Income from foreign clients and platforms: Egyptian tax and zero rate
Serving clients or platforms abroad from Egypt is taxable in Egypt; exported services are zero-rated for VAT given a contract, an invoice and a bank transfer.
Executive summary
- A self-employed person working from Egypt for clients or platforms abroad, where work is the main element, earns non-commercial professional income taxable in Egypt, because it arises from an activity carried on there (article 32 of Income Tax Law No. 91 of 2005).
- For VAT, services that are exported are zero-rated on the conditions set by the regulations (article 3 of Law No. 67 of 2016), an exported service being one supplied from inside Egypt to a recipient abroad, except services relating to real property in Egypt or requiring both supplier and recipient to be present in Egypt (Egyptian Tax Authority Executive Instructions No. 45 of 2025).
- The conditions for the zero rate are documentary: a contract or other proof of the dealing, an invoice giving the details of the service and the recipient's name and address, and evidence of payment by bank transfer from abroad to a bank supervised by the Central Bank of Egypt (article 5 of the executive regulations).
- An exporter must register for VAT whatever the size of its dealings, so the EGP 500,000 threshold does not apply, and the tax on the inputs to its exported services is refunded on conditions.
Income tax: an activity carried on in Egypt
Tax is charged on "the net income from the liberal and other non-commercial professions practised by the taxpayer independently, in which work is the main element, where it arises from practising the profession or activity in Egypt", and on such income earned abroad "where Egypt is the centre of the taxpayer's professional activity" (article 32, as replaced by Law No. 53 of 2014). A designer, programmer, translator or content creator working from Egypt is therefore taxable in Egypt on what they are paid from abroad, whatever the currency or platform, unless the income is exempt, as is income from writing and translating religious, scientific, cultural and literary books and articles, other than from selling them for production in visual or audio form (article 36(2)).
They must apply to register for income tax within thirty days of starting the activity (article 25 of Unified Tax Procedures Law No. 206 of 2020). The Egyptian Tax Authority's guide for content creators (March 2022) requires registration "as soon as" a commercial or professional activity starts, "whether carried on conventionally or electronically", and treats advertising revenue transferred from non-resident platforms as income from practising the profession. They are taxed on net income after the costs of practising the profession, under the individuals' scale set out in Egypt's personal income tax brackets. This is the standard regime. Businesses registered under the simplified tax regime pay different, reduced rates — see the rates and conditions under the simplified tax regime.
VAT: the zero rate for an exported service
Article 3 of VAT Law No. 67 of 2016 provides that "the tax rate shall be (zero) on goods and services that are exported, on the conditions and terms set by the executive regulations". Law No. 149 of 2026 did not touch that paragraph; it replaced only the first paragraph of the article.
The executive regulations define an exported service as "a service supplied by a person inside the country to its recipient abroad, whether supplied by a person resident in Egypt or having a permanent establishment there, or by a non-resident supplying it from inside Egypt" (article 1). For the zero rate they require proof of the dealing between the supplier in Egypt and the recipient abroad, by a service contract or any other means suited to the service, together with two documents (article 5, second part):
| Document | What it must show |
|---|---|
| A copy of the tax invoice or statement | Details of the service, in particular its type and value, and the name and address of both supplier and recipient |
| Evidence of payment | That the service was paid for by bank transfer from abroad to a bank supervised by the Central Bank of Egypt, under its rules; where a bank transfer is shown to have been impossible, the payment or settlement methods in article 35 of the regulations are accepted |
How the money arrives is part of the condition. An invoice alone does not make a service exported; there must also be evidence that its value reached an account at a bank in Egypt by transfer from abroad. Where a bank transfer is shown to have been impossible, the alternatives listed in article 35 of the regulations include other electronic payment methods in foreign currency from the recipient abroad or its agent, and a bank deposit of the transaction value in foreign currency under the Central Bank's procedures for countries to which transfers cannot be made. Anyone paid through a platform or an electronic wallet should keep records linking each amount that reaches their bank in Egypt to the service and the client it pays for.
A client abroad is not enough on its own. The Tax Authority's Executive Instructions No. 45 of 2025, issued with the Minister of Finance's approval, zero-rate services supplied remotely to a customer not present in Egypt, but exclude services relating to real property in Egypt and services that require the physical presence of both the supplier and the recipient in Egypt. The guide attached to them treats a service received and used by the foreign customer's branch in Egypt as a local service taxed at its statutory rate, even though it is paid for from abroad. To treat a service as exported, the guide asks for a written contract, an electronic invoice, and evidence of payment by bank transfers or a bank statement.
Registration and recovering input tax
The general VAT registration threshold is EGP 500,000 of sales, but it does not apply to an exporter. Article 16 of the Law requires "every importer of a taxable good or service for trading purposes, exporter or distribution agent to register with the Authority whatever the size of its dealings", and article 18 of the regulations repeats the rule for an exporter of a taxable good or service. The Tax Authority's guide for content creators applies it to services supplied to non-resident platforms: they are exported services, zero-rated, and registration for VAT is required from the start of the activity. The application is due within thirty days of starting the activity or of becoming subject to the tax (article 25 of Law No. 206 of 2020), and the registration cases are set out in VAT registration in Egypt.
Because an exported service is zero-rated, the registered person is refunded the tax paid or borne on its inputs within forty-five days of an application supported by documents, up to the credit balance, provided the export proceeds are paid into a bank supervised by the Central Bank, or settled by another payment or settlement method set by the regulations, and the value of the exports is not less than the value of their inputs (article 30 of the Law, as replaced by Law No. 3 of 2022). For exported services, article 35 of the regulations, as replaced by Minister of Finance Decree No. 24 of 2023, requires proof of the dealing, the invoice, evidence of payment by the recipient abroad by bank transfer and the original input invoices, and the Authority verifies that the tax on them was paid over unless that payment is shown on its electronic system. In every case the documents must include a certificate signed by an accountant entered in the register of accountants and auditors confirming the entitlement, unless payment of the tax is shown on the Authority's electronic system (article 30). This article does not cover sales to consumers through platforms or the electronic receipt.
What this requires of someone serving clients abroad
- Apply to register for income tax within thirty days of starting the activity, keep books and the documents for every cost.
- Apply to register for VAT within the same period: an exporter registers whatever the size of its dealings.
- Before applying the zero rate, check that the service does not relate to real property in Egypt, does not require both parties to be present in Egypt and is not received by the client's branch in Egypt.
- Put a written contract in place with each foreign client setting out the nature of the service, the parties, the payment terms and the duration, as the Tax Authority's guide asks.
- Issue each client an electronic invoice with the client's name and address and the type and value of the service, as explained in E-invoicing in Egypt.
- Receive payment by bank transfer from abroad into a bank in Egypt, and keep the evidence of each transfer and the bank statement showing it.
- Track the return deadlines in the Egypt tax and social insurance compliance calendar.
The firm's Tax Department registers those working for clients abroad, prepares the zero-rate documents and handles claims for the refund of input tax.
Mahmoud Nassef, Founder Partner
Chartered Accountant, Ministry of Finance, Egypt
Member, Egyptian Society of Accountants & Auditors
Member, Egyptian Tax Society
Member, Egyptian Society for Public Finance and Taxation
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Disclaimer: This bulletin is prepared for general information on the legislation in force at the date of its publication. It does not constitute a professional opinion or tax or legal advice on any particular matter, and it should not be relied upon in place of advice based on an examination of the circumstances of each case. Nassef & Partners International accepts no responsibility for any action taken, or refrained from, in reliance on its contents. The positions stated remain subject to subsequent legislation and decisions.