Privacy Policy

01Who we are

This policy explains how OwnYourCFO ("OwnYourCFO", "we", "us") handles personal data. We are an independent accounting and advisory firm operating in the United Arab Emirates, providing bookkeeping, VAT and Corporate Tax compliance, financial reporting and outsourced CFO services.

We process personal data in accordance with UAE Federal Decree-Law No. 45 of 2021 on the Protection of Personal Data, together with the record-keeping obligations placed on us by UAE tax legislation.

02Information we collect

We collect information in three broad categories.

• Information you give us directly — your name, business name, email address, phone number, and the details you include when you contact us by form, email or WhatsApp.
• Information needed to deliver our services — trade licences, Emirates ID and passport copies, Memorandum of Association, Tax Registration Numbers, bank statements, invoices, receipts, payroll records, financial statements and supporting schedules.
• Information collected automatically — basic technical data when you visit our website, such as pages viewed and approximate location, used to understand how the site is used.

03Why we use it

We use your information only for purposes connected to the service you have asked us to provide.

• To deliver the accounting, tax and advisory services you have engaged us for.
• To prepare and submit filings to the Federal Tax Authority on your behalf, where you have authorised us to do so.
• To meet our own legal, regulatory and record-keeping obligations.
• To communicate with you about your engagement, including deadlines and requests for documents.
• To verify suppliers and transactions where tax legislation requires us to do so before input tax is claimed.

04Who we share it with

We do not sell your personal data, and we do not share it for advertising purposes.

We share information only where it is necessary: with the Federal Tax Authority and other UAE government bodies where required for filings or by law; with auditors, where an audit forms part of your engagement; and with the software providers that host our accounting, storage and communication systems. Any such provider is bound to handle the data only on our instructions.

05How long we keep it

Tax and accounting records are retained for a minimum of seven years, as required by UAE tax legislation. This applies even after an engagement has ended, and we cannot delete those records before that period expires.

Enquiry and marketing correspondence that does not form part of an engagement is kept for a shorter period and deleted when it is no longer needed.

06How we protect it

We apply access controls, encryption in transit, and reputable hosted systems to protect the information we hold. Access to client records is limited to the people working on your engagement.

Our full approach is set out on our Security page.

07Your rights

Under UAE data protection law you have the right to:

• Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Ask us to correct information that is inaccurate or incomplete.
• Ask us to delete information, where we are not required to retain it by law.
• Object to or restrict certain processing.
• Withdraw consent where our processing relies on consent.

To exercise any of these, contact us using the details below. We may need to verify your identity before we act, and we will respond within the period required by law.

08Messaging and WhatsApp

We use WhatsApp as a working channel for document collection and client communication. Messages sent to us that way are stored and processed under this policy. WhatsApp itself is operated by a third party under its own terms, and we have no control over how that platform handles message data in transit.

If you would prefer not to send documents by WhatsApp, tell us and we will arrange an alternative.

09Cookies

Our website uses only the cookies necessary for the site to function and to understand aggregate usage. We do not use advertising or cross-site tracking cookies.

10Changes to this policy

We may update this policy as our services or the law change. The date at the top of this page shows when it was last revised, and material changes will be communicated to clients directly.