UAE Corporate Tax Registration Deadline & AED 10k Penalty

UAE companies subject to Corporate Tax, including free-zone companies and companies that make no profit, must register with the Federal Tax Authority (FTA) and get a Corporate Tax Registration Number (TRN). Missing the deadline costs a fixed AED 10,000. This guide sets out the exact deadlines under FTA Decision No. 3 of 2024, how the penalty waiver works, and what the extension of Small Business Relief to 2029 means for smaller companies. It reflects the rules as of October 2026.

Who must register for UAE Corporate Tax

Corporate Tax under Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022 applies to financial years starting on or after 1 June 2023. The rate is 0% on taxable income up to AED 375,000 and 9% above that. Registration is not linked to profit or revenue: if you are in scope, you must register even if you expect to pay nothing.

• Resident companies: mainland LLCs, free-zone companies and other entities incorporated in the UAE, plus foreign companies that are effectively managed and controlled in the UAE.
• Non-resident companies with a permanent establishment or a nexus in the UAE.
• Individuals running a business in the UAE whose business turnover exceeds AED 1 million in a calendar year. Wages from employment are not business turnover.
• Certain exempt persons, such as qualifying public benefit entities and qualifying investment funds, which still have to register with the FTA to secure their status.

Do not assume that every exempt person follows the ordinary company deadline. Some categories are excepted from registration, while others must register or apply for exemption under specific rules. Establish the legal exemption category first; a low-profit commercial company is not an exempt person merely because its tax is zero.

Corporate Tax registration is separate from VAT. Being registered for VAT does not register you for Corporate Tax, and the AED 375,000 VAT threshold has nothing to do with whether you must register for Corporate Tax. For the VAT test, see the VAT registration threshold explained.

Deadlines for companies licensed before 1 March 2024

FTA Decision No. 3 of 2024 (issued 22 February 2024, effective 1 March 2024) set staggered deadlines for resident companies established before 1 March 2024. What matters is the month the licence was issued, not the year. If the company holds more than one licence, the licence with the earliest issue date counts.

Example: a Dubai mainland trading company first licensed on 12 May 2017, and renewed every year since, had to apply by 31 July 2024, because its earliest licence was issued in May. A free-zone consultancy licensed on 3 October 2021 had until 30 November 2024.

All of these dates have passed. If a company in this group has still not registered, the AED 10,000 penalty has already been incurred, and the priority is to register immediately. The final section of this guide explains what to do.

Deadlines for new companies, branches and individuals

For anyone who came into scope on or after 1 March 2024, the deadline runs from the date of a specific event rather than a fixed calendar date.

A UAE branch of a UAE company is not a separate legal person for Corporate Tax: include it under the head office's registration, even if branches operate in different emirates. A foreign company's UAE branch requires a separate analysis of permanent-establishment status. The 6-month rule above should not be applied retrospectively to a non-resident company already in scope before 1 March 2024; Decision No. 3 gave that earlier group a 9-month permanent-establishment registration window.

Example: a company incorporated in a Dubai free zone on 10 January 2026 had to apply by 10 April 2026. A UAE-resident freelance consultant whose business turnover reaches AED 1.2 million in calendar year 2026 must apply by 31 March 2027.

The deadline is for submitting the application, not for receiving the TRN. Even so, apply early: if the FTA asks for more documents, you want time to answer without pressure. Make registration part of your incorporation checklist rather than waiting for your first invoice.

How to register on EmaraTax

Registration is free and done online through EmaraTax, the FTA portal. The application covers the entity's legal details, licences, owners and the person signing. A typical company application follows these steps.

1. 1Sign in to EmaraTaxCreate an account at tax.gov.ae or sign in with UAE Pass. If the company is already registered for VAT, use the same account; the entity will already appear as a taxable person.
2. 2Start the Corporate Tax registrationSelect the entity from the dashboard (or add a new taxable person) and choose Corporate Tax registration.
3. 3Enter entity details and the financial yearGive the legal name in English and Arabic, legal form, incorporation date and financial year. The financial year sets your tax periods and therefore every return deadline, so make sure it matches the company's constitutional documents.
4. 4Add licences, owners and activitiesUpload the trade licence and list every licence the company holds. Have the memorandum and articles of association and shareholder details ready for the ownership section.
5. 5Add the authorised signatoryEnter the signatory's details with Emirates ID and passport copies, plus proof of authority, such as a power of attorney or board resolution, if the signatory is not the owner.
6. 6Review, submit and answer queriesCheck every field, submit and keep the application reference. If the FTA asks for more information, reply within the period stated in the notification.
7. 7Record the TRN and your first deadlinesOnce approved, the Corporate Tax TRN and registration certificate appear in EmaraTax. Diarise the end of your first tax period, the 7-month waiver date and the 9-month return date straight away.

Exact document requirements vary by entity type, so follow what EmaraTax asks for in your case. Check for mismatches between the licence, the memorandum and the details typed into the form before submitting. A corporate tax registration engagement can include checking these documents and monitoring FTA queries.

The AED 10,000 penalty and how the waiver works

Under Cabinet Decision No. 75 of 2023, as amended by Cabinet Decision No. 10 of 2024 from 1 March 2024, failing to submit a registration application on time carries an administrative penalty of AED 10,000. It is a single fixed amount: it does not depend on profit, revenue or how many months late you are.

The Cabinet then approved an initiative allowing the FTA to waive the penalty. It took effect on 14 April 2025 and covers late-registration penalties incurred from 1 June 2023. In May 2026 the FTA said more than 68,600 taxpayers had already benefited and that it expected the total to exceed 91,000.

• The condition: file the Corporate Tax return (or, for an exempt person required to register, the annual declaration) within 7 months of the end of the first tax period, instead of the normal 9 months.
• Automatic: no separate waiver or reconsideration request is needed. If the return is filed in time, the penalty is removed from the EmaraTax account.
• Already paid: the AED 10,000 is credited to the EmaraTax account. You can leave it there to settle Corporate Tax or request a refund.
• First period only: the waiver depends on the first tax period. Once 7 months after its end have passed without a return, the waiver is lost.
• Payment deadline unchanged: the tax itself is still due within 9 months of the period end.

Small Business Relief: the AED 3m test, extended to 2029

Small Business Relief (SBR) lets a resident person with revenue of AED 3 million or less elect to be treated as having no taxable income for the period. It originally applied to tax periods ending on or before 31 December 2026. On 7 August 2026 the Ministry of Finance announced Ministerial Decision No. 131 of 2026, which extends SBR to tax periods ending on or before 31 December 2029. The AED 3 million threshold set by Ministerial Decision No. 73 of 2023 is unchanged.

• Revenue test: revenue must be AED 3 million or less in the current tax period and in every previous tax period. Going over it once ends eligibility for later periods.
• Who cannot use it: Qualifying Free Zone Persons, and members of multinational groups with consolidated revenue of AED 3.15 billion or more.
• Trade-off: tax losses from periods in which SBR is elected cannot be carried forward.
• You still register and file: SBR is claimed as an election in the Corporate Tax return. It does not remove the registration or filing obligation, and it does not protect you from the late-registration penalty.

Example: a Dubai design studio has revenue of AED 2.4 million and taxable income of AED 600,000 for 2026. Without SBR, tax is 9% × (600,000 − 375,000) = AED 20,250. With SBR elected, Corporate Tax payable is nil. If revenue reaches AED 3.2 million in 2027, the studio cannot elect SBR for 2027 or any later year, even if revenue falls back below AED 3 million.

Registration is not filing: the 9-month return

The TRN starts the compliance cycle; it does not complete it. The Corporate Tax return and any payment are due within 9 months of the end of each tax period. For a 31 December 2025 year end that was 30 September 2026; for a 31 December 2026 year end it will be 30 September 2027.

Records must be kept for 7 years after the end of the tax period. Filing within 7 months rather than 9 is only realistic if the books are closed promptly each month; our month-end close checklist shows what that involves.

If you have already missed your deadline

1. 1Register nowThe AED 10,000 penalty does not increase with time, but you cannot file returns without a TRN, and late-filing penalties on overdue returns grow every month.
2. 2Identify your first tax periodIt is the first financial year starting on or after 1 June 2023, or your first financial year if the company is newer. For a calendar-year company that existed before June 2023, it is 1 January to 31 December 2024.
3. 3Find the waiver dateAdd 7 months to the end of the first tax period.
4. 4If that date is still aheadPrepare and file the first return before it. The penalty will be waived or credited automatically, subject to the initiative's conditions.
5. 5If that date has passedBudget for the AED 10,000 and file any overdue returns quickly to stop late-filing penalties building up.
6. 6Check SBR for each periodIf revenue has stayed at AED 3 million or less and the other eligibility conditions are met, electing SBR can bring the tax to nil.

HOF Partners can take this off your hands, from EmaraTax registration to the first return and the SBR election, through our corporate tax services.