UAE Corporate Tax Filing Deadline

UAE Corporate Tax Update · August 2026

UAE Corporate Tax Filing Deadline 2026: 30 September for 31 December 2025 Year-End

Updated: 13 August 2026
Reviewed by: Credora Corporate Tax Advisory Team, FTA Registered Tax Agent TAAN 20056628

If your UAE company’s financial year ran from 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2025, its Corporate Tax Return must be filed by 30 September 2026.

The Federal Tax Authority confirmed again on 3 August 2026 that taxpayers whose financial year ended on 31 December 2025 must submit their Corporate Tax Returns and settle any Corporate Tax due no later than 30 September 2026.

30 September 2026 applies to a Tax Period ending 31 December 2025. It is not the Corporate Tax deadline for every UAE business.

The general UAE Corporate Tax filing and payment deadline is nine months from the end of the relevant Tax Period.

Credora’s team includes an FTA Registered Tax Agent, TAAN 20056628, and assists UAE mainland and Free Zone businesses with Corporate Tax return preparation, review and filing.

Is 30 September 2026 the UAE Corporate Tax Filing Deadline?

Yes, if your Tax Period ended on 31 December 2025.

A company with another financial year-end should not automatically use the September deadline. Its Corporate Tax filing date is generally calculated nine months from the end of its own Tax Period.

For newly incorporated companies, the incorporation date can affect when the first Financial Year and first Tax Period begin. The first Tax Period does not always have to be a standard 12-month period.

UAE Corporate Tax Filing Deadlines in 2026

The 30 September deadline is important for businesses using a calendar-year financial period, but it is not the only UAE Corporate Tax deadline in 2026.

These dates follow the standard nine-month rule. Businesses should confirm the Tax Period shown in EmaraTax rather than assuming that every UAE company follows a January-to-December financial year.

Who Must File a Corporate Tax Return by 30 September 2026?

Corporate Taxable Persons with a Tax Period ending on 31 December 2025 should review their filing position before the September deadline.

Corporate Taxable Persons have a filing obligation regardless of their level of income. A return can therefore still be required where:

• the business made a loss;
• Taxable Income is below the level at which Corporate Tax becomes payable;
• Small Business Relief is being elected; or
• a Free Zone business expects a 0% rate to apply to Qualifying Income.

Exempt Persons required to register are treated differently and may have an Annual Declaration obligation instead of the same Corporate Tax Return required from a Taxable Person.

For natural persons, Corporate Tax applies where they conduct a Business or Business Activity in the UAE and total Turnover from those activities exceeds AED 1 million in the calendar year. Wages, Personal Investment Income and Real Estate Investment Income are excluded from this test.

Small Business Relief Does Not Mean No Corporate Tax Return

Small Business Relief does not remove the Corporate Tax filing requirement.

The FTA’s 3 August 2026 update confirmed that an eligible business elects Small Business Relief through its Corporate Tax Return and submits a simplified Corporate Tax Return.

Small Business Relief changes the tax treatment and return process. It does not remove the obligation to file.

Under the current rules, an eligible Resident Person must satisfy the relevant conditions, including Revenue of no more than AED 3 million in the current and previous Tax Periods. A Qualifying Free Zone Person cannot elect Small Business Relief.

Do Free Zone Companies Have to File Corporate Tax Returns?

Yes. Free Zone status does not remove UAE Corporate Tax registration and filing obligations.

All Free Zone Persons must register for Corporate Tax. A Qualifying Free Zone Person may benefit from a 0% Corporate Tax rate on Qualifying Income, but it still has Corporate Tax compliance obligations, including filing a Corporate Tax Return.

A 0% Corporate Tax rate is not the same as having no Corporate Tax Return to file.

How to File UAE Corporate Tax for the 2025 Financial Year

Corporate Tax Returns are filed electronically through the FTA’s EmaraTax platform. For a January-to-December 2025 Tax Period, the filing process normally includes the following stages.

Do You Have to File and Pay Corporate Tax at the Same Time?

No. The Corporate Tax Return and Corporate Tax payment have the same deadline, but they do not have to be completed at the same moment.

A business can submit its Corporate Tax Return and make the payment separately, provided both are completed within the applicable statutory deadline.

Same deadline does not mean the filing and payment must be one transaction.

For a Tax Period ending 31 December 2025, both filing and payment must be completed by 30 September 2026. Businesses should also allow sufficient time for payments to reach the FTA rather than leaving payment until the final day.

What Happens if You Miss the Corporate Tax Filing Deadline?

Late filing and late payment are separate Corporate Tax violations and can result in separate administrative penalties.

Late Corporate Tax Return

Failure to submit a Corporate Tax Return within the required timeframe can result in:

• AED 500 for each month or part of a month for the first 12 months; and
• AED 1,000 for each month or part of a month from the 13th month onwards.

The late-filing penalty begins from the day after the applicable return deadline. A part of a month counts for penalty purposes.

Late Corporate Tax Payment

Failure to settle Corporate Tax Payable is subject to a monthly penalty calculated at 14% per annum for each month or part of a month on the unpaid amount, beginning from the day following the payment due date. This is separate from the late-return penalty.

Documents Required for UAE Corporate Tax Filing

There is no identical Corporate Tax document checklist for every company. The records required depend on the business, its transactions and the tax positions claimed in the return.

For a normal company filing, Credora will usually review documents and records such as:

• Corporate Tax TRN and registration details;
• financial statements and accounting records for the Tax Period;
• trial balance, general ledger and relevant reconciliations;
• schedules supporting Corporate Tax adjustments;
• records supporting exemptions or reliefs claimed;
• related-party and Connected Person information where applicable;
• asset and liability records; and
• supporting information for Small Business Relief or Free Zone treatment where relevant.

The exact document request should be based on the company’s circumstances rather than copied from a generic checklist.

Does Every Company Need Audited Financial Statements for Corporate Tax?

No. Audited financial statements are not a universal requirement for every UAE Corporate Tax filer.

For Tax Periods beginning on or after 1 January 2025, Ministerial Decision No. 84 of 2025 requires audited financial statements for a Taxable Person that is not a Tax Group where Revenue exceeds AED 50 million, and for a Qualifying Free Zone Person. Tax Groups have separate audited special-purpose financial statement requirements.

How Long Must Corporate Tax Records Be Kept?

Corporate Tax records must generally be retained for at least seven years after the end of the Tax Period to which they relate.

The records should support the information reported in the Corporate Tax Return and allow the FTA to verify the company’s tax position if supporting documents are requested later.

Don’t Confuse 30 September With the 7-Month Registration Penalty Waiver

The UAE Corporate Tax late-registration penalty waiver has a separate timing rule that can easily be confused with the normal return deadline.

An eligible Taxable Person must submit its first Corporate Tax Return within seven months from the end of its first Tax Period to qualify for the waiver of the AED 10,000 late-registration penalty.

For a first Tax Period ending 31 December 2025, that seven-month point was 31 July 2026.

31 July 2026 was a condition for the late-registration penalty waiver. The normal Corporate Tax filing and payment deadline remains 30 September 2026.

When Should You Use a Tax Agent for UAE Corporate Tax Filing?

UAE Corporate Tax filing involves more than entering figures into EmaraTax. The accounting profit must be reviewed for the applicable Corporate Tax adjustments, deductions, exemptions and elections before the final Taxable Income and Corporate Tax payable are reported.

Professional tax support becomes particularly important where a business has Related Party or Connected Person transactions, Tax Losses, relief claims, transfer pricing matters or Free Zone income. For Free Zone companies, the treatment of Qualifying Income and compliance with the conditions for the 0% Corporate Tax rate also require careful review.

Credora Consultancy is led by Mr. Chirag Gupta, FTA Registered Tax Agent – TAAN 20056628. Our Corporate Tax services cover accounting and tax adjustments, return review, supporting schedules, EmaraTax filing and assistance with FTA tax matters.

Why File Before September?

Although the UAE Corporate Tax filing deadline allows nine months, businesses still need sufficient time to review their accounts, complete Corporate Tax adjustments and prepare an accurate return.

Businesses approaching the UAE Corporate Tax filing deadline should review unreconciled balances, shareholder transactions, missing expense support, related-party balances, Free Zone income classifications and incomplete accounting records before the final weeks of September.

For a calendar-year 2025 Tax Period, the important question in August is whether the 2025 accounts and Corporate Tax calculation are ready to file.

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