UAE Ministry of Economy to set up action group for e-commerce industry

It will educate industry players about the need to get licensed and comply with the tax regulations

The UAE's e-commerce market is forecast to increase 60 per cent to more than $8 billion by 2025 from 2021. istockphoto.com

The UAE's Economic Integration Committee will form a joint technical action group to raise awareness among e-commerce players about the need to license their activities.

The action group will educate individuals working in the e-commerce industry about the importance of fulfilling tax commitments in accordance with applicable national legislation, state news agency Wam reported on Friday.

The entity will be comprised of the UAE’s ministries of economy and finance, the Department of Economic Development, the Federal Tax Authority and the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority.

The decision was taken during the committee’s third meeting of the year, where it discussed various issues pertaining to promoting federal and local co-operation to accelerate the economic growth.

"The development of the country’s economic policies is one of the key foundations of its new economic system,” Wam quoted Abdulla bin Touq, the Minister of Economy, as saying.

The UAE's e-commerce market is forecast to increase 60 per cent to more than $8 billion by 2025 from 2021, as consumers across the region continue to shift towards online retail, according to a report by EZDubai, an e-commerce zone in Dubai South, and Euromonitor International.

“The committee has adopted a number of federal and local action frameworks to support related national efforts, as part of the major legislative amendments previously announced by the country,” Mr bin Touq said.

The committee is also working to draft new policies to govern family businesses, co-operatives and financial auditors, he said.

The committee also discussed key issues related to upgrading the country’s economic laws, ensuring consumer protection, drafting anti-money laundering legislation and regulating e-commerce, the Wam report said.

It also reviewed the work of the Global Economic Agreements Programme, which was launched by the UAE as part of the first phase of the Projects of the 50 last year.

The Economic Integration Committee is headed by the economy minister and features representatives from the economic departments of each emirate.

The committee, which aims to establish joint mechanisms for the development of economic action at the federal and local levels, held 10 meetings last year and issued 77 recommendations.

It focused on the promotion of opportunities in the UAE’s business environment, the acceleration of actions and decisions to implement economic initiatives, address challenges and follow-up on developments and issues related to the market and the business sector.