Accounting in Dubai

Accounting and bookkeeping services in Dubai

Books that hold up to an FTA audit. VAT, corporate tax, payroll, and statements, handled monthly by a named accountant.

FTA-compliant records
Monthly management reporting
VAT and corporate tax filing
Cloud access to your books

15+ years10,000+ engagements4.8 Google, 163+ reviewsISO certified

The obligation

What accounting in Dubai actually covers

UAE accounting compliance for a Dubai mainland company means three things: keeping proper books, filing VAT returns once registered, and filing an annual corporate tax return. VAT is 5% above the AED 375,000 threshold. Corporate tax is 9% on taxable profit above AED 375,000, filed with the Federal Tax Authority.

Registration is itself an obligation. A company can owe no tax and still be penalised for not registering or not filing on time.

Outsource or hire

Do you need to outsource your books?

Most companies under 20 staff do not need a full-time accountant. They need one person accountable for roughly eight deadlines a year who reconciles the bank monthly. That is a smaller job than a salary, a visa, and a software licence.

Recommended

Likely5 signs

Outsourcing fits if

You are under about 50 staffOne named accountant covers the recurring load.
You want deadlines tracked for youVAT quarters, the CT return, WPS, licence renewal.
You want audit-ready books by defaultMonthly reconciliation makes year-end a review.
You want to remove the fixed costNo salary, visa, gratuity accrual, or software licence.
You are preparing for 2027E-invoicing and the end of Small Business Relief.

See what your books would cost

Maybe not5 signs

In-house may fit if

You need three or more finance staffThe crossover where in-house makes sense.
You run a full internal finance teamBookkeeping, VAT, CT, and audit prep in-house.
You have complex daily treasury needsA dedicated on-site function may fit better.
You already run audit prep in-houseThe main gain here is audit-readiness you have built already.
You need finance sitting with operationsSame-desk decisions are easier with an internal team.

Scope of work

What DMCS handles each month

lead (ReactNode): Scope stated once, so nobody guesses what is bundled and what gets invoiced separately.

Every month

Recurring accounting

Bookkeeping: sales, purchase, and expense posting
Monthly bank reconciliation across all accounts
Quarterly VAT returns via EmaraTax
Payroll and WPS: payslips, SIF file, gratuity accrual
Monthly management pack: P&L, balance sheet, cash flow

As needed

Periodic and year-end

Corporate tax registration and annual filing
IFRS-format year-end financial statements
Audit file preparation and auditor liaison
QFZP audited statements support
Voluntary disclosures and VAT deregistration

Licence renewals and government filings?PRO servicesWant the scope priced for you?Get an itemised quote

By structure

How accounting rules differ by structure

Your obligations are not identical across structures, and the difference decides whether you need an audit at all. Two audit rules run in parallel and get mixed up constantly.

Rule	Mainland LLC	Free zone (non-QFZP)	QFZP
Books required	Yes, 5+ years	Yes, plus zone rules	Yes
Statutory audit	Every LLC, any size	Often at renewal	Always
Audit basis	Company law, Art. 27	Zone / renewal	MD 84 of 2025
Corporate tax	0% then 9%	0% then 9%	0% qualifying, 9% rest
Small Business Relief	To 31 Dec 2029	If not QFZP	Not available

Pricing, 2026

What monthly accounting costs at each stage

New licences, holding cos

Starter

Up to 30 transactions a month.

Bookkeeping and reconciliation

Quarterly VAT returns

Single AED account

Where most SMEs sit

Growth

30 to 150 transactions a month.

Adds payroll and WPS

Monthly management pack

Corporate tax computation

High volume or multi-currency

Established

150+ transactions a month.

Adds audit file prep

Multi-currency handling

Quarterly senior review

Want the exact fee for your volume?

See what moves your fee

Low monthly rates in Dubai often exclude VAT filing, corporate tax registration, and the software licence. Ask any firm, including DMCS, for a written itemised quote showing every one-off and recurring fee before you sign. Catch-up bookkeeping and system migration are quoted once, up front, never sprung on a later invoice.

What moves your fee

Your fee tracks transaction volume, not revenue

A consultancy invoicing four clients a month and an e-commerce store processing nine hundred orders can have identical turnover and completely different books. One factor moves the fee more than any other.

Indicative monthly rangeMost SMEs land in the middle band. Starter is light because volume is low; Established carries the reconciliation and audit-prep depth high volume demands.

VolumeThe main driverEntries to post and match, not turnover

AccountsPer account / currencyEach adds a reconciliation and revaluation

PayrollPer employeeWPS file and gratuity accrual

What separates a cheap quote from a complete one

Whether VAT return filing is included or billed on top
Whether corporate tax registration is in the price
Whether the software licence is bundled or extra
Whether catch-up and migration are quoted up front

Quoted separately, up front

Catch-up bookkeeping for unposted periods
Migration between accounting systems
Multi-currency revaluation
Audit file preparation

Figures are indicative for 2026 and are market bands, not a DMCS rate card. Your fee depends on transaction volume, entity structure, and scope. A company handing over eighteen months of unposted records is buying a project first and a subscription second, and we quote it that way.

Get an itemised quote

Onboarding

From first review to your first close

Share access

You hand us your mainland trade license, bank statements, prior books, and any existing FTA registration details (TRN), so we can see exactly where your filings stand.

Chart of accounts set up

We structure your chart of accounts to your activity, so reports and returns map cleanly from day one, whether you take a monthly retainer or a single catch-up engagement.

Monthly close and reconciliation

Books are kept current each month, with bank reconciliation and a short management report, so your numbers are always ready for a VAT return or a bank review.

VAT filed each quarter

Once registered, we prepare and submit your VAT return every quarter, ahead of the FTA deadline, with the 5% calculation shown in the workings.

Corporate tax filed annually

We prepare your financial statements and file the annual corporate tax return with the FTA on time, whether your taxable income falls in the 0% band or the 9% band above AED 375,000.

Most businesses have clean, current books within three to four weeks of handover. Longer if there are prior periods to rebuild, and we tell you that at the quote stage, not halfway through. The full monthly cost is agreed at step two, before you commit.

2026 to 2027

Two changes landing on your books in 2027

Small Business Relief expires and e-invoicing becomes mandatory. Companies that treated accounting as a formality will feel both at once.

01
SBR ends
Relief runs only to 31 Dec 2029. From 2030, standard rates apply: 0% to AED 375,000, then 9%.
02
E-invoicing starts
FTA Peppol pilot opens July 2026. Mandatory 1 Jan 2027 above AED 50m revenue, others from 1 Jul 2027.
03
Software must comply
Your accounting software must issue structured invoices. Businesses on spreadsheets will not be able to comply at all.
04
TRNs must be clean
Customer and supplier TRNs must be accurate and validated now. Input VAT recovery will depend on holding a valid verified e-invoice.
05
Miss it and pay
Under Cabinet Decision No. 106 of 2025, failing to implement or appoint a provider by your deadline carries AED 5,000 per month.

By industry

The accounting problem your sector quietly pays for

Every sector has one accounting problem that quietly costs it money, usually the same one every month for years. Find yours.

E-commerce and Retail
Platform payouts never match sales
ScenarioPayouts arrive net of fees, refunds, and chargebacks, so the deposit never matches the sales figure.
Why it fitsWe reconcile at payout level, per channel, so gross sales tie to net.
Risk noteGross sales left unreconciled to net payouts overstate revenue.
Restaurants and F&B
The POS never agrees with the bank
ScenarioDaily takings, supplier credit notes, and wastage all move independently.
Why it fitsDaily sales reconciliation and cost-of-sales tracking close the gap.
Risk notePOS-to-bank variance hides margin leakage for months.
Construction and Contracting
WIP and retention distort profit
ScenarioWork in progress and retention sit across financial years, distorting profit both ways.
Why it fitsProject-level revenue recognition puts profit in the right period.
Risk noteMisstated WIP means tax paid on profit you have not earned.
Real Estate Brokerage
Client money mixed with revenue
ScenarioCommission splits, agent payouts, and client money must stay separate from operating cash.
Why it fitsSegregated ledgers and commission schedules keep the two apart.
Risk noteMixed client funds are a compliance and audit failure.
Logistics and Freight
Landed cost goes unallocated
ScenarioLanded cost, fuel, and fleet expenses need allocating before margin means anything.
Why it fitsCost-centre allocation by route or vehicle makes margin real.
Risk noteUnallocated landed cost hides which routes lose money.
Consultancies and Agencies
Retainers recognised too early
ScenarioRetainers get booked when invoiced instead of when earned, overstating good months.
Why it fitsDeferred revenue and unbilled WIP tracking smooth the picture.
Risk noteFront-loaded revenue hides the months that actually lost.
Manufacturing
Inventory and cost of goods drift
ScenarioRaw material, WIP, and finished-goods values move without a monthly stock close.
Why it fitsPeriodic inventory valuation and standard-cost tracking hold the line.
Risk noteUnclosed inventory misstates both profit and the balance sheet.
Clinics and Healthcare
Insurance receivables age quietly
ScenarioInsurer claims, rejections, and resubmissions leave receivables ballooning unmatched.
Why it fitsClaims-level receivable tracking and ageing keep cash visible.
Risk noteUnreconciled insurance receivables overstate the cash you have.

Reconciliation

How your books connect to your bank

Reconciliation is where most Dubai books break. A bank feed that does not import cleanly means every month starts with a manual fix. We reconcile every account, in every currency, before any return is filed.

Connect or collect

Direct bank feed where your bank supports it, secure statement upload where it does not.

Match

Every transaction matched to an invoice, bill, payroll run, or transfer.

Investigate

Unmatched items chased with you the same week, never parked in a suspense account.

Sign off

The reconciliation is closed and dated before anything is filed with the FTA.

UAE banks DMCS reconciles against

Filing from unreconciled books is how wrong VAT returns get submitted.

Why DMCS

Why choose DMCS for accounting in Dubai

We handle formation, licensing, VAT, corporate tax, and accounting from one office in Business Bay. Most accounting problems start upstream.

Where accounting problems start

We design the books, not just maintain them

Most arrive with a chart of accounts copied from a software template. We rebuild it around how you actually earn and spend.

One accountant, one point of contact

A named person who knows your licence, your zone, and your filing calendar. No shared inbox, no re-explaining your business to whoever picks up the ticket.

Formation and compliance under one roof

Licence, visas, VAT, corporate tax, and audit liaison from the same team. When your free zone changes its renewal rules, the people who set up your company update your books.

We tell you when you do not need something

Plenty of small Dubai companies do not need a monthly audit-grade close, a CFO retainer, or the top package. When that is true, we say so and quote the smaller scope.

Speak to our accounting team

Real results from our clients

What our clients say about working with us

Real Google reviews from founders we have set up and kept compliant on the Dubai mainland.

DMCS.

Dubai Mainland Company Setup, by the team behind Riz & Mona

163+ Google reviews

Write a review

Abdul Sami3 months ago

Thank you to the team for supporting us with our company setup. Our case was not straightforward, especially the bank account opening, but they stayed committed and got it done.

Paolo Chua8 months ago

I had a great experience opening a corporate bank account. The process was smooth and efficient. The staff were friendly, professional, and explained everything clearly.

Amy Elliott Dunne4 months ago

The accounting and bookkeeping service has been exceptional. Attention to detail is impressive, and communication is always clear. Tasks are handled promptly.

Rashed Al Falasi5 months ago

They confirmed our activity grouping before filing and flagged an issue the bank would have raised. Licensed in under two weeks with no surprises on the invoice.

Marwa Khalil2 months ago

We came for a mainland LLC and stayed for renewals and PRO work. The same team answers the phone after the license is issued, which is rare here.

Straight answers

Accounting in Dubai: FAQs

Yes. Under Article 56 of Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022, every taxable person must keep accounting records and financial statements for seven years from the end of the tax period. It applies on the mainland and in a free zone, and whether or not you owe any tax.

Bookkeeping is the daily recording of transactions: sales, purchases, payments, receipts. Accounting turns those records into statements, tax computations, and analysis, and files them. Bookkeeping tells you what happened; accounting tells you what it means.

Seven years for corporate tax, from the end of the relevant tax period. VAT records carry a separate five-year minimum, and real estate records fifteen years. Where the periods differ, keep everything for the longest one that applies to you.

It depends on status. A Qualifying Free Zone Person must maintain audited statements regardless of revenue, under Ministerial Decision No. 84 of 2025. A non-QFZP follows the general rule, which triggers an audit above AED 50 million, though many zones require audited accounts at licence renewal.

Monthly. Reconcile the bank, post the transactions, and review the P&L every month. Quarterly is the minimum if you are VAT registered, because the return is quarterly. Annual bookkeeping means you find problems eleven months late, when nothing can be fixed.

Zoho Books, QuickBooks Online, and Xero all handle UAE VAT and connect to major bank feeds. Zoho suits service and smaller trading firms; QuickBooks suits high-volume e-commerce; Xero suits multi-currency. Tally is common in established trading firms but weaker on bank feeds and cloud access.

The FTA requests your records for a period, usually invoices, bank statements, ledgers, and contracts, and gives you a window to produce them. Complete, reconciled records make it administrative. Incomplete ones let the FTA assess tax on best judgement and apply penalties, which is far harder to dispute.

Yes, and it is a large share of our work. Catch-up bookkeeping is scoped and quoted separately from the monthly fee, because the effort depends on how many periods are missing, not on current volume. We rebuild prior periods and produce a defensible opening balance before the ongoing service starts.

If your annual revenue is AED 50 million or more, yes, and the deadline is 1 January 2027. Others follow from 1 July 2027. A voluntary pilot opens July 2026 with no penalties during it. Preparation means validating TRNs, confirming your software can produce PINT AE invoices, and appointing an accredited provider.

Relief is available only for tax periods ending on or before 31 December 2029. From 2030, standard rates apply: 0% on the first AED 375,000, 9% above. If you have been filing nil, you will need books that produce a real taxable profit with supportable deductions. That work is best done during 2029.

Get your books reviewed before the next deadline.

Send your last three months of bank statements and whatever records you have. We tell you what is missing, what it costs to fix, and what your monthly fee would be. No obligation to proceed. All fees are indicative until scope is confirmed.

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