UAE Issues Guidance Ahead Of VAT Filing Deadline

Businesses registered for the United Arab Emirates's value-added tax need to complete a four-step online procedure to file their tax returns, the Federal Tax Authority has said.

From the beginning of February 2018, the FTA launched an online system for filing tax returns and paying taxes, ahead of the filing obligation arising on February 28, 2018, for monthly filers whose first tax period ended January 31, 2018.

The FTA said the first step to submitting a tax return is to enter the e-Services portal on its website, then choose the "VAT" tab, select the "VATReturns" page, and initiate a new return. Taxpayers must then fill out information about supplies and expenditures, after which the system will produce a tax calculation. The return should then be submitted and payment can be made via the "My Payments" tab.

Businesses registered in the VAT system are required to submit their returns on a monthly or quarterly basis, as specified by the Authority. Information about tax periods is available on the FTA website, where registered businesses can check their allocated tax periods and whether their first tax period ended on January 31, 2018.

Filing concessions were announced by the FTA on February 3, 2018, enabling certain monthly filers to file on a quarterly basis for the first three months of the tax year and allowing extra time for some quarterly filers also. Businesses whose first tax period is the three months ending March 2018 are not included in these adjustments, the FTA said.

Tax returns must be received no later than the 28th day following the end of the tax period concerned, and taxpayers are offered a number of ways to pay any tax due via the e-Dirham platform.

According to the FTA, tax returns must include: the value of standard-rated supplies made in the tax period and the output tax charged; the value of zero-rated supplies made in the tax period; the value of exempt supplies made in the tax period; the value of any reverse-charged supplies received in the tax period; the value of expenses incurred in the tax period (if the business in question is looking to recover input tax and the amount of recoverable tax); the total amount of tax due and recoverable input tax for the tax period; and the payable tax (or repayable) for the tax period.

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