Accountancy services in the UAE
Are you considering the Emirates for business registration? Doing business and need quality, professional accounting support for your business in the UAE? Afraid of missing out on some obligations and attracting the attention of tax authorities?
We offer accounting support service in the United Arab Emirates, provided by the specialists of our company.
Use our services and you will no longer have to worry about:
- violations which may lead to penalties from the tax authorities in the form of fines;
- setting up companies for tax accounting;
- Monthly bookkeeping, maintenance of accounting books
- preparation and filing of reports to the tax authorities;
- performing annual audits;
- filing of notifications and ESR reports.
We provide full support:
- registration of the company with FTA (tax office), registration on the EMARA TAX PORTAL portal (FTA electronic portal), obtaining a tax number for carrying out business activities in the UAE, obtaining a tax certificate;
- the procedure for obtaining a VAT certificate - as once the company is registered, the tax office does not automatically register the company as a VAT taxpayer. If it is necessary to get a certificate, you have to register at the Federal Tax Service - https://tax.gov.ae/en/taxes/Vat/vat.topics/registration.for.vat.aspx;
- registration with the FTA for filing returns and paying corporation tax.
- we provide monthly accounting services for companies, which consists of preparing accounts on the basis of bank statements, keeping accounting books;
- reports to the UAE tax authorities.
Which reports to the tax authorities are prepared by the company's specialists
Quarterly VAT reports
On a quarterly basis, a business entity in the UAE is required to file a VAT report under Federal Decree-Law N (8) on 2017 Value Added Tax.
The VAT rate in Dubai in 2023 is 5%, but the value added tax is only payable on activities carried out within the UAE, so not everyone pays this tax:
- companies registered in the mainland and carrying out activities in the UAE pay this tax at the rate of 5%;
- legal entities registered in the free zone in Dubai and not operating in the UAE do not pay this tax.
- when carrying out activities in the UAE, VAT only needs to be paid if the income exceeds AED 375,000 per year.
- VAT must be declared and paid no later than 28 days after the end of each tax period (submitted quarterly, for large businesses monthly).
Annual report on corporate profits
As of 1 June 2023, the UAE has introduced a corporate tax for businesses of 9%, but it will only have to be paid if the company operates in the UAE (mainland). If the company is registered in the free zone and works with foreign counterparties, it will not have to pay the tax.
Also, the new tax only applies to companies whose income exceeds 375000 dirhams (a little more than 100000 dollars) per year.
If a business entity does not have an obligation to pay corporate tax at the rate of 9%, it is still required to file zero returns.
These accounts are filed with the tax authorities in the form of an audit report. ( As of June 2023, this is the procedure).
Annual audit
Pursuant to article 27(2) of the current Federal Law No. 2 of 2015 on Business Companies in the UAE, each company is required to have a licensed auditor registered with the UAE Ministry of Economy to audit its books. Under the laws in force in the UAE, all companies are required to keep books, conduct an annual audit and keep these records for 5 years. When conducting an audit the auditors must have access to financial records. Auditing for companies in the UAE is not always mandatory - it depends on where the company is registered:
- For companies registered in Dubai mainland, auditing is mandatory under Article 27(2) of the current Federal Law No 2 of 2015 on UAE Commercial Companies.
- For companies registered in the free zone, the need for an audit depends on the zone. Certain freezones have made the audit requirement mandatory, such as the same DMCC (Dubai Multi Commodity Centre), while others have no such requirement.
- But even if there is no annual audit requirement in the zone, we advise our clients to have their accounts audited every 6-12 months, to keep their books and records for the required period.
Registration of companies on the portal of the Ministry of Finance for submission of ESR notifications and reports (regulations on the economic presence of the company in the UAE)
According to the Ministry of Finance guidelines for the regulation of economic presence in the UAE, business companies are required to submit an ESR notification to the Ministry of Finance within 6 months and an ESR report within 12 months from the end of the financial year indicated in the MOA (Memorandum of Association), if the company's activities fall within the ESR list. Failure to submit may result in additional administrative penalties in accordance with Cabinet Order No. 57 of 2020.
The obligation to register on the portal and submit the ESR report does not apply to all companies, but only to companies with certain activities.
Registering a company on the portal of the Ministry of Finance to submit goAML notifications and reports
The obligation to register on the portal and submit a goAML report does not apply to all companies, but only to companies with certain types of activities.
The task of accountants, auditors, lawyers and tax consultants of Intelligent Solution Group is to comprehensively help clients to protect their assets, think ahead about possible risks, foresee and prevent errors in our clients' businesses.
We know everything about the Emirates: how to buy real estate profitably, how to sell it, how to pass the right of inheritance to real estate in the UAE, in which free zone to register a company, how to open a bank account on it, when to file accounting statements and in what format they should be presented. If you need to meet - we have a representative in Dubai, contact us and we will arrange a meeting.
