How the test works
A business established in the UAE must register for VAT when its taxable supplies and imports exceeded AED 375,000 over the previous 12 months, or are expected to exceed AED 375,000 in the next 30 days. Either test is enough. “Exceeded” means over: exactly AED 375,000 does not trigger it.
Taxable supplies include zero-rated sales as well as standard-rated ones. Exempt supplies are left out, and so is the sale of a capital asset.
Below that threshold, a business may register voluntarily once its taxable supplies and imports, or its taxable expenses, exceed AED 187,500 over the previous 12 months, or are expected to in the next 30 days. It must also show the FTA that it carries on a business in the UAE and intends to make taxable supplies.
When to apply
Once you are required to register, the FTA expects your application within 30 days. You apply on EmaraTax; the FTA charges no fee and estimates about 20 business days once the application is complete. Registering late carries a penalty of AED 10,000.
A business that is not established in the UAE has no threshold. It must register from its first taxable supply in the UAE, unless someone else, usually a UAE customer under the reverse charge, has to account for the VAT. Our page on VAT registration lists the documents the FTA asks for and how we prepare the application.