The UAE has launched the second phase of the VAT Study Project with a view to implementing Value Added Tax (VAT) in a year's time, a report said.

The VAT could be supervised by a new federal authority, a government official was quoted as saying by Gulf News.

"We are currently carrying out various studies on the implementation of VAT in a year's time," Abdul Rahman Al Saleh, executive director for Corporate Affairs at Dubai Customs said in the report.

The second phase study will include the completion of the legal aspects and the groundwork of its infrastructure, especially the collection of taxes, a Dubai Customs statement said.

The government is weighing various VAT collection options. A new federal authority could be formed to oversee the VAT collection process or the customs could collect at entry, Al Saleh said.

"We will go with the international best practice that are employed in some of the 140 countries where VAT has been implemented," he added.