UAE Corporate Tax runs on three deadlines: one to register, one to file the return, and one to pay. Each is fixed by law, each has its own penalty, and the penalties apply even when no tax is due. This guide gives you all three in one place: who must register and by when, how the nine month filing and payment deadline works for your year end, and what missing a date costs.
The three deadlines at a glance
| Obligation | Deadline | If you miss it |
|---|---|---|
| Register and obtain a TRN | Set by FTA Decision No. 3 of 2024 (see the tables below) | AED 10,000, fixed |
| File the return | Within nine months of the end of the tax period | AED 500 a month for the first 12 months, then AED 1,000 a month |
| Pay the tax due | The same date as the return | 14% a year on the unpaid tax, charged monthly |
Who must register
Under the Corporate Tax Law, Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022, every taxable person must register and obtain a Tax Registration Number. Article 51 makes registration a requirement, and it does not depend on making a profit. A company with a small profit, a loss, or income below the AED 375,000 threshold still registers, and free zone companies register too. A short list of persons, such as government entities and some non-residents with only UAE sourced income, are told not to register. Registering and paying tax are separate things, and the duty to register does not wait for you to owe anything.
Registration deadlines for new businesses
FTA Decision No. 3 of 2024 sets the timeline. For anyone that became a taxable person on or after 1 March 2024, the clock runs from the event that brought it into the tax.
| Taxable person | Register within |
|---|---|
| UAE company, mainland or free zone, formed on or after 1 March 2024 | 3 months from incorporation |
| Foreign company effectively managed and controlled in the UAE | 3 months from the end of its financial year |
| Non-resident with a permanent establishment | 6 months from when the permanent establishment exists |
| Non-resident with a nexus in the UAE | 3 months from when the nexus arises |
| Resident individual with business turnover above AED 1 million in a calendar year | By 31 March of the following year |
| Non-resident individual | 3 months from becoming subject to tax |
Months are counted to the corresponding date, so a company incorporated on 16 June has until 16 September.
Registration deadlines for companies that existed before 1 March 2024
For existing companies the deadline turned on the month the earliest trade licence was issued, ignoring the year. All of these dates have passed, so a company in this group that has not registered is already late and should register now.
| Month the licence was first issued | Registration deadline |
|---|---|
| January or February | 31 May 2024 |
| March or April | 30 June 2024 |
| May | 31 July 2024 |
| June | 31 August 2024 |
| July | 30 September 2024 |
| August or September | 31 October 2024 |
| October or November | 30 November 2024 |
| December | 31 December 2024 |
| No licence | 31 May 2024 |
The late registration penalty, and the waiver
Registering after your deadline triggers a fixed administrative penalty of AED 10,000. A profitable business and a loss making one face the same amount. The FTA will waive it, or credit it back if already paid, where the first Corporate Tax return is filed within seven months of the end of the first tax period. That relief is for the first period only, and the tax itself is still due at nine months.
Registration is not the same as owing tax. Every taxable person registers, even at a loss, and the AED 10,000 penalty for registering late applies regardless of whether any tax was due.
Filing and payment: the nine month rule
Under Article 53 of the Corporate Tax Law, the return is due within nine months of the end of the tax period, and any tax must be paid by the same date. It is one date with two obligations: filing on time does not protect you if the payment is late, and paying on time does not replace the return.
| Tax period ends | File and pay by |
|---|---|
| 31 December 2025 | 30 September 2026 |
| 31 March 2026 | 31 December 2026 |
| 30 June 2026 | 31 March 2027 |
| 30 September 2026 | 30 June 2027 |
| 31 December 2026 | 30 September 2027 |
File even if you owe nothing
A registered taxable person must file even if it made a loss or its taxable income sits below the threshold. The late filing penalty applies whether or not tax was owed. Claiming Small Business Relief also happens inside the return, so it needs a return to exist. Free zone companies are caught out here often; see why a free zone first return is not a zero.
Leave room for the payment to clear
A payment that leaves your account on the deadline but reaches the FTA after it can still be late. Initiate it a few days ahead with the correct reference. Our guide to paying Corporate Tax on EmaraTax covers the payment routes.
A filing checklist for any year end
Start about a month before your deadline. Most of the time goes into the preparation, not the submission.
| Step | What to do |
|---|---|
| 1. Confirm registration | Have your Corporate Tax TRN ready; you cannot file without it |
| 2. Finalise the accounts | Financial statements for the period that you can stand behind |
| 3. Make the tax adjustments | Add back non-deductible items and apply reliefs to reach taxable income |
| 4. Confirm reliefs and elections | Small Business Relief, free zone treatment or other positions, with support |
| 5. Calculate the tax | 9% on taxable income above AED 375,000 (try our UAE tax calculator) |
| 6. File on EmaraTax | Complete and submit the return |
| 7. Pay by the deadline | Settle the balance so it clears in time |
For the supporting papers, see the documents a Corporate Tax return needs and how to file the return.
If you have already missed a deadline
Late filing and late payment penalties run in parallel and grow every month, so the cheapest move is to file and pay as soon as you can. A return due on 30 September 2026 and filed on 15 March 2027 attracts six monthly charges of AED 500, or AED 3,000, before any late payment penalty. Our guides to what to do after a missed deadline and Corporate Tax penalties set out the steps, and correcting a tax error covers voluntary disclosure if you also find a mistake.
What to do about it
Confirm that your company is registered, and if it is not, register now: for most existing companies the deadline has already passed. Note your tax period end and count nine months to find your filing and payment date. Work the checklist a month ahead, file even at a loss, and pay early enough to clear. Almost every Corporate Tax penalty comes from a missed administrative date, not from the tax itself, which makes them the easiest costs in the system to avoid.
This article is general information and is not tax advice. It refers to Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022, FTA Decision No. 3 of 2024 and Cabinet Decision No. 75 of 2023, which should be confirmed against their current official text. We would be glad to help you find your deadlines, register and file correctly.