Accounting and Reporting for a UAE Company

Accounting and reporting for a UAE company owned from Ukraine rests on three obligations to the federal authorities: Corporate Tax, VAT and record keeping. Every company, including a free zone company, registers for Corporate Tax and files a return within 9 months after the end of its tax period. The rate is 0% on taxable income up to AED 375,000 and 9% on the part above it. A Qualifying Free Zone Person pays 0% only on its qualifying income and 9% on other taxable income, without the AED 375,000 band, and must have audited financial statements. VAT is 5%; registration is mandatory once taxable supplies exceed AED 375,000 over 12 months, and returns are filed within 28 days after each tax period. Economic substance reporting (ESR) was cancelled for financial years ending after 31.12.2022. Key Solutions coordinates this work: a UAE partner accountant keeps the books and files the returns in the Federal Tax Authority (FTA) system, and we set the tasks, check deadlines and figures and prepare owner reporting.

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First: which Corporate Tax regime applies

The UAE Corporate Tax Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022) applies to financial years beginning on or after 1 June 2023 (Ministry of Finance: Corporate Tax). The amount of tax and the audit requirement depend on the regime the company falls into, so this is settled before the first return.

Rates per Cabinet Decision No. 116 of 2022 and the FTA Free Zone Persons guide; Small Business Relief per the Ministry of Finance, 07.08.2026. Checked 10.2026.

What a UAE company files and when

The table covers federal obligations as of 10.2026. A free zone or mainland licensing authority adds its own conditions for licence renewal, and they are checked separately for each company.

A return due date falling on a weekend or public holiday moves to the next business day. The figures above are rules of law; Key Solutions does not set them.

Free zone company: what 0% really covers

A free zone licence alone gives no 0% rate. A free zone company becomes a Qualifying Free Zone Person only when it meets all the conditions at once: adequate substance in the free zone, qualifying income, transfer pricing compliance, audited financial statements, no election for the standard regime, and the de minimis test. Under that test, non-qualifying revenue in the tax period must not exceed the lower of AED 5,000,000 and 5% of total revenue (FTA guide CTGFZP1, sections 3.2–3.3).

• A QFZP pays 0% on qualifying income and 9% on taxable income that is not qualifying, from the first dirham: the 0% band up to AED 375,000 is unavailable to it.
• Qualifying income is limited mainly to transactions with other free zone persons and to qualifying activities. Revenue from mainland customers for non-qualifying activities counts toward the de minimis limit.
• A company that fails a condition loses QFZP status for that tax period and the following four and is taxed at the standard rates.
• Free zone and mainland licensing authorities set their own rules on accounts and audit for licence renewal, so the audit report often serves two purposes: the Corporate Tax return and the licence.

We therefore split revenue in the books by customer type and activity from the first month. The de minimis test and the qualifying share are then visible during the year, before the auditor sees the figures.

VAT 5%

The standard VAT rate in the UAE is 5% (Ministry of Finance: VAT). A resident company registers within 30 days once taxable supplies and imports exceed AED 375,000 over the previous 12 months or are expected to exceed it in the next 30 days; voluntary registration is possible from AED 187,500, including for start-ups with taxable expenses and no turnover yet. A business without a place of residence in the UAE that makes taxable supplies there registers regardless of the threshold, unless another person in the UAE accounts for the VAT. The return and payment are due within 28 days after the end of the tax period, and the FTA sets the period for each registrant (tax.gov.ae).

For a company invoicing clients outside the UAE, the main questions are the place of supply and the zero rate for exported services, which the partner accountant confirms against the contracts before the first return.

Audit and financial statements

Ministerial Decision No. 84 of 2025, in force for tax periods starting on or after 1 January 2025, requires audited financial statements from two groups: any taxable person (outside a tax group) with revenue above AED 50,000,000 in the period, and every Qualifying Free Zone Person whatever its revenue (MD No. 84 of 2025, Art. 2). For earlier periods the same rule came from Ministerial Decision No. 82 of 2023. A company outside these groups may still need an audit for its free zone, bank or investors.

The audit is carried out by an independent audit firm licensed in the UAE. Key Solutions prepares the audit file: trial balance, reconciliations, related-party schedules and the revenue split for the QFZP test.

Small Business Relief and electronic invoicing

A resident company with revenue of up to AED 3 million in the current and every previous tax period can elect Small Business Relief and is treated as having no taxable income for the period. In August 2026 the Ministry of Finance extended the relief to tax periods ending on or before 31 December 2029 (Ministerial Decision No. 131 of 2026). The election is made in the Corporate Tax return, so the return is still filed. The relief is unavailable to a Qualifying Free Zone Person and to members of large multinational groups.

Electronic invoicing is being introduced through accredited service providers: a pilot started on 1 July 2026, companies with revenue of AED 50 million or more move to mandatory e-invoicing on 1 January 2027, and other businesses on 1 July 2027. For most owners from Ukraine this means choosing an accounting system and provider during 2026–2027 so that invoices are issued in the required format from the start date.

Taking over from the previous agent

We start with a check: licence and licensing authority, Corporate Tax and VAT registrations in EmaraTax, filed returns, audit reports for earlier years, bank statements and money flows with the owner and related companies. If registration or returns were missed, the partner accountant prepares the corrections, and the owner receives a risk assessment before anything is filed. Differences are recorded in a handover report.

What the service includes

• diagnostic: licence, Corporate Tax regime, QFZP conditions, VAT status, filing history;
• selecting and setting up the UAE partner accountant: scope, document flow, access to EmaraTax;
• bookkeeping on an accrual basis with revenue split by customer type and activity;
• VAT returns and VAT records, place-of-supply review for foreign clients;
• year-end close, audit file and liaison with the audit firm;
• Corporate Tax return figures, including the QFZP de minimis test and transfer pricing schedules;
• preparation for electronic invoicing with the chosen provider;
• management reporting for the owner: profit, cash flow, taxes due;
• a financial statements pack for the Ukrainian owner's CFC report, consolidation with a Ukrainian company on request.

How we work

1. Diagnostic. We confirm the licence, the Corporate Tax regime and VAT status and check past filings.
2. Handover. We take over the books from the previous agent and record differences.
3. Ongoing cycle. Documents, bank reconciliation, VAT returns every period.
4. Annual cycle. Year-end close, audit where required, Corporate Tax return within 9 months.
5. Owner reporting. Management report, CFC and consolidation pack.

Reporting for the owner in Ukraine

For an owner who is a Ukrainian tax resident, a UAE company is usually a controlled foreign company: a stake above 50%, or above 10% where Ukrainian residents together hold 50% or more (Tax Code of Ukraine, sub-para. 39-2.1.2). Certified copies of the company's financial statements are attached to the CFC report (sub-para. 39-2.5.2), so the UAE books are kept to produce full year-end statements, audited where the law or the free zone requires it. We prepare the CFC pack together with reporting for foreign companies. The group's UAE market entry overview is at innovacg.com.

Registration and visas: other group companies

Forming a mainland or free zone company is handled by regserv.biz: company registration in the UAE. A UAE company gives its owner no residence status by itself; residence visas are a separate procedure handled by legal.ua. Key Solutions steps in once the company exists or is being formed and is responsible for accounting and reporting.

What we need from you

• trade licence, certificate of incorporation and memorandum of association, licensing authority;
• Corporate Tax and VAT registration certificates (TRN), if already issued;
• Corporate Tax and VAT returns filed so far, audit reports for earlier years;
• bank statements and payment platform statements;
• contracts with main customers and suppliers, showing where they are located;
• a list of transactions with the owner and the owner's other companies: contributions, loans, payments, services;
• employees and office lease details, which matter for substance;
• the owners' tax residence and the share structure for the CFC pack.

Documents are exchanged electronically. We do not need bank passwords.

Result

• the company's Corporate Tax regime is confirmed and documented;
• Corporate Tax return filed and tax paid within 9 months of year end;
• VAT returns filed within 28 days after each period where the company is registered;
• audited financial statements where the law or the free zone requires them;
• revenue split ready for the QFZP de minimis test;
• management report and CFC pack for the owner;
• an FTA, auditor and licence deadline calendar for the next year.

Legal basis and sources

Why Key Solutions

Company

KEY SOLUTIONS AUDIT FIRM LLC, Ukrainian company code 39610085, registered since 30.01.2015.

Roles

UAE books, VAT and Corporate Tax returns are prepared and filed by a UAE partner accountant; the audit is carried out by an independent audit firm licensed in the UAE; an authorized signatory of the company approves the filings; coordination, control and owner reporting are done by Key Solutions.

Group

We are part of Innova Consulting Group: company formation by regserv.biz, market entry by innovacg.com.

Contract

Scope, liability and confidentiality are set in a contract before work starts.

Frequently asked questions

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