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How much of taxable income can be offset by carried forward losses?

Answered by TI from the Federal Tax Authority’s own law · 15 September 2026. Guidance, not tax advice: rely on the official text.

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75% of your taxable income for that year can be offset by carried forward losses — and you must use that full 75%; you cannot choose to use less to save losses for later. Oldest losses are used first.

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The detail

The maximum offset is 75% of the Taxable Income for the Tax Period before any Tax Loss relief (Article 37(2)). Offsetting to that 75% ceiling is mandatory — you cannot offset less to preserve losses — and the oldest losses must be utilised first (Article 37(4)). The carry forward and use of the losses is further subject to the ownership and business-continuity conditions in Article 39.12

What the law says

  • Tax Losses are offset against Taxable Income of subsequent Tax Periods, capped at 75% of that Taxable Income before any loss relief (Article 37(2)).1
  • A carried forward Tax Loss must be set off against Taxable Income before any remainder can be carried forward further (Article 37(4)).1
  • Carry forward and use is allowed only if the same persons continuously held at least a 50% ownership interest through the loss and offset periods, and the Taxable Person continued the same or similar Business after a more-than-50% ownership change (Article 39(1)).2

What it depends on

  • The 75% cap applies before any Tax Loss relief and before any transferred loss is utilised; your own carried forward losses must be used first.13
  • Losses from before Corporate Tax commencement, before the person became Taxable, or from exempt assets or activities cannot be relieved (Article 37(3)).1
  • The Article 39 ownership/business-continuity conditions do not apply to a Taxable Person whose shares are listed on a Recognised Stock Exchange (Article 39(3)).2

Check before you rely on it

  • Confirm that the same persons have continuously held at least 50% ownership across the loss and offset periods.
  • Confirm you continued to conduct the same or similar business after any ownership change of more than 50%.
Sources (3) — read the official text
  1. 1Corporate Tax LawArticle 37Law
    Article 37 – Tax Loss Relief
    Read the article
    Article 37 – Tax Loss Relief 1. A Tax Loss can be offset against the Taxable Income of subsequent Tax Periods to arrive at the Taxable Income for those subsequent Tax Periods. 2. The amount of Tax Loss used to reduce the Taxable Income for any subsequent Tax Period cannot exceed 75% (seventy-five percent) or any other percentage as specified in a decision issued by the Cabinet at the suggestion of the Minister of the Taxable Income for that Tax Period before any Tax Loss relief, except in circumstances that may be prescribed in a decision issued by the Cabinet at the suggestion of the Minister. 3. A Taxable Person cannot claim Tax Loss relief for: a. Losses incurred before the date of commencement of Corporate Tax. b. Losses incurred before a Person becomes a Taxable Person under this DecreeLaw. c. Losses incurred from an asset or activity the income of which is exempt, or otherwise not taken into account under this Decree-Law. 4. A Tax Loss carried forward to a subsequent Tax Period must be set off against the Taxable Income of that subsequent Tax Period, before any remainder can be carried forward to a further subsequent Tax Period, or any Tax Loss transferred under Article 38 of this Decree-Law can be utilised.
    Official PDF, p. 44Captured from the FTA website on 9 Sep 2026Found by following a reference in another source
  2. 2Corporate Tax LawArticle 39Law
    Article 39 – Limitation on Tax Losses Carried Forward
    Read the article
    Article 39 – Limitation on Tax Losses Carried Forward 1. Tax Losses can only be carried forward and utilised in accordance with the provision of Clause 2 of Article 37 of this Decree-Law provided that: a. From the beginning of the Tax Period in which the Tax Loss is incurred to the end of the Tax Period in which the Tax Loss or part thereof is offset against Taxable Income of that period, the same Person or Persons continuously owned at least a 50% (fifty percent) ownership interest in the Taxable Person. b. The Taxable Person continued to conduct the same or a similar Business or Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022 and its amendments – Unofficial translation (as published by the Ministry of Finance) 45 Business Activity following a change in ownership of more than 50% (fifty percent). 2. For the purposes of paragraph (b) of Clause 1 of this Article, relevant factors for determining whether a Taxable Person has continued to conduct the same or a similar Business or Business Activity following a change in the direct or indirect ownership include: a. the Taxable Person uses some or all of the same assets as before the ownership change; b. the Taxable Person has not made significant changes to the core identity or operations of its Business since the ownership change; and c. where there have been any changes, these result from the development or exploitation of assets, services, processes, products or methods that existed before the ownership change. 3. Clause 1 of this Article shall not apply to a Taxable Person whose shares are listed on a Recognised Stock Exchange. Chapter Twelve – Tax Group Provisions
    Official PDF, pp. 45–46Captured from the FTA website on 9 Sep 2026Found by following a reference in another source
  3. Read the article
    5 How does relief for carried forward Tax Losses work? When a Tax Loss related to a Tax Period cannot be used in full in that Tax Period, the balance remains available to offset in future Tax Periods. A Taxable Person can carry forward its own Tax Losses indefinitely into future Tax Periods. Offsetting Tax Losses can reduce the amount of Taxable Income and thus Corporate Tax payable when a Taxable Person generates Taxable Income in future Tax Periods. The total amount of Tax Losses which can be offset in a subsequent Tax Period is limited to 75% of the Taxable Income in that Tax Period before 2 any Tax Loss relief. The oldest Tax Losses are offset before more recent Tax Losses. A Taxable Person is required to offset carried forward Tax Losses to the fullest extent possible before any remainder can be carried forward to further subsequent Tax Periods.3 For example, if a company has AED 1,000,000 of Taxable Income (before Tax Loss relief) in a Tax Period and Tax Losses of AED 3,000,000 carried forward from earlier Tax Periods, it must offset AED 750,000 of those Tax Losses against its Taxable Income for the Tax Period (i.e., 75% of 1,000,000). This would result in Taxable Income of AED 250,000 (AED 1,000,000 less AED 750,000) for the relevant Tax Period and Tax Losses carried forward to the following Tax Periods of AED 2,250,000 (AED 3,000,000 less AED 750,000). It is not possible to choose to offset a lower amount than 75% of Taxable Income and thereby carry forward more Tax Losses to future Tax Periods. Further, a Taxable Person must first utilise its own carried forward Tax Losses before utilising transferred Tax Losses received from another 4 Taxable Person. A Taxable Person must first fully utilise its own carried forward Tax Losses before transferring any remaining Tax Losses to another Taxable Person for a specific Tax Period. 2 3 4 Article 37(2) of the Corporate Tax Law. Article 37(4) of the Corporate Tax Law. Article 37(4) of the Corporate Tax Law.
    Official PDF, p. 3Captured from the FTA website on 8 Sep 2026
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Written by AI from the FTA sources above and checked before display. Not tax advice or official FTA information - confirm with a tax adviser before you act. Full disclaimer

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