Polish entrepreneurs have been decamping to Dubai in growing numbers. The reasons are understandable – a freelancer earning six hundred thousand złoty annually in Poland will pay a hundred and sixty thousand złoty in tax under the progressive system, a hundred and one thousand on the flat tax, or, depending on the type of activity, up to a hundred thousand under the lump-sum regime. The owner of a thriving company, taking profit as dividends, faces an effective rate of thirty-four-point-three-nine per cent (nineteen per cent corporate tax plus nineteen per cent dividend tax) – of every hundred złoty in gross profit, only sixty-five-point-six-one makes it into the pocket. Meanwhile, in Dubai, the nominal rate is zero. Not low. Not preferential. Simply zero.
But between the dream of lower taxes and a legal, secure change of residency lies a long road full of legal traps that can cost more than the potential savings.
What You Must Know About Dubai Tax Residency
For Polish citizens, the path to legal tax residency in the Emirates is considerably more treacherous than it might appear. Not because Dubai is unwelcoming – quite the opposite. The U.A.E. has formalized and modernized its residency criteria, making them clearer and more accessible than ever. The problem lies elsewhere:
- in the ossified language of the 1993 treaty between Poland and the Emirates, which requires U.A.E. citizenship to recognize residency
- in the aggressive posture of Polish tax authorities toward those suspected of sham residency changes
- in exit taxes that can reach six or seven figures
- in the chasm between what sounds straightforward in theory and what can be defended in practice.
It’s not that changing tax residency is impossible. It’s that this isn’t a weekend project but a marathon requiring stamina, resources, and authentic commitment to actually relocating one’s life, not just one’s mailing address.
Is Dubai Right for You?
For some, it’s an excellent choice. For others – a trap.
For someone with genuine plans to build an international business, who is prepared to actually move the center of his life to the Persian Gulf region, Dubai can be an optimal solution yielding savings measured in hundreds of thousands of złoty annually.
For someone looking for a magic wand – a residency certificate that automatically solves all tax problems without actually changing where one lives and conducts business – this is a path leading almost certainly to serious trouble with the Polish tax authorities.
Our approach examines the reality behind the promise – the genuine opportunities that Dubai offers, certainly, but also the legal pitfalls, documentation requirements, retrospective risks, and the uncomfortable truth that relocating tax residency isn’t a weekend project but a multi-year process requiring not just formalities but an actual change in where one lives and conducts business.