Partner-level attention
I read the regulations so you are never surprised by them.
Managing Partner, Brooks ME · Dubai, UAE
Mazahir Arsiwala
UAE tax and compliance, made simple for the people who own the business.
Most UAE owners don't get fined for breaking the law. They get fined because a deadline moved, a rule changed, or a portal profile wasn't updated, and nobody told them in time. That is the problem I solve.
Clients
800+
UAE businesses served across Spicer Pegler and Brooks ME.
FTA-approved Tax Agent
2 regimes
VAT and Excise.
Professional qualifications
3
CA, ACA and CAMS. See credentials
Credentials.
Qualified in India and the UK, certified in anti-money laundering, and approved by the UAE Federal Tax Authority.
CA
Chartered Accountant
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI)
Membership no. 148416Verify ↗
ACA
Associate Chartered Accountant
Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW)
CAMS
Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist
Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists (ACAMS)
FTA
Approved Tax Agent
UAE Federal Tax Authority, for VAT and Excise
TAAN 20052965Verify ↗
Free self-check · 1 minute
Do I need to register for VAT or Corporate Tax?
Three to five quick questions on UAE VAT, Corporate Tax and the free zone 0% test. You get a plain answer, not a sales pitch.
Question 1
What kind of business do you run?
Your result
Here's where you stand.
Want me to look at your situation properly? Fifteen minutes is usually enough to know what to do next.
A general guide based on UAE VAT and Corporate Tax rules as of October 2026. It isn't tax advice for your business.
Free calculator · UAE Labour Law
End-of-service gratuity.
Work out gratuity under Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 for private-sector employees on the mainland and in most free zones.
How it works: no gratuity before one year of continuous service. After that, 21 days of basic salary for each of the first five years and 30 days for each year after, with part years counted pro rata. The total cannot exceed two years' wage, which the law defines as basic salary plus allowances (Art. 51(6)); leave allowances blank and the calculator caps at two years' basic instead. The cap only matters after about 25 years' service. For part-time or job-sharing contracts, enter the full-time basic salary for the role and the contract hours as a percentage of full-time hours (Executive Regulations Art. 30). A day's wage is taken as basic salary ÷ 30, and unpaid leave is excluded from service. Resignation no longer reduces gratuity under the 2021 law. The employer must pay within 14 days of the contract ending (Art. 53) and may deduct amounts the employee owes it, such as loans (Art. 51(7)). Not for DIFC (DEWS) or ADGM employees, UAE nationals under GPSSA pension, or employers in the alternative end-of-service savings scheme. An estimate only, not legal advice.
UAE compliance calendar 2026–27
Never miss a deadline.
VAT, Corporate Tax, Excise and free zone audit and AML filing dates for 2026 and into 2027, plus the AML time limits that have no fixed date but still catch owners out. Add any of them to your own calendar.
No date, still required
- VAT registration. Apply within 30 days of your taxable supplies passing AED 375,000 in any 12 months.
- Corporate Tax registration. Every new UAE company must register; the late registration penalty is AED 10,000.
- Other free zones. JAFZA, DAFZA, DSO, IFZA, SAIF Zone, Dubai South, Meydan, KEZAD, Ajman, UAQ, Fujairah and others set their own audit filing rules, often at licence renewal. Check your zone’s current requirement.
- Suspicious transactions. Report on goAML immediately, without delay. There is no grace period.
- Sanctions matches. Freeze within 24 hours of a UN or UAE listing, then report the confirmed or partial match on goAML within 5 business days.
- Gold and precious stones dealers. Report cash deals of AED 55,000 or more (DPMSR) within 2 weeks.
- High-risk-country transactions. Proceed only 3 working days after reporting, if the FIU does not object.
- UBO changes. Update your beneficial ownership register and notify the registrar within 15 days. New companies file their UBO record within 60 days of licensing.
- AML records. Keep them for at least 5 years after the transaction or relationship ends.
- goAML and EOCN registration. Mandatory for businesses in scope; fines for not registering run from AED 50,000 to AED 1 million.
Dates assume calendar-quarter VAT periods, monthly Excise periods and the financial year-ends shown. Free zone audit dates assume a 31 December year-end (2025 and 2026) and are taken from each authority’s own rules. Your VAT stagger and year-end may differ, so check EmaraTax. Monthly VAT filers file by the 28th of the following month. See every date as a list.
Get deadline reminders by email.
Join Taxation Made Simple UAE and get a heads-up before each key date, plus the rule changes that matter.
One team, from the books to the filing to the defence.
What we handle at Brooks ME
- Corporate TaxRegistration, returns, transfer pricing
- VAT & ExciseReturns, refunds, voluntary disclosures
- Audit & IFRSAssurance and accounting
- AML & UBOPolicies, screening and filings
- Outsourced CFOAdvisory for owners
- Company set-upMainland, free zone, offshore, PRO and Golden Visa through Brooks Biz
Newsletter
Taxation Made Simple UAE
A weekly read for owners and finance leads.
1,400+
In the office
Every FTA and Cabinet decision, turned into action.
The lesson I repeat most
Also heard on Talk 100.3
Your tax compliance is not just a number on a return. It is a gate in front of your licence, your immigration file, and your travel.
Writing.
All case studies LinkedInVAT · Case study · May 2026
Same TRN. Wrong name on the invoice.
29,911
impressions on LinkedIn
A supplier invoiced a sister company inside a VAT group under the parent's name and said the TRN made it fine. It did not.
VAT + Corporate Tax · Case study · Jun 2026
One branch, two tax personalities.
19,880
impressions on LinkedIn
A UAE branch charged its overseas head office 5% VAT. A person cannot supply to itself, yet Corporate Tax treats that branch as separate.
VAT · Update · Feb 2026
Article 54 (bis): a valid invoice is no longer enough.
13,451
impressions on LinkedIn
Since 1 January 2026, if your supplier evades tax and you missed the red flags, the FTA can reject your input tax.
VAT · Update · Oct 2026
The supplier checks you now need.
Since 1 October, FTA Decision No. 13 of 2026 is in force. Check each supplier at the first deal and every 12 months, or risk being treated as if you should have known.
AML · Results · Oct 2026
Three AML penalties. AED 1.3M waived.
Prompt remediation and solid documentation changed the outcome for three clients of Spicer Pegler.
Corporate Tax · Transfer pricing · Sep 2026
Interest-free doesn't mean risk-free.
Money moving between family group companies on a handshake can fall under transfer pricing. Put a loan agreement in place and check Article 31 before year-end.
Corporate Tax · Audit · Sep 2026
Your tax return is only as solid as your audit.
Why the audit, IFRS treatment and the Corporate Tax return have to line up before the filing deadline.
Corporate Tax · Opinion · Jun 2026
Your salary doesn't lower your tax. Proving the role does.
When you pay yourself, the law sees a connected person, not an employee. The deduction rests on a real role at a market rate.
VAT · Opinion · Jun 2026
That 0% on your export isn't automatic.
An export advance starts a 90-day clock. Miss it and the 5% comes out of your own margin.
Corporate Tax · Case study · Jun 2026
A free zone licence is a door, not a guarantee.
AED 6.2 million of mainland sales broke the de minimis limit. One breach costs the 0% rate for five tax periods.
Corporate Tax · Opinion · Jun 2026
Small in Dubai. Still inside Pillar Two.
The 15% top-up tax applies to groups with EUR 750 million in revenue. The test is at group level, not yours.
VAT · Case study · May 2026
The AED 47,000 that blocked a trade licence.
A filed return is not a paid one. DED's renewal check returned an FTA block flag. Cleared in six working days.
Three firms. One standard.
Spicer Pegler for audit and assurance. Brooks ME for tax, advisory and CFO work. Brooks Biz Solutions for company formation, PRO services and Golden Visas. From offices in Dubai and Sharjah, for businesses across the UAE.
Visit us.
Two offices, a short drive apart. Meetings are by appointment.
Dubai
Office 2301, Clover Bay TowerMarasi Drive, Business Bay
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Sharjah
Offices 1310 & 1311, Mohammed Al Mulla TowerAl Ittihad Road, Al Nahda
Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
Let's talk.
If compliance feels like a fire drill, it doesn't have to. Send me a message and tell me what's on your mind.
Or email
i@mazahir.pro