Tourists Can Now Claim UAE VAT Refunds in One Business Day Through the FTA's New AI Platform

On 20 October 2026 the Federal Tax Authority launched a new, integrated digital platform powered by artificial intelligence for value added tax refunds to tourists, describing it as the first of its kind worldwide. The platform was developed with Planet, the authorised operator of the VAT Refund Scheme for Tourists, and it is operational at Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi, Dubai International Airport and Sharjah International Airport. The launch forms part of the FTA's strategy to expand the use of AI, improve its operational systems and advance its initiatives under the Digital Zero Bureaucracy Programme, the national drive to remove government red tape. Launch events at Zayed International Airport and Dubai International Airport were attended by senior officials including the FTA's Director General, Abdulaziz Mohammed Al Mulla, and the Director General of Dubai's General Directorate of Identity and Foreigners Affairs. For visitors, the practical change is simple: the refund journey is now fully digital and paperless, from registration to payment, with no paper forms and no conventional counter queue for straightforward claims.

The FTA sets out the journey in three steps. Step one: the tourist downloads the Planet smart mobile application and registers by scanning their face and saving images of their passport and bank card in the application. Step two: on arriving at the departure airport, the tourist scans the dynamic QR code displayed on screens at refund service points throughout the airport, and the refund procedures begin immediately through the application. AI then routes each tourist according to their transactions. Where no purchase requires inspection, the refund is finalised directly through the application, disbursed through the refund method selected in the app, and there is no third step. Step three applies only where verification is required: the tourist is notified through the app and directed to Planet's smart gates, where facial recognition recognises identity and transaction details automatically and directs the tourist to a designated self-service kiosk. Invoice and travel information are matched automatically, which the FTA says improves accuracy and cuts manual intervention.

The headline number is the refund time. As of October 2026, the FTA says, the total time for tourists to receive VAT refunds has fallen to one business day, compared with approximately nine days previously, and the FTA calls the platform the world's fastest tax refund experience for tourists. The platform also offers a multilingual experience, with AI providing the appropriate language based on the tourist's nationality, and it uses AI to detect unusual patterns during verification. Tourist satisfaction reached 93% in the first nine months of 2026, against 92% in the same period of 2025. Looking ahead, the FTA expects about four million transactions over the year from November 2026 to October 2027, worth approximately AED 692 million. Those are the FTA's own figures and projections, reported as the FTA stated them.

For retailers, the launch is a reminder that the scheme runs on connection, not on signage. The FTA reports about 16,700 retail stores electronically connected to the scheme, with 769 outlets joining in the first nine months of 2026 after 1,326 joined throughout 2025, and 98 self-service kiosks across shopping centres, hotels and departure points accounting for 22.4% of all scheme transactions. A store that is not electronically connected cannot issue the electronic refund tags the scheme runs on, so a tourist's refund journey starts at the till, not at the airport. For visitors, the lesson is to register on the Planet application before departure day where possible, and look for the QR codes at the airport's refund points rather than joining a conventional queue. And for anyone who has used the scheme before, the change to unlearn is the waiting: a refund that took about nine days is now presented as a one-business-day matter.

Visitors departing from Dubai, Abu Dhabi or Sharjah airports should download the Planet application and complete registration before travelling to the airport, so the airport steps are only the QR scan and, if required, the smart gate. Retailers in tourist shopping areas should confirm their store is electronically connected and that staff can explain the tag process, since the airport platform cannot fix a purchase that was never tagged. Finally, treat the FTA's one-business-day figure as the current service standard, and check the FTA's guidance before promising it for any individual case, since inspection cases follow the longer smart-gate route.