UAE VAT return: when to file, what it contains, what late filing costs

Last verified · The SoloBooks team

In short: Once you are registered for VAT, you file your VAT return and pay the VAT due within 28 days after the end of each tax period. A late return costs 1,000 AED (2,000 AED if it happens again within 24 months), and unpaid VAT adds 14% a year.

When the VAT return is due

The Federal Tax Authority (FTA) states that once you are registered for VAT, you file your VAT return and make the related VAT payment within 28 days from the end of your tax period.

Your tax period and its due dates are shown in your EmaraTax account. Example: a tax period ending on 30 September 2026 gives 28 October 2026, the date the FTA’s announcements page lists as the final deadline for filing VAT returns.

All key dates for the year are on one page: UAE tax deadlines for 2026.

What the return contains

The FTA’s guide to the VAT return goes through these parts, in this order:

We do not add steps of our own: for each box, follow the FTA guide linked below.

What filing or paying late costs

A late VAT return costs 1,000 AED the first time and 2,000 AED if it happens again within 24 months. VAT paid late adds 14% a year on the amount still unpaid, worked out monthly (Cabinet Decision No. 40 of 2017, as amended by Cabinet Decision No. 129 of 2025, in force since 14 April 2026).

Correcting an error yourself (official term: voluntary disclosure) usually costs less than an error found by the FTA. More on penalties: What happens if I file or pay late?

Keep the documents behind each box

Every amount in the return should be backed by an invoice or a receipt. For VAT, the general rule is to keep records for 5 years, longer in some cases: see record-keeping requirements.

Not registered yet? Check the 375,000 AED threshold with the VAT registration calculator.

How SoloBooks helps

SoloBooks reads your receipts and invoices, you approve each one, and the Plus plan shows VAT on sales and VAT on purchases per quarter. You compare these figures with your return and submit it yourself on EmaraTax: SoloBooks is software only and does not submit returns.

Check it with the free calculator: VAT registration calculator →

Official sources

General information, not tax advice. Your situation may differ.

Keep your records ready all year

SoloBooks reads your receipts, you approve each one, and you get your year-end figures to file your return yourself.

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