Dubai
Corporate Tax Consultant in Dubai
We run the full corporate tax file for Dubai businesses, from registration through to filing.
Rate and threshold
The rate is 9% on taxable income above AED 375,000, with 0% below it. The threshold applies to **taxable income after adjustments**, not total sales — a confusion business owners fall into regularly.
Free zone status in Dubai
Dubai hosts a large number of free zones, and Qualifying Free Zone Person status is a separate regime with its own conditions. It is not Small Business Relief — in fact Qualifying Free Zone Persons are expressly excluded from that relief.
Related-party transactions
The number of multi-entity groups in Dubai makes dealings between sister companies a central item. The arm's length principle still applies even under Small Business Relief.
Planning before year end
The decisions taken before the financial year closes are the ones that make a difference. After it closes you are documenting what happened, nothing more — which is why we prefer to engage early rather than in filing season.
How the taxable base is built
The calculation does not start from sales but from the accounting profit in financial statements prepared under applicable accounting standards, which is then adjusted: non-deductible expenses, exempt items, and carried-forward losses where they exist. Which makes the quality of your books not an administrative matter — it is what determines the figure you pay on.
Registration applies to everyone
Being within the rate is one thing; registering is another. A business whose income falls entirely below the threshold still registers, obtains a tax registration number and files, and so do free zone companies even with Qualifying Free Zone Person status. Zero per cent is not an exemption from the process.
What we ask for to open the file
Licence, constitutional documents and ownership structure; the financial statements for the year being filed; the trial balance; details of related-party dealings where they exist; and any prior ruling or correspondence with the Authority. From these we identify gaps before they turn into a late correction.
Frequently asked questions
Is our free zone company in scope?
Scope and Qualifying Free Zone Person status depend on specific conditions. We assess your position precisely and set out what applies before any step.
What do we need to start?
Your books, financial statements and constitutional documents. From those we identify gaps, the plan and the timeline.
Will you review a return we prepared?
Yes, we provide an independent review before submission so anything needing correction surfaces early.
We made a loss this year — do we still file?
Yes. Filing is required of a registered person regardless of the result, and a loss documented through a correct return is what allows it to be carried forward against later profits. Skipping the return forfeits that and creates a breach at the same time.
What is the difference between Small Business Relief and Qualifying Free Zone Person status?
Two separate regimes that do not combine: the first rests on a revenue ceiling, the second on the nature of the income and substantive conditions inside the free zone. Qualifying Free Zone Persons are expressly excluded from the first.
We deal with a sister company at preferential prices — is that acceptable?
What is required is that the transaction reflects what two independent parties would have agreed. We review these dealings and help document the basis of pricing before it is asked about rather than after.