What is In-Country Value (ICV) in the UAE?

What is ICV?

In-Country Value (ICV) is the UAE's mandatory framework requiring companies that supply goods or services to government and semi-government entities to certify that a defined percentage of their economic activity creates measurable value inside the UAE. That value is measured across six components — local employment, local procurement, capital investment, R&D, and training.

With AED 473 billion redirected into the UAE economy since the programme launched in 2018, ICV has become one of the most significant industrial policy tools in the Gulf region. ADNOC alone has committed AED 220 billion to channel through the ICV programme between 2026 and 2030.

Origin and Governance

ADNOC launched the ICV programme in 2018 as a procurement-led strategy to localise its oil and gas supply chain. In 2021 the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology (MoIAT) nationalised the certification standard, expanding its scope across all major government and semi-government procurement.

The programme is aligned with UAE Vision 2031, the Make it in the Emirates initiative, and Operation 300bn — the national strategy to grow manufacturing's contribution to GDP. Today 31 or more entities participate across every major sector of the UAE economy.

Which Entities Require ICV Certification?

Any company supplying goods or services to a participating entity must hold a valid ICV certificate issued by a MoIAT-authorised certifying body. The major participating entities include:

• ADNOC — committed AED 220 billion through the ICV programme between 2026 and 2030
• Tawazun Council — requires offset obligations of 60 percent or more for defence contracts above AED 10 million
• EDGE Group — embeds ICV as a mandatory criterion across all procurement
• DEWA — AED 36.5 billion in annual procurement
• Aldar Properties — AED 30 billion local economy commitment in 2025

Companies without a valid ICV certificate receive a default score of zero in all tender evaluations — functionally disqualifying them from major government contracts regardless of price or quality.

The Six Components of an ICV Score

The ICV score is expressed as a percentage. A score of 70 means 70 percent of the company's measurable economic activity during the audited financial year was generated inside the UAE.

How ICV Affects Tender Evaluation

ICV is a commercially decisive evaluation criterion, not a box-ticking requirement. The score typically represents 15 to 30 percent of the total technical evaluation score. A company with a 75 percent ICV score in a tender with a 20 percent evaluation weight is scored as if its bid price were 15 percent lower than its headline number.

Many tenders set a minimum ICV threshold and reject bids below it at the screening stage without any technical evaluation. If a higher-ICV bidder is within 5 to 10 percent of the lowest financial bid, they may be granted right of first refusal — the opportunity to match the lowest price and win the contract.

The Cascade Effect Through the Supply Chain

The ICV programme cascades through every layer of the supply chain. When a prime contractor purchases from a UAE-certified supplier, they receive ICV credit for that spend weighted by the supplier's own ICV score.

A UAE manufacturer with a 100 percent ICV score contributes the full spend value to the prime's ICV calculation. A certified service provider with a 70 percent score contributes 70 percent of the spend value. An uncertified supplier contributes nothing. This means sub-contractor selection is simultaneously a compliance decision — a supplier with a 90 percent ICV score is worth significantly more to a prime's compliance calculation than an equivalent supplier with a 30 percent score, even if the product is identical.

How to Get an ICV Certificate

ICV certificates are issued by MoIAT-authorised certifying bodies — the Big Four accounting firms and select mid-tier audit firms. The process involves submitting standalone audited financial statements, payroll records, supplier invoices, and asset registers.

Since January 2025, standalone audited financial statements are required — group accounts are no longer accepted. The typical cost is between AED 150,000 and AED 400,000 per certification engagement. Certificates are valid for 14 months and must be renewed annually.

Global Equivalents of ICV

In-Country Value is one instance of a global local content policy framework that virtually every major defence and energy-spending nation operates.

• Saudi Arabia — IKVA and IKTVA under GAMI and Saudi Aramco, targeting 75 percent local content by 2030
• India — 30 percent offset on defence contracts above approximately USD 240 million
• South Korea — 30 to 50 percent offset on major acquisitions under DOPA
• Australia — Australian Industry Capability plans scored as part of bid evaluation
• European Union — pan-European defence marketplace launching Q4 2026

Frequently Asked Questions