ITR Middle East Tax Awards 2025: shortlist announced

International Tax Review is part of Legal Benchmarking Limited, 1-2 Paris Garden, London, SE1 8ND

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2026

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement


ITR Middle East Tax Awards 2025: shortlist announced

ITR-Middle-East-Awards-2025-logo

ITR is delighted to reveal the first shortlisted nominees for the Middle East Tax Awards

The ITR Middle East Awards will make a keenly anticipated market debut in 2025. We are thrilled to be showcasing the region's dynamic tax accomplishments with highlight market coverage for Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

This year’s inaugural ceremony will be held jointly with our sister publication IFLR at the IFLR Middle East Awards, celebrating practice leaders in indirect tax, disputes, transfer pricing and direct tax work. Regional recognition will commend best newcomers, leaders in global executive mobility, tax compliance, and policy work. We will also be inducting our first honouree into ITR's Outstanding Achievement Award for the region.

Be sure to view our new unique Jurisdictions, Practice Leaders, Regional Awards, and Outstanding Achievement for more information.

By bringing together tax and legal professionals, we will enhance networking opportunities, and foster new connections and potential collaborations.

The winners of all the categories will be announced at the IFLR Middle East Awards ceremony on October 22, 2025, at the Mandarin Oriental Dubai, the key event on the calendar for all the region's top tax and legal talent! Don't forget to book your place!



For more information about how your firm can participate in the awards gala, please contact Hayley Charlick.

For any questions regarding the shortlist and our research, please contact John Harrison.



Without further ado, the 2025 ITR Middle East finalists are...

Jurisdiction Awards

Accordion override
  • Iraq

    Tax Firm of the Year
    Al Etihad Law Firm
    Deloitte
    Hinka for Tax Solutions
  • United Arab Emirates

    Indirect Tax Firm of the Year
    Andersen
    Baker McKenzie
    Dhruva Consultants
    DLA Piper Middle East
    Hourani & Partners
    Tax Disputes Firm of the Year
    Al Tamimi & Co
    Andersen
    Baker McKenzie
    Deloitte
    Hourani & Partners
    Transfer Pricing Firm of the Year
    Alvarez & Marsal
    Andersen
    Crowe Global
    Deloitte
    Eptalex - MEG Legal Services
    Grant Thornton
    Tax Firm of the Year
    Al Tamimi & Co
    Alvarez & Marsal
    Baker McKenzie
    Deloitte
    Dhruva Consultants
    DLA Piper Middle East
    Hourani & Partners
  • Saudi Arabia

    Indirect Tax Firm of the Year
    Al Tamimi & Co
    Baker McKenzie
    Deloitte
    DLA Piper
    Eptalex
    Tax Disputes Firm of the Year
    Al Tamimi & Co
    Baker McKenzie
    DLA Piper
    Transfer Pricing Firm of the Year
    Baker McKenzie
    Deloitte
    DLA Piper
    Tax Firm of the Year
    Al Tamimi & Co
    Baker McKenzie
    Deloitte
    DLA Piper
    Eptalex

Individual Awards

  • Practice Leaders

    Indirect Tax
    Ankur Jain, MMJS Consulting
    Gurleen Sethi, Andersen
    Mohamed El Baghdady, Habib Al Mulla and Partners
    Fernand Rutten, Deloitte
    Nimish Goel, Dhruva Consultants
    Tax Disputes
    Anuj Kapoor, Grant Thornton
    Shiraz Khan, Al Tamimi & Co
    Tina Hsieh, Baker McKenzie
    Ton van Doremalen, DLA Piper
    Zain Satardien, Hourani & Partners
    Transfer Pricing
    Aashna Mulgaonkar, TransPrice Tax Advisors
    Alessandro Valente, Crowe Strategic Consulting
    Mithilesh Sai Sannareddy, SBC - Steadfast Business Consulting
    Nithya Srinivasan, VSTN Consultancy
    Sahil Sharma, Andersen
    Tax
    Anurag Chaturvedi, Andersen
    Chris Sioufi, EY
    Basel Arafe, Deloitte
    Aunali Jaffer Merchant, MMJS Consulting
    Shiraz Khan, Al Tamimi & Co

Regional Awards

  • Best Newcomer

    Amereller
    DP Taxation Consultancy Co
    SBC - Steadfast Business Consulting
    VSTN Consultancy
  • Tax Compliance & Reporting Firm of the Year

    Andersen
    Deloitte
    Dhruva Consultants
    EY
    PGP Tax Consultancy
  • Middle East Firm of the Year

    Al Tamimi & Company
    Andersen
    Baker McKenzie
    Deloitte
    Dhruva Consultants
    Eptalex Law Firm
    Hourani & Partners
  • Global Executive Mobility Firm of the Year

    EY
    MDDP
    Deloitte
    PwC
  • Tax Policy Firm of the Year

    Al Tamimi & Company
    Alvarez & Marsal
    Baker McKenzie
    Deloitte
    Hourani & Partners

Outstanding Achievement

  • Outstanding Achievement

    Each year we aim to recognise a leader in the tax profession who has found success and great achievements over a long career. The winner will be announced at the gala ceremony in October!

We extend our warmest congratulations to all the shortlisted nominees - your achievements and contributions truly stand out. We look forward to celebrating with you at the awards gala this October. A sincere thank you to every firm that participated in our 2025 research; your insights and engagement continue to shape the future of tax and transfer pricing.


more across site & shared bottom lb ros

More from across our site

Awards
Leading firms and individuals gathered in Dubai to celebrate standout legal, dealmaking and tax work across the region
Tax authorities want more revenue, have better tools to find it and are increasingly willing to fight for it
Audifina, the sixth-largest firm of its kind in Lithuania, will bring a 90-strong team with offices in Vilnius and Kaunas to RSM’s international platform
As global capability centres use AI to deliver services, MNEs face a fresh wave of PE and TP exposure that their existing playbooks weren't built for
The deal for Comtax hands Ryan immediate scale in Brazil, with a near-70-strong team serving clients from São Paulo
The arrivals of Julio Castro and Adam Blakemore mean the firm has added six tax partners to its global practice since the start of 2025
Tax authorities have gained unprecedented transparency through CbCR, but a new study suggests they may not be looking in the right places
The future chief tax officer will be judged not only on compliance, but on their ability to harness data, technology and AI to support strategic decision-making
More than 200 tier promotions reshaped this year's European rankings as several international firms strengthened their positions in key tax markets
Ryosuke Takemura, OECD policy adviser, countered that the organisation’s role is ‘not to solve these issues one by one’ but to prevent tax disputes in general
Gift this article