Inland freight water transport

Under Ministerial Decision No. 229 of 2025, inland freight water transport is treated as a Qualifying Activity under the 'Shipping' or 'Logistics' umbrella provided it is not conducted as a retail service to end-consumers. Forensic scrutiny focuses on the 'Place of Use' of the service; if the transport originates and terminates in the UAE Mainland for a non-QFZP, it may be recharacterized as Excluded Income if it exceeds the de minimis limit.

Audit Red Flag

Misclassification of 'Inland' transport as 'International Shipping' to bypass the 5% de minimis threshold when dealing with mainland non-Free Zone customers.

Which UAE zones permit this activity?

Scout checks the current permission status for this activity across every UAE zone against your specific structure.