax will be calculated based on the amount of sugar or other sweeteners instead of at a fixed rate as is currently the case.
Excise Tax will be calculated based on the total sugar content (natural sugar, added sugar, and other sweeteners) in a Swee...