Ahead of the nationwide implementation of the Value Added Tax (VAT) in the UAE, du has launched a simple online process to collect customers official Tax Registration Numbers, as issued by the Federal Tax Authority. Tax Registration Numbers will be collected so that eligible business customers can claim back tax on their du bill, directly from the UAE government under the new legislation.

Last month, du began contacting all of its customers directly and individually to advise them on the introduction of the VAT. Now, in addition to these initial efforts, du's tax registration form will help provide further clarity for its customers by gathering all the required information from them digitally via an electronic portal designed to streamline the submission process.

"Our goal is to be transparent with our customers to help eliminate any uncertainty or misunderstanding they may have about VAT before it goes live," said Fahad Al Hassawi, Deputy CEO, Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company. "By providing a simple and straightforward process for our customers to be able to submit their Tax Registration Number, we aim to enable awareness and compliance with the government directives associated with VAT in a way that leaves customers feeling informed and assured."

As part of this process, du customers can provide the company with their FTA issued Tax Registration Number (TRN) along with other details through a special web form accessible through the company's dedicated VAT webpage. Customers will be required to provide their company name, contact name, phone number and email, du account number/code, and FTA Tax Registration Number. Customers will also be required to upload digital copies of their Tax Registration Certificate, Emirates ID, and their most recent du bill. From there, all the submitted information will be reviewed by a dedicated team at du, who will verify the documents, file them into du's system, and send confirmations to customers. In the case of documents being rejected or invalid, du's team will contact the customer to advise accordingly.

"VAT is a valuable building block in the construction of a greater future for the UAE, we want to ensure that or customers can provide their tax related information to us through a simple and easy process as we value our customer's happiness and satisfaction when it comes to our services," Al Hassawi added.

Beginning on January 1, 2018, VAT will be applied at a rate of 5% to a majority of commercial products and services in the UAE, including a range of applicable du products and usage of its services. As such, du is working to provide complete clarity for its customers and ensure a smooth transition into the new tax program.

For more information about the implementation of VAT on du products and services, please visitdu.ae/VAT and du.ae/trn .