By Karun Reji, Chartered Accountant, BI-Outsource. General information, not tax or legal advice. Rules change: check the current position before you act.
Short answer: the UAE is moving to mandatory e-invoicing through accredited service providers. Under the 2025 ministerial decisions, businesses with revenue of AED 50 million or more must appoint a provider by mid-2026 and go live from January 2027, and other businesses follow in 2027. Start now by cleaning master data and choosing an accredited provider.
Timeline
| Group | Appoint provider by | Go live |
|---|---|---|
| Pilot (selected taxpayers) | — | From July 2026 |
| Revenue AED 50 million or more | 31 July 2026 | 1 January 2027 |
| Revenue below AED 50 million | 31 March 2027 | 1 July 2027 |
| Government entities | 31 March 2027 | 1 October 2027 |
Dates are based on the 2025 ministerial decisions; confirm the current schedule with the Ministry of Finance and FTA.
What changes
- Invoices and credit notes are issued in a structured electronic format, not PDF.
- They pass through an accredited service provider, which reports data to the FTA.
- Business-to-business and business-to-government transactions are covered first.
- Your ERP or accounting software must integrate with the provider.
Preparation checklist
- List all systems that issue invoices.
- Clean customer and supplier master data, including TRNs.
- Shortlist accredited service providers and check integration with your software.
- Update invoice templates and credit note processes.
- Test with sample invoices before the go-live date.
- Train finance and sales teams.
Need help? We help UAE businesses prepare their accounting for e-invoicing. See accounts payable outsourcing.
Frequently asked questions
No. VAT returns continue; e-invoicing changes how invoices are issued and reported.
Invoices must go through an FTA-accredited service provider; your software connects to it.
Yes, in the later phase, following the larger businesses.
Administrative penalties for e-invoicing failures have been issued; check the current penalty schedule.
