Turkey vs UAE taxes

Turkey generally taxes resident individuals on worldwide income at 15% to 40%. For 2026 employment income, the bands run from 15% up to TRY 190,000 through 40% above TRY 5,300,000. There is no special expatriate PIT rate for ordinary employees. Companies usually pay 25%, with 30% for financial-sector companies, plus a 10% domestic minimum tax and a 15% Pillar Two QDMTT for in-scope groups. Dividend withholding is commonly 15%. VAT is 20%. There is no national net wealth tax, but annual property tax and a high-value residence tax apply. Inheritance and gift tax is 1% to 30%. General employee social security is 14% and employer 20.75%.

The UAE has 0% personal income tax, 0% personal CGT, 0% wealth tax, 0% inheritance tax, 0% to 9% federal corporate tax, and 5% VAT. That is the lower-tax Gulf stack.

The constraint is Turkey's 15% to 40% PIT and 25% CIT versus the UAE's 0% PIT, not a lira inflation adjustment. Inflation is not a tax rate and should not be used as if it were a 0% regime. Turkey's 2026 brackets are stated in lira; they still produce a 40% top marginal rate. Property gains can be inflation-indexed, which can change the taxable amount on a house sale, and some share or business gains are taxed even though there is no general CGT. From 2026, qualifying new residents who had no Turkish domicile or tax liability in the prior three calendar years can receive a 20-year exemption for qualifying foreign income. That exemption is real, and it is not the same as UAE 0% PIT on salary earned in the country.

Choose the UAE if 0% PIT and 9% CIT are the reason to move and you can hold a visa. Choose Turkey if the market, family or 20-year foreign-income exemption is the reason to be there, and model 20% VAT, payroll and 1% to 30% inheritance tax as part of the cost. A UAE company does not turn off Turkish tax for a person who remains a Turkish tax resident.