I set up a charity foundation — does it need to register and pay Corporate Tax?

Article 9 of Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022 creates a category called the Qualifying Public Benefit Entity — an entity exempt from Corporate Tax if it is established and operates exclusively for religious, charitable, scientific, artistic, cultural, sporting, educational, healthcare, environmental, or humanitarian purposes, or functions as a professional body or chamber of commerce serving the public interest. The key condition is that its income and assets are applied entirely toward the purpose it was set up for, with no part of that income flowing to a founder, member, or trustee as personal benefit.

What many people miss is that having a charitable mission is not, by itself, enough. The entity must be formally named in a Cabinet Decision listing Qualifying Public Benefit Entities, then keep the Ministry notified of any change to its status within the required timeframe, and retain records proving ongoing compliance whenever the Federal Tax Authority asks.

At RASEEKH, we help charitable and community-purpose organizations confirm whether they are actually listed in the relevant Cabinet Decision, prepare the supporting documentation, and keep that status maintained — rather than finding out too late that a side commercial activity quietly broke the exemption.