The Gulf Touch · Tax & reporting
US estate tax on American shares held from the UAE
Published 9 August 2026 as “The American estate tax on shares you hold from here”, in the monthly issue for July 2026. Figures, rates and references to “this week” are as of that date.
If you die owning American shares, the United States can tax them before your heirs receive anything. This is US estate tax, and it applies to people who were never American citizens and never lived in America.
The rule follows the asset, not the person. The IRS counts US real estate and “U.S. marketable securities” as property situated in the United States. Where you live, where you bank and which broker you used do not change that.
What makes it worth knowing is where the line sits. The estate of a US citizen or resident who dies in 2026 only has to file above $15,000,000. The estate of someone who was neither a US citizen nor a US resident has to file above $60,000 of US assets. Same tax, two thresholds, 250 times apart.
Nationality can matter here. The US has estate and gift tax treaties with 15 countries, among them the UK, Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Australia, Canada, Japan and South Africa. The UAE is not on that list; your passport may be.
None of this is a reason to hold or avoid anything. It is a question about what you already own, and the answer turns on your nationality and how the holdings are structured — a matter for a qualified cross-border adviser rather than a newsletter.
General education for readers in the UAE — never personalised advice.