Your first UAE corporate tax return, step by step
What do you actually file for your first UAE corporate tax return?
One return, submitted through the Federal Tax Authority’s EmaraTax portal, for each tax period. It reports your accounting profit, the adjustments that turn it into taxable income, and the tax due at 9% on anything above AED 375,000. The rules sit in Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022, summarised on the Ministry of Finance site.
The return is not a standalone form. It rests on financial statements prepared under IFRS (or IFRS for SMEs where eligible), and those need to exist first. Most first-time filers underestimate this.
When is the first return due?
Nine months after your tax period ends. For a December year end, that is 30 September of the next year. The clock runs from the period end, not from your licence date or your registration date.
Registration comes before filing. If you have not yet registered, even a freezone company with no taxable income, deal with that first. Our guide to company registration in the UAE covers the licensing side.
Which route are you on?
Your situation changes what the return contains, not whether you file.
| Situation | Rate | What changes in the return |
|---|---|---|
| Mainland or non-qualifying freezone company | 0% up to AED 375,000, then 9% | Standard return with adjustments |
| Small Business Relief claim | Treated as no taxable income | Relief election in the return, revenue test applies, available for a limited run of periods |
| Qualifying Free Zone Person (DMCC, IFZA, RAKEZ, ADGM and others) | 0% on qualifying income, 9% on the rest | Qualifying income analysis and audited financials |
| Exempt person (certain government or investment entities) | Exempt | Still registers, may have reduced filing content |
Small Business Relief has an end date that has already been extended once. Check the current position with the FTA before you rely on it.
What goes into the calculation?
Start with net profit from your accounts. Then adjust. Typical items include:
- Non-deductible expenses, such as fines and a share of client entertainment.
- Exempt income, such as qualifying dividends and gains under the participation exemption.
- Brought-forward tax losses, within the usage limits.
- Interest deductibility restrictions, for larger borrowers.
- Related-party transactions and connected-person payments, which must be at arm’s length and disclosed.
Founders paying themselves through the company need particular care. Salary to a shareholder-director, and any drawings or loans, must be documented and priced sensibly.
What are the common first-return mistakes?
I’ll be straight: most problems we see are not arithmetic.
- Treating 0% as “no filing”. The band is a rate. The obligation stays.
- Claiming freezone 0% without checking the activity. An activity that is not a qualifying one, or income from mainland customers, can fall outside it. Where your customers are matters as much as your licence.
- Missing the audit requirement. QFZPs need audited statements, and the audit takes longer than the return.
- Weak records. Bookkeeping assembled in a hurry in month eight usually costs more than the tax.
- Ignoring related-party disclosure. Founders with several entities, say a Dubai company and an Abu Dhabi holding structure, often forget that transactions between them are reportable.
Does your emirate change anything?
Not the return itself. Corporate tax is federal, so Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Ras Al Khaimah and Sharjah companies file the same way. What differs is the licensing and freezone status that decides whether you can claim QFZP treatment. If you are still choosing where to set up, company formation in Dubai explains how structure affects your tax position.
Corporate tax applies to the company. Your own salary and dividends remain outside income tax, as set out in our piece on 0% personal income tax in the UAE.
Should you file it yourself?
Possibly, if you run a single mainland company with simple revenue and clean books. Once you have a freezone claim, related parties, foreign income or a first-year audit, the cost of an error outweighs the saving. A first return also sets the pattern for later ones, since the positions you take now carry forward.
If you want the first filing done accurately, our tax and compliance team can review your position before you submit. If you’d like a clear read on where you stand, get in touch.
Questions people ask
When is my first UAE corporate tax return due?
Nine months after the end of your first tax period. A company with a 31 December year end files by 30 September of the following year. If your first period is shorter or longer than twelve months, the deadline still runs from its end date, so check which period the FTA has recorded for you.
Do I need to file a corporate tax return if my profit is below AED 375,000?
Yes. The 0% band applies to taxable income up to AED 375,000, but it is a rate, not an exemption from filing. A registered taxable person files a return whatever the result, including a loss or a nil return.
Do freezone companies file a corporate tax return?
Yes. A Qualifying Free Zone Person files like everyone else, and the 0% rate only applies to qualifying income. Audited financial statements are required, and income outside the qualifying categories is taxed at 9% unless it falls within the de minimis limits.
What happens if I file my UAE corporate tax return late?
The FTA charges administrative penalties for late filing, and they accumulate month by month, rising after the first year. Late payment carries its own penalty on top. The cost of filing late almost always exceeds the cost of preparing the return properly.
Can I file the corporate tax return myself on EmaraTax?
You can, and some very simple companies do. The portal is the easy part. The risk sits in the numbers behind it: adjustments, related-party items and the reliefs you claim, which are hard to correct once submitted.