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Compliance
Tax invoice compliance
Invoicing is where VAT compliance is either built or quietly broken. Every recovery your customer makes rests on a document your system produced, often without anyone checking it against the regulation.
- Governed by
- Article 59
- Must show
- Tax in AED
- Simplified invoice
- Under AED 10,000
Executive Regulation, Cabinet Decision No. 52 of 2017.
Even where the invoice is issued in another currency.
And only in the cases the regulation allows.
How it runs
- Your live invoice is checked field by fieldThe words "Tax Invoice", both TRNs where required, a sequential number, the date of issue and the date of supply, the rate, and the tax in AED.
- Currency handling is testedA USD invoice still has to show the tax in AED at the correct exchange rate.
- Credit notes get the same treatmentThey fail the requirements just as often, and they are what an auditor samples.
- The template is fixed at sourceIn the accounting system, so the next thousand invoices are right without anyone remembering.
What we ask you for
- A sample tax invoice and credit note
- Your accounting or billing system name
- Details of any foreign-currency invoicing
What we see go wrong
- Foreign-currency invoices with no AED tax amount, which is the single most common defect we find.
- Using a simplified invoice above the threshold, or where a full invoice was required.
- Invoice numbering that restarts, so sequence cannot be demonstrated.
Questions we get asked
What must a UAE tax invoice contain?
The words "Tax Invoice", the supplier name, address and TRN, the recipient details and TRN where they are registered, a sequential number, the date of issue and the date of supply, a description, the unit price, quantity, rate and amount payable, and the tax payable in AED.
Can I issue a tax invoice in a foreign currency?
Yes, but the tax amount must also be shown in AED, converted at the exchange rate approved for the date of supply.
When can I use a simplified tax invoice?
In the limited cases the Executive Regulation allows, generally where the recipient is not registered or the consideration does not exceed AED 10,000.
General information about UAE VAT, current at 10 August 2026. It is not tax advice and does not create a client relationship — see our disclaimer. Confirm your own position with the FTA, or with us, before acting.
Send the return. We will tell you where it stands.
No charge for the first look. If nothing needs doing we will say so, and if something does you will know what it costs before you decide.