Everyday expenses

Are fees for a tax agent, audit, lawyer or consultant deductible?

Usually safe if you keep the documents

In short: Generally yes, when the service is for the business: for example preparing or filing the company’s returns, an audit of its accounts, a contract or a consultant’s advice for the company. Fees for a personal matter do not count.

The basic rule

Costs that are purely for the business, and are not the purchase of a long-lasting asset (official term: not capital in nature), are taken off the profit of the year they relate to. Professional fees follow the same rule as any other cost.

When it is different

Fees for a personal or family matter (your own personal affairs, a family legal case, a private property) are personal, not business costs.
When one invoice covers both business and personal work, only the business part counts.
Fees linked to buying a long-lasting asset are not a plain cost of the year (official term: capital in nature): see the entry on laptops and equipment.
Fees paid to the owner, a director or one of their relatives (a Connected Person) are deductible only to the extent they match market value.

Documents to keep

Invoice in the business’s name, describing the service
Engagement letter or contract, if there is one
Payment proof
Tax invoice showing VAT if you are registered for VAT

How safe is it?

Usually safe if you keep the documents Low when the invoice is in the business’s name, describes a business service and the provider is unrelated.

When to ask a professional

Usually not needed. Ask when the work mixes business and personal matters, or when the fees are paid to yourself or a relative. Who can confirm it for your own case: an FTA-registered tax agent (a tax professional approved by the UAE tax authority), or the optional year-end review in SoloBooks.

If you pay no Corporate Tax this year (Small Business Relief): If you use Small Business Relief this year, you pay no Corporate Tax anyway, so this cost does not change your tax for that year. Keep the documents anyway: they back up your income figure, and they matter if you stop qualifying later.

Check it with the free calculator: Small Business Relief calculator →

Sources

Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022 on the Taxation of Corporations and Businesses (consolidated, unofficial English translation) — Art. 28(1), 36(1) and 36(2)
Federal Decree-Law No. 8 of 2017 on Value Added Tax (consolidated) — Art. 54 and 55

Last verified: 19 October 2026

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

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