Dubai: WTS Dhruva Consultants, Arabian Gulf region’s leading tax consultants, has added another feather to its cap after becoming the recipient of the ‘Best Newcomer’ award in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) by the International Tax Review (ITR).
The ITR European Tax Awards, an annual event since 2005 in London, are given to recognize and celebrate remarkable achievements and developments by international tax professionals from the EMEA region over a 12-month period.
Headquartered in Dubai, WTS Dhurva Consultants is a boutique tax advisory firm with a sizeable presence in the UAE, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. It launched operations in 2017 to cater to the need for Value-Added Tax (VAT) consulting in Gulf Countries. The UAE and Saudi Arabia implemented VAT in January 2018.
Dinesh Kanabar, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of WTS Dhruva, expressed his gratitude over winning the award and said, “It is an honor and a privilege for us to receive this award by ITR for the EMEA region. This will only strengthen our resolve to provide high-quality professional services to our clients in the UAE and other Gulf countries.”
WTS Dhurva Consultants was shortlisted in ITR’s three categories – ‘Middle East Tax Firm of the Year’, ‘Middle East Transfer Pricing Firm of the Year’ and the ‘Best Newcomer in EMEA’.
Kanabar further added, “It is yet another testament to our intellectual vigour and calibre to be shortlisted by ITR in three categories, along with the world’s top-ranking tax firms such as Deloitte, KPMG, PwC, DLA Piper, Baker McKenzie and others.”
Nimish Goel, Partner at WTS Dhurva Consultants, said: “The tier-one ranking by ITR is a great recognition for our company and the team. We will strive to ensure consistent delivery of innovative solutions to help our clients navigate through the rapidly shifting and ever-evolving tax landscape.”
WTS Dhruva Consultants has been awarded a series of VAT mandates from major UAE businesses across disparate sectors like retail, real estate, hospitality, financial services and energy. The firm also undertaken significant mandates for companies in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.
Shortlisted firms and their matters were assessed on three critical determinants – transactional value, size & complexity, and the overall innovation to the tax practice. However, due to COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s winners of the European Tax Awards were announced and published online as opposed to a physical ceremony.
ITR’s tier ratings are based on the editorial team’s research, as well as inputs from market feedback and tax professionals across the world. The research done by ITR provides a holistic perspective into the tax advice meted out to firms in several jurisdictions around the world. Tier one ratings validate those firms to be the best for tax advice in a specific jurisdiction.
Methodology
Between November 2019 and December 2019, law firms, tax advisers, accountants and other tax service providers from across Europe, the Middle East and Africa submitted three examples of their best work for consideration for the national tax and transfer pricing awards.
The awards for European Tax Firm of the Year, European Transfer Pricing Firm of the Year, US Tax Firm of the Year in Europe and Best Newcomer (international tax practices of <5 years) were judged from these submissions.