Most penalties a UAE company collects are not for mistakes in the books but for missed dates. Below are the company's obligations with the rule for counting each deadline. We deliberately give rules rather than calendar dates: "9 months after the end of the tax period" holds for every financial year and does not go stale, while a date holds for one year only. Each row says when we checked it and against what: official — the text of the law, a decision or an official portal; secondary — advisers and law firms only, to be used with caution.
The table
| Obligation | Rule and deadline | If missed | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Corporate tax registration | Mandatory for every juridical person; the deadline is set by FTA Decision No. 3 of 2024 and depends on the licence issue date. We confirm the exact months for your company | Penalty AED 10,000 (Cabinet Decision No. 75 of 2023) | 22.09.2026 official for the penalty and the reference to Decision No. 3/2024 (FTA service page); month-by-month timelines not verified |
| Corporate tax return | No later than 9 months after the end of the tax period (Art. 53, Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022) | AED 500 per month for the first 12 months, then AED 1,000 per month | 22.09.2026 official (text of the law) |
| Corporate tax payment | Within the same 9 months after the end of the period (Art. 48) | Late-payment penalties under the Tax Procedures Law — amount to be confirmed | 22.09.2026 official for the deadline |
| Small Business Relief | Elected in the return where revenue is AED 3 million or less in the current and all previous periods; for periods ending on or before 31.12.2029. Not available to a QFZP or to members of multinational groups | Tax losses of an SBR period cannot be carried forward | 22.09.2026 official (Ministerial Decisions 73/2023 and 131/2026) |
| VAT registration | Mandatory once taxable supplies exceed AED 375,000 over 12 months, or are expected to within the next 30 days; the application is due within 30 days of becoming liable. Voluntary from AED 187,500 | Penalties under the Tax Procedures Law — amounts to be confirmed | 22.09.2026 official (FTA; Cabinet Decision 52/2017, Art. 7) |
| VAT return and payment | Standard tax period 3 calendar months; return and payment by the 28th day after the end of the period (Arts. 62 and 64 of the Executive Regulation) | Late-filing penalties — amounts to be confirmed | 22.09.2026 official (text of the Regulation) |
| Audit | A QFZP must have audited financial statements (Ministerial Decision 84/2025). For others it depends on revenue — threshold to be confirmed. Several free zones require an audit for licence renewal regardless of turnover | Loss of QFZP status; the zone refusing renewal | 21.09.2026 official for QFZP; threshold and zone rules — secondary |
| Licence renewal | Expiry date is on the licence itself; renewal with the registrar (the emirate's DED or the free zone) before expiry | Registrar's late fees under the zone's rules — to be confirmed; visas and banking blocked | 22.09.2026 secondary (registrars differ) |
| Residence visa and Emirates ID | Validity is on the visa; renew before expiry. Golden Visa for property from AED 2 million — 10 years, renewable. Permitted-absence rule — to be confirmed | Immigration fines — to be confirmed | 21.09.2026 official for the Golden Visa (DLD); the rest — secondary |
| Domestic Minimum Top-up Tax (DMTT) | Only groups with revenue of EUR 750 million or more: 15% from 01.01.2025; registration within 7 months after the end of the first fiscal year in scope (FTA Decision No. 12 of 2026) | Does not affect small and medium businesses | 22.09.2026 official (Ministry of Finance; text of the FTA Decision) |
| ESR — economic substance | Abolished for financial years ending after 31.12.2022 (Cabinet Decision No. 98 of 2024). Obligations for 2019–2022 remain: replies to regulators' requests, penalties already imposed | Past periods only | 22.09.2026 official (UAE Ministry of Finance) |
How to read the table
Corporate tax and VAT are separate obligations. A company can be required to register for corporate tax while still below the VAT threshold; the AED 10,000 registration penalty is paid mostly by companies that "have not earned anything yet". Both taxes are administered by the FTA through EmaraTax. Details in corporate tax in the UAE and VAT in the UAE.
A free zone is not an exemption. The 0% rate applies only to a QFZP and only to qualifying income; such a company has no 0% band on the first AED 375,000, but it does have a mandatory audit. See QFZP status and bookkeeping and audit.
What we do with this calendar
We build a company its own twelve-month calendar with dates instead of rules — for its financial year, its zone and its visa headcount — and re-check the rates before each deadline. Licence renewal is explained in licences in the UAE, visas for staff and family in residence visas, and what remains of the abolished ESR regime in ESR and UBO.
Get a calendar for your company
Message us on WhatsApp or Telegram at +971 58 600 98 87 and send the licence and the financial year-end date; that is enough to turn the rules into dates. You can also work through your situation on the home page.
⚠️ The table reflects the rules as of the date checked in each row. UAE deadlines and penalties are revised; we re-check before every deadline. This is not legal advice.