PRO Partner Group
News & Updates

16 May 2022, Dubai, UAE - Sovereign Group, the leading independent global provider of corporate, private client and retirement planning services, is delighted to announce the acquisition of PRO Partner Group (PPG), one of the foremost company formation and corporate services providers in the Middle East.

This strategic acquisition combines the regional strength of PPG in the UAE, Qatar, Oman and Saudi Arabia with the global reach of Sovereign Group to deliver tangible benefits and opportunities to the clients and staff of both parties.

PPG provides security, efficiency and local knowledge to international corporations and investors looking to set up within the GCC, while the Sovereign Group offers integrated advice, products and services to internationally mobile businesses and people with complex needs.

Following the acquisition, PPG’s staff will remain in their existing offices and will continue to operate under the PPG brand, except in Saudi Arabia where PPG and Sovereign will partner together and co-brand.

Commenting on the deal, Sovereign Group CEO, Gerry Kelly said: “We have been looking to expand our presence in the Middle East and Africa region and to increase our capacity in the corporate client market and I believe we have found a great fit in PPG. As we explored this deal and got to know Jane and the PPG team, it soon became apparent that we were very aligned in our outlooks.”

“In staffing terms, this partnership brings our headcount in the Middle East and Africa to almost 200, making us one of the best resourced corporate service providers in the region. It also gives our client base a platform in Oman and Qatar for the first time. We are very excited by this acquisition and are delighted to welcome PPG staff and clients to the Sovereign Group.”

Commenting, Jane Ashford, Founder and Chair of PRO Partner Group said: “For nearly eight years, the dedicated team at PPG has focused on growing the company in the region and serving clients from around the world. When I initiated discussion with Gerry and his team, it became clear that they value our work and share our fundamental ethics and company culture.”

“I look forward to remaining on the board of PPG, supporting the company to achieve its goals. This new chapter will further help us protect our clients and provide opportunities for the team to flourish within a global operation.”

Foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows in the GCC increased by 12.4% to US$27.7 billion in 2020, led by strong increases in inflows into Saudi Arabia, Oman and the UAE, according to the UN’s annual World Investment Report (WIR), released in June 2021.

The upward regional trend is expected to continue as new laws bed in – notably, the UAE’s FDI Decree, permitting 100% foreign ownership of onshore companies, and Saudi Arabia’s Private Sector Participation Law, setting out a clear framework for privatisation as Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) – and as global investment picks up.

About PRO Partner Group:
PRO Partner Group is the leading company setup, local partnership, corporate services, company formation, Freezone formation etc. provider in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, the wider UAE, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Launched in 2011, its key services include outsourced PRO support to LLC companies, foreign branch and rep offices as well as freezone and companies with dual licenses. PRO Partner Group is on a mission to provide security, transparency, speed, efficiency and local knowledge to international corporations and investors wishing to set up within the GCC.

If you need any assistance with any company related set up restructuring, local partner or PRO support matter in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, the wider UAE, Oman, Qatar or Saudi Arabia then please do get in touch with us on +971 (0)4 456 1761 for Dubai or +971 (0)2 448 5120 for Abu Dhabi, email us at info@propartnergroup.com or complete the contact form below and we will be delighted to assist you.

The UAE Space Agency and Masdar have partnered to establish the nation’s first space economic zone in Masdar City, which is set to create an integrated business ecosystem that will help propel start-ups and SMEs in the space sector.

The new zone will act as a hub for research and development, offering world-class infrastructure, and fostering an enabling environment to encourage the development of the national space industry.

“Space is the next frontier of business growth set to propel the national economy for the next 50 years. The space economic zone in Masdar City is an exciting milestone in our strategy to create a competitive private sector, build national capabilities, promote public-private partnerships, boost R&D and encourage the spirit of entrepreneurship,” said Sarah bint Yousif Al Amiri, UAE minister of state for advanced technology and chairwoman of the UAE Space Agency.

“This programme is a game-changer that will take our flourishing space industry to the next level while simultaneously building on the UAE’s established position as a global hub for talent, investment and innovation,” she added.

The programme will create a sustainable and effective framework to facilitate public-private partnerships, build an integrated business environment for local and global companies, stimulate innovation, as well as support the growth of national space technologies and services.

Under the agreement, which was signed at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2022, Masdar City Free Zone will tailor-make business licenses for space-related companies across the launch sector, satellite communication, logistics, data analysis, science, technology, engineering, and much more.

“Our aim is not only to drive entrepreneurship and economic development within the fast-growing space sector, but to attract and foster the most talented professionals from across the region and beyond,” said Mohamed Al Ramahi, CEO of Masdar.

For the full article click here

Abu Dhabi's Masdar City and the Mohammed bin Rashid Innovation Fund (MBRIF) are teaming up to support local start-ups and boost entrepreneurship in the UAE as the country seeks to be a centre for small and medium businesses.

The agreement will allow the entities to extend development to start-ups from the post-conception stage and assist them in scaling up their operations, Masdar City and MBRIF said on Monday.

As part of the initiative, the MBRIF Guarantee Scheme and Innovation Accelerator will support Masdar City’s SME development efforts while both organisations will also be able to use each other’s human expertise, infrastructure and technology where necessary.

“It is our aim to not only cultivate entrepreneurship and economic development in the UAE and further afield but drive it and further it through the immense talent emerging from the region," said Abdulla Balalaa, executive director of Masdar City.

The UAE aims to become home to 20 start-ups valued at more than $1 billion by 2031 in its push to become a regional centre for innovation and entrepreneurship.

Furthermore, the UAE will set up a Dh1bn ($272 million) private equity fund for lending to SMEs based in the country and operating in strategic sectors. The money will be released from the first quarter of this year and over the next five years, said Minister of State for Entrepreneurship and SMEs, Ahmad Al Falasi.

MBRIF, an initiative set up by the UAE Ministry of Finance, unveiled the Guarantee Scheme in 2016 to finance entrepreneurs. It provides a government guarantee as a security to commercial banks and financial institutions to encourage the issuance of loans.

"With this new collaboration, we jointly seek to help local, regional and global businesses by giving them greater access to resources, funding and mentorship in order to succeed in the UAE through our unique platform," said MBRIF head Shaker Zainal.

For the full article click here

The UAE is set to attract more foreign direct investment and multinational corporations when it rolls out one of the lowest corporate tax rates in the world in June 2023.

"Corporate tax, whenever it comes to a country, really brings a lot of transparency, it brings a trust," Anurag Chaturvedi, chief executive of tax accounting firm Chartered House, an Andersen Global collaborating firm, said.

It may appear counterintuitive that levying a tax on corporate profits would spur investment or attract multinationals. But if a country adopts a competitive tax regime, then it stands to become an attractive destination for corporates looking for "open and agile" jurisdictions, Mr Chaturvedi said.

This phenomenon is most visible in Ireland, which currently has one of the lowest corporate tax rates in the world at 12.5 per cent. As a result, Dublin has become a tech hub, attracting Amazon, Facebook, Google, Linkedin and TikTok to set up European headquarters there.

With the UAE adopting a competitive rate of 9 per cent, "now, those people will have significant opportunities to make UAE their headquarters", Mr Chaturvedi said, adding that the country is a well-placed gateway to the rest of the Arabian Gulf, as well as Africa and Asia.

In the short-term he predicted the corporate tax will cause an uptick in inflation, increasing the cost of living for consumers.

"This is a very, very decent and unique model proposition that the UAE has put together," Mr Chaturvedi said. "In [the] short term, we will all be having teething issues in terms of adopting this regulation. But long run, it is very efficient for economic outlook."

For the full article click here

Dubai's Department of Finance (DOF) unveiled an initiative on Tuesday to review government fees and gradually reduce them to improve the ease of doing business in the emirate.

The Public Revenue Structuring Programme by the DOF will include a study of fees collected by all government entities, the Dubai Media Office said in a statement.

The move was announced after the UAE introduced a 9 per cent federal corporate tax on the profit of businesses from the financial year starting on or after June 1, 2023.

While the federal tax is among the lowest in the region, "the new reality requires us to study and review the government fees system, in order to help businesses and entrepreneurial projects", said Abdulrahman Al Saleh, director general of DOF.

"The fees imposed by the government of Dubai on commercial activities are affordable in the absence of corporate tax. Following the introduction of this tax, however, we will be keen, under the supervision of the General Secretariat of The Executive Council, to study those fees and look into the possibility of gradually reducing them in line with emergent trends."

The UAE's economy is expected to grow 4.6 per cent this year, up from an estimated 1.9 per cent in 2021, according to Emirates NBD.

The DOF's initiative will help the government to achieve revenue sustainability while supporting businesses. It reiterated that current corporate tax incentives made available to free zone companies in Dubai will continue.

The government is also working to develop "supportive and attractive policies" to attract foreign investments to the emirate, the DOF said.

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On Monday, the UAE announced the introduction of a federal corporate tax on business profits effective from 1st June, 2023. This will be a 9% tax rate and is the lowest in the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council.

PRO Partner Group sheds light on what this means for businesses in the UAE and talks to @khaleejtimes. Read the full article for more in-depth look at the new tax regime: For the full article click here

Strong foreign direct investment flows into Dubai are likely to continue throughout 2022 as it continues to manage the Covid-19 pandemic well and on the back of business reforms in the Gulf city.

Dubai, the financial hub of the United Arab Emirates, raked in AED15.9 billion ($4.3bn) in foreign direct investment across 378 projects in the first nine months of 2021, making it the third most popular destination for FDI globally.

“Although competition for global FDI will intensify, reforms implemented over the past year in Dubai and across the UAE stand the economy in good stead. FDI inflows to Dubai are likely set for another strong year,” Scott Livermore, ICAEW economic advisor and chief economist and managing director, Oxford Economics Middle East, said.

Meanwhile, analyst and director of research at Derasat, Omar Al-Ubaydli pointed to the emirate’s steady handling of the pandemic, which was recognised internationally as one of the best.

“A central component of this successful strategy is the competent management of the pandemic, which has made many elite expatriates seriously consider the UAE as a permanent domicile,” Al-Ubaydli said.

FDI reinvestment projects accounted for 11 percent of the total FDI projects in the emirate. FDI job creation witnessed a huge growth of 36 percent during the first nine months of 2021 compared to the same period last year, as 16,430 new jobs were created compared to 12,090 jobs in the same period prior to last year. As much as 58 percent of the inbound FDI is in strategic sectors and 52 percent is in greenfield projects, or projects developed on a vacant site, according to data released by the Dubai Investment Development Agency.

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Ahead of the changes that are set to shake up the private sector work landscape in the UAE from February 2, recruiters say the new laws will give more security and stability to jobseekers in the Emirates.

The amended labour laws, which were first outlined by the government in November 2021, provide options that were not available before and strengthen employees' rights. One of the major changes under the new rules is that employees will be able to live in the country for up to six months after leaving a job.

Louise Vine, managing director at Inspire Selection recruitment agency in Dubai, said she is encouraged by the new law. “When someone loses their job, they have six months to find a new one instead of only 30 days, so it offers more stability for their family,” she said.

“It also gives them time to find a job that they're really happy with, at the right level and the right salary and so on.”

In her years as a recruiter, Ms Vine said she has come across people who have “accepted jobs out of desperation”, only to have a visa, which buys them time to find their ideal job. She said this short-term employment is financially detrimental to the employer and creates an unstable work environment.

Emirati lawyer Awatif Mohammed said the new law enhances the rights of both employers and employees. “Employees will not fear losing jobs on the spot with the mandatory 14-day notice period during probation that employers must abide to,” he said.

“The market will further attract talents and skills from across the world, especially after allowing different styles of work, a move that came in response to the challenges forced by Covid-19 but proved necessary to the progress the country is witnessing.”

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The Ministry of Finance has announced that the UAE will introduce a federal corporate tax on business profits that will be effective for financial years starting on or after 1st June 2023. Businesses will become subject to UAE corporate tax from the beginning of their first financial year that starts on or after 1st June 2023.

With a standard statutory tax rate of 9 percent and a 0 percent tax rate for taxable profits up to AED375,000 to support small businesses and startups.

No corporate tax will apply on personal income from employment, real estate and other investments, or on any other income earned by individuals that does not arise from a business or other form of commercial activity licensed or otherwise permitted to be undertaken in the UAE.

The UAE will not impose withholding taxes on domestic and cross border payments, or subject foreign investors who do not carry on business in the UAE to corporate tax.

As an international headquarter location, a UAE business will be exempt from paying tax on capital gains and dividends received from its qualifying shareholdings, and foreign taxes will be allowed to be credited against UAE corporate tax payable.

Recognising the contribution of free zones to the UAE’s economy and competitiveness, the UAE corporate tax regime will continue to honour the corporate tax incentives currently being offered to Freezone businesses that comply with all regulatory requirements and that do not conduct business with mainland UAE.

For the full article click here