The pace of life always seems to move at a faster pace in the UAE, and 2026 promises to bring many changes to the way we live.
Some will begin on the first day of the new year. Customers and retailers will be saying goodbye to a whole range of plastic packaging thanks to a new federal law designed to promote a more environmentally friendly way of life.
It means a ban from January 1 of single use plastic tableware, plates and food containers. Your takeaway cup of coffee or tea will no longer come with a plastic lid. Plastic chopsticks as well as knives, forks and spoons are included, as are containers made of styrofoam.
This move is an extension of an existing law introduced in 2022 by the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment which stopped the use of single use plastic bags.
The same day will see a new law change how much we pay for sweetened drinks. The Ministry of Finance is introducing a tiered tax based on the amount of sugar in these products.
The old system saw a flat tax of 50 per cent introduced in 2019. From January 1 tax will be based on the amount of sugar or artificial sweetener per litre. Drinks with five grams of sugar − two teaspoons − but less than eight grams will be taxed at 79 fils for a litre while those with eight grams or more will cost Dh1.09 ($0.30).
It is as much to promote good health as to raise revenue and is part of a wider move by the GCC to cut down on the consumption of sugar
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