Market Intelligence

Yes, you can run a UK business from Dubai, but living there does not by itself move where the business is taxed. A UK-incorporated company stays UK tax resident wherever you run it, a UAE company can be pulled into UK tax if it is really run by you, and your own tax turns on the Statutory Residence Test.

The wave of frozen UAE corporate accounts is real, but it is not the central bank acting on a whim. Since 14 October 2025 a new anti-money-laundering law lowered the threshold for liability and pushed banks to freeze first and explain nothing. This note sets out what changed and the recourse that works.

From 6 April 2026 UK carried interest is taxed as trading income, not capital gains, with income tax and Class 4 National Insurance. Qualifying carry keeps an effective 34.075% through a 72.5% multiplier. For a manager who has left the UK, the charge now follows UK workdays and a UK permanent establishment.

On 18 November 2026 the identity verification transition closes. Under section 853A a confirmation statement cannot be filed while a director or PSC is unverified, and a blocked filing runs toward strike-off. For overseas directors the free route often fails, and an ACSP is the way to the personal code.

On 1 July 2026 the Supreme Court dismissed BlueCrest's appeal and narrowed the significant influence test in the LLP salaried member rules. Commercial importance, including running a large and profitable desk, is no longer enough to keep a member outside the rules, and the exposure is retroactive PAYE and NIC.

In June 2026 the Federal Tax Authority updated its Corporate Tax Guide on the Taxation of Family Foundations (CTGFF1). The core relief is unchanged, but the update reshapes how multi-tier structures qualify for transparency and draws a firm line under legacy LLC holding companies used by cross-border families.

The UK has published draft legislation for a Securities Transfer Tax that will replace Stamp Duty and Stamp Duty Reserve Tax on transfers of securities from 2027. For most people the amount of tax will not change, but how share transactions are reported, paid and administered will.

From 6 April 2027, moving cryptoassets into a qualifying lending arrangement or liquidity pool will be treated as no gain, no loss for Capital Gains Tax, deferring the charge until an economic disposal rather than when you deposit. Welcome for the roughly 700,000 people affected, but a deferral, not an exemption.