- The right time to create business-friendly atmosphere for Korean companies after the state visit of the Korean President to the UAE in January.

- As Saudi Arabia takes 62% of GCC national project contracts in the first half of 2022, it is expected that Saudi Arabia will lead the regional market.

- Continuous monitoring and preparation for local legal issues such as the UAE federal corporate tax, which is scheduled to be implemented in June this year, is necessary to be well-informed.

Korea-Arab Society (KAS) co-hosted the ‘Forum on Investment Environment and Opportunities in the UAE and Saudi Arabia' at the Trade Tower on 21 March 2023 with the Korea International Trade Association (KITA), Yoon & Yang LLC, Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in Korea, and the Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Korea. Around 250 people attended the forum, including business people, entrepreneurs and speakers, including H.E. Abdullah Saif AL-Nuaimi, Ambassador of the UAE to Korea and H.E. Sami M. Alsadhan, Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to Korea. Presentations were delivered by experts on the promising projects in Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

In the opening remarks, Executive Vice Chairman of KITA, H.E. Jeong Marn-ki said, "since Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's visit to Korea last November and our President's visit to the UAE, Korean companies' interest in Saudi Arabia's NEOM project and cooperation in the UAE's new energy industry, such as smart cities and hydrogen, is increasing." “In order to follow-up the economic diplomacy achievements of the summit meeting in January, KITA launched the 'Korea-UAE Private Economic Cooperation Committee' and held 'Korea-UAE Business Roundtable' last week in Abu Dhabi to expand business opportunities for Korean companies.” he said. In addition, he mentioned, “KITA will continue to make efforts to secure practical business opportunities by providing timely information and holding specialized seminars and forums for businessmen's mutual interviews (match-making).”

H.E. Ma Young-sam, Secretary-General of Korea-Arab Society (KAS), said in his welcoming remarks, “this forum, which is being held at a time when new movements among the major powers surrounding the Middle East are in full swing and changes in regional dynamics are coming, is very timely. I hope that through this forum, Korean and Arab companies will actively advance into the each other's market and provide an opportunity to participate in key projects, further expanding economic cooperation between the two regions.”

H.E. Abdullah Saif AL-Nuaimi, Ambassador of the UAE to Korea, said in his congratulatory remarks, “the forum provides detailed and useful information on investment environment and business projects in UAE. The forum is hosted at a meaningful time as it followed the state visit to UAE by President Yoon Suk-yeol. I believe that the business-friendly environment in UAE together with the agreements signed during President Yoon's visit and UAE's announcement of the new investments in the key economic sectors in the Republic of Korea, will make a new momentum for the enhancing the strategic collaborations and partnerships between UAE and Republic of Korea.“

H.E. Sami M. Alsadhan, Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to Korea said, “I am grateful for co-hosting this forum which will provide practical knowledge on Investment Environment and business opportunities in the Kingdom. Saudi Arabia and Korea have a strong and long-standing relationship, especially in the infrastructure and construction sector, and this special relationship is now entering a new phase with the large-scale smart city development project NEOM. Saudi Arabia sees Korea as an indispensable partner and ally and is seeking greater cooperation with Korea. We look forward to partnerships between our two countries in the fields of finance, construction, infrastructure development, information technology and clean energy.”

Mr. Lee Jun-sang, Managing Partner of Yoon & Yang LLC, said, “As the timing of the final investment decision (FID) of GCC countries such as Saudi Arabia coincides with the willingness of Korean companies to expand their overseas business, expectations for Korean companies to implement projects in the Middle East this year are growing. As the governments of the UAE and Saudi Arabia have promised to invest in Korean companies in high-tech fields such as energy, nuclear power, hydrogen, solar power, and defense with the sovereign wealth funds, it will pave the way for strengthening cooperation with the Middle East.”

Regarding the investment environment and promising projects in Saudi Arabia, one of the speaker lawyer Ms. Kim Yonsoo of Yoon & Yang LLC said, “as of the first half of 2022, among the projects to be carried out in the GCC countries, projects ordered by Saudi Arabia accounted for 62% of the total project contract volume. Since nearly half of the projects that are currently under evaluation or scheduled for bidding evaluation are from Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia will continue to lead the construction project market in the region.”

Mr. Jad Younes, a lawyer at Mohammed Al Jarbou Law Firm in Saudi Arabia said “in order to invest, both permission from the Ministry of Investment and business registration from the Ministry of Commerce must be completed in order to obtain the status as a corporation.”

In a keynote speech at the UAE session, H.E. Choi Jong-moon, advisor of Yoon & Yang LLC and former Vice Foreign Minister said, “since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1980, Korea and the UAE have been developing bilateral relations in various fields such as energy, infrastructure, science and technology, and the defense industry, as well as on the international stage such as the UN. In particular, the UAE announced 'Project of the 50', which looks forward to the next 50 years, in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the founding of the country in 2021, presenting a roadmap for transition to the 4th industrial economy, such as IT and clean energy. With this as an opportunity, it is expected that the bilateral relationship will develop further.”

Regarding the UAE investment environment and promising projects, Ms. Teresa Ro, Head of the Seoul Office of the Abu Dhabi Investment Agency, said, "since my visit to the UAE in January, I have high expectations for cooperation with Korean companies in Abu Dhabi. We hope that Korean companies will actively participate in major events such as the Annual Investment Meeting (AIM) and GITEX in Dubai to identify local market trends and prepare opportunities to discover business partners.”

Ms. Kim Yonsoo, lawyer of Yoon & Yang LLC also mentioned “currently the UAE mainland and free economic zones are exempted from corporate tax, but it is expected that from this June, corporate tax will be imposed at the federal level so it is necessary to continuously monitor and prepare for this.”

Mr. Zouhdi Yakan, lawyer of the Law House Advocates Law Firm in the UAE stressed, “investors who would like to establish a Free Zone Company using tax incentives should carefully consider to choose the most advantageous free zone to receive the most incentives.”