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International Expansion

UAE Taxation & Bookkeeping

The UAE is no longer a no-tax jurisdiction, and a great many businesses there have not adjusted to the filing calendar that replaced it. Corporate tax is charged at 9% on taxable income above AED 375,000. Registration with the Federal Tax Authority is required whether or not you will owe anything, and both corporate tax and VAT are assessed against books the FTA can ask to inspect. We register you, file the returns, and keep the accounting records that sit behind them.

Start a projectWhat’s included

Scope

What'sincluded

Everything below is in the standard engagement. Anything outside it is agreed in writing before the work starts, never after.

  • Corporate tax registration on EmaraTax and confirmation of your first tax period
  • VAT registration or a reasoned exemption position, plus quarterly or monthly VAT return filing
  • Annual corporate tax return preparation and filing within the statutory window after year end
  • Small Business Relief assessment and election where revenue keeps you inside the threshold
  • Monthly bookkeeping to IFRS, reconciled, with the records retained for the period the FTA requires
  • Free zone qualifying income review, where you hold a free zone licence

Who this is for

Built for three situations

  • Pakistani founders with a UAE company
  • Free zone and mainland licence holders
  • Businesses registered but never filed

Process

How thisactually runs

  1. Position review

    We read your trade licence, incorporation date and financials, and tell you which registrations are already overdue and what the exposure is.

  2. Registration

    Corporate tax and, where the threshold is met, VAT registration completed on EmaraTax, with tax periods and the first due dates confirmed in writing.

  3. Books brought current

    Ledgers rebuilt to IFRS from the start of the relevant tax period, reconciled to bank, so the first return is filed off real accounts.

  4. Filing calendar

    VAT returns filed each period and the corporate tax return filed after year end, with the reliefs and elections applied and documented.

Deliverables

What you end up holding

  • Corporate tax registration number, and a VAT TRN where registered
  • Filed VAT returns with FTA acknowledgements
  • Filed corporate tax return with the computation behind every figure
  • IFRS financial statements for the tax period
  • A filing calendar with every FTA deadline for the year ahead

What we need from you

Documents required

  • Trade licence and Memorandum of Association
  • Emirates ID and passport copies of shareholders and the authorised signatory
  • EmaraTax login, or authorisation for us to act as tax agent contact
  • Bank statements for all company accounts covering the period
  • Sales invoices, purchase invoices and any customs documentation
  • Prior returns and financial statements, if any have been filed

Missing something? Tell us anyway. We can usually work around a gap, and it is better to know before we start.

Next step

Tell us your situation and we will scope it.

Talk to us about it

Scope, fee and dates confirmed in writing before anything starts.

Questions

AboutUAE Taxation & Bookkeeping

  • Do I have to register for corporate tax if my profit is under AED 375,000?

    Yes. The AED 375,000 figure is the threshold above which the 9% rate applies, not a threshold for registration. Registration is required regardless, within the window the FTA sets from incorporation or from the start of your first tax period, and late registration carries an administrative penalty even where no tax is ultimately payable.

  • Does a free zone company pay corporate tax?

    A qualifying free zone person can be taxed at 0% on qualifying income, but that status is conditional and is not automatic from holding a free zone licence. It depends on maintaining adequate substance, the type of income earned and staying within the de minimis limits. We assess it against your actual revenue mix rather than assuming the licence settles it.

  • What is Small Business Relief?

    Where revenue stays at or below AED 3 million in the tax period and in every previous one, a resident business can elect to be treated as having no taxable income for that period. It is an election made in the return, not an exemption from filing, and it still assumes you can produce records if the FTA asks. It is a simplification, not a reason to stop keeping books.

  • Can you do this while I am in Pakistan?

    Yes. EmaraTax filing, bookkeeping and return preparation are all done remotely, and we work from bank statements and invoices you send us. A physical visit is generally only needed for banking or licensing matters, which sit outside this engagement.

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