VAT
Corporate Tax
Accounting & CFO
Nine months after year end. Not a day later.
Your corporate tax return and the payment are both due within nine months of your financial year end. For a 31 December 2025 year end, that's 30 September 2026. We prepare the return from IFRS-compliant financial statements, apply the reliefs you actually qualify for, and file on EmaraTax before the deadline.
From AED 1499 · Small Business Relief assessed · Chartered Accountant-led
What you're working with
Filing is mandatory even at zero taxable income, at a loss, or when claiming Small Business Relief. Registration alone is not filing.
Find your year end. That's your clock.
The rule is simply nine months from the end of your financial year — for both the return and the payment. The FTA treats payment as received when the funds land in its account, so a transfer sent on the deadline can still be late.
The return is the easy part. The statements behind it aren't.
Corporate tax is computed from IFRS-compliant financial statements with specific adjustments. Businesses that have been running on bank statements and spreadsheets discover that gap at filing time, which is the worst moment to find it.
with the relief you qualify for.
Small Business Relief, free zone qualifying income and loss carry-forward all change what you owe — but each has conditions, and each must be actively elected or evidenced rather than assumed.
Financial statements prepared
Statements to IFRS or IFRS for SMEs, which is what the return is computed from. If your books aren't there yet, this is where the real work sits.
Tax computation
Accounting profit adjusted for non-deductible items, exempt income, interest limitations and other statutory adjustments to reach taxable income.
Small Business Relief
We test eligibility against the AED 3,000,000 revenue condition and make the election where it benefits you.
Free zone assessment
Qualifying Free Zone Person status is conditional and easy to lose. We assess whether your income genuinely qualifies for 0%.
Related-party schedules
Transfer pricing disclosures and related-party transaction schedules prepared alongside the return.
Four steps to a filed return.
Position review
We confirm your tax period, registration status, and whether reliefs like Small Business Relief or free zone treatment apply.
Statements prepared
Financial statements brought to IFRS or IFRS for SMEs standard, with any bookkeeping gaps closed first.
Computation & review
Taxable income computed with all adjustments, and the liability shown to you before anything is filed.
Filed & paid
Return submitted on EmaraTax with supporting schedules, and payment timed to clear before the deadline.
What you'll need.
The second column is where most businesses stall. If it's incomplete, that's the work — not the return itself.
Registration & entity
Who is filing, and for what period
- Corporate Tax registration number
- Trade licence and Memorandum of Association
- Confirmed tax period start and end dates
- Free zone licence and substance evidence, if applicable
- Group structure and ownership details
Financial records
What the computation is built from
- Financial statements to IFRS or IFRS for SMEs
- Trial balance and general ledger for the period
- Fixed asset register and depreciation schedules
- Related-party and transfer pricing documentation
- Prior period losses being carried forward
Quoted on your actual position.
The fee depends on whether your statements already exist and whether audited accounts are required. Both are confirmed before we start, not after.
Computation and filing where financial statements are already prepared and current.
- ✓ Tax position and relief eligibility reviewed
- ✓ Taxable income computed with all adjustments
- ✓ Small Business Relief election where beneficial
- ✓ Return filed on EmaraTax with schedules
- ✓ WhatsApp access to a Chartered Accountant
For businesses whose books need bringing to standard before the return can be computed.
- ✓ Everything in the standard package
- ✓ Financial statements prepared to IFRS standard
- ✓ Bookkeeping brought current for the period
- ✓ Free zone qualifying income assessment
- ✓ Audit coordination where required
Audited financial statements are required for businesses above AED 50,000,000 revenue, all Qualifying Free Zone Persons, and tax groups. We'll tell you at the outset whether that applies to you.
What pairs with this.
Corporate Tax Registration
Registration with the FTA, with your tax period and obligations confirmed.
Learn more →Financial Statements
IFRS-standard statements — the thing your computation is actually built from.
Learn more →VAT & Corporate Tax
Full FTA compliance support across both regimes, including audit representation.
Learn more →UAE areas we serve.
Straight answers.
When is my corporate tax return due?
Nine months after the end of your financial year, for both the return and the payment. A 31 December 2025 year end means 30 September 2026. There is no extension mechanism for ordinary cases, and the FTA counts payment as made when funds reach its account — so leaving the transfer to the final day is a real risk.
Do I have to file if I made no profit?
Yes. Filing is mandatory for every registered taxable person, including businesses with zero taxable income, businesses at a loss, and those claiming Small Business Relief. Registration and filing are separate obligations, and being registered does not discharge the filing requirement.
What is Small Business Relief and do I qualify?
Eligible resident businesses can elect to be treated as having no taxable income where revenue is AED 3,000,000 or below in the current and all previous tax periods. It's available for tax periods ending on or before 31 December 2029, it isn't open to Qualifying Free Zone Persons or large multinational groups, and it must be actively elected each period. You still file a return.
My company is in a free zone — is it still 0%?
Only if it meets every condition for Qualifying Free Zone Person status, and only on qualifying income. Non-qualifying income is taxed at 9%. The conditions cover adequate substance, the nature of the income, and de minimis limits — and failing them can cost the status for multiple years, so this is worth assessing properly rather than assuming.
What are the penalties for filing late?
AED 500 for each month or part-month during the first twelve months, rising to AED 1,000 per month from the thirteenth. A single day late counts as a full month. Late payment is penalised separately with interest at 14% per annum on the unpaid amount, so the two accumulate together rather than one replacing the other.
Do I need audited financial statements?
Audited statements are required for standalone businesses with revenue above AED 50,000,000, for all Qualifying Free Zone Persons regardless of revenue, and for tax groups on a consolidated basis. Below those thresholds, financial statements are still required — they just don't need to be audited.
How long do I keep the records?
Seven years. Every figure on the return needs to be supported by records the FTA can inspect, which in practice means your bookkeeping has to be organised and retrievable rather than reconstructed each year.
Rates, thresholds, reliefs and deadlines described on this page reflect UAE Corporate Tax legislation as at September 2026 and may change. This page is general information, not advice on your specific circumstances.
Check where you stand before the deadline.
Send your year end date and latest financial statements on WhatsApp — a Chartered Accountant will confirm your filing date, whether you qualify for relief, and what's realistically involved.
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OwnYourCFO gives growing UAE businesses clear numbers, smarter reporting, and reliable finance support without the overhead of a full in-house team.
Tax Services
Company
OwnYourCFO is an independent firm of accountants licensed in Ajman Free Zone, United Arab Emirates, serving clients in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and across the UAE. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of the Federal Tax Authority or any government body. Businesses are free to deal with the Federal Tax Authority directly themselves. Our fees are for professional services only and are separate from any government charge.