Software publishing

Software publishing is categorized under the 'Ownership, management and operation of Intellectual Property' framework. Under Ministerial Decision No. 229 of 2025, income from copyrighted software is Qualifying Income only if it meets the Nexus Approach. Forensic auditors will verify the 'Qualifying Expenditure' vs 'Overall Expenditure' to ensure the 0% rate is only applied to the proportion of income derived from local R&D activities.

Audit Red Flag

Misclassifying 'Custom Software Development' service fees as 'Software Publishing' royalty income to bypass the 5% de minimis rule on non-qualifying services.

Which UAE zones permit this activity?

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