The UAE FTA has announced that the online registration for VAT is now open.

• All businesses with a turnover of more than AED 150m should apply for registration before Oct 31, 2017.
• All businesses with a turnover of more than AED 10m should apply for registration before Nov 30, 2017.
• All businesses that must be registered before 1 Jan 2018 should submit their registration before 4 Dec 2017 to minimize the risk of not being registered for the beginning of the new year.

A business must register if

• The total value of its taxable supplies made within the UAE exceeds the mandatory registration threshold of AEED 375,000 over the previous 12 months, or
• It anticipates making taxable supplies with value exceeding the mandatory registration threshold of AEED 375,000 in the next 30 days
• If a business does not meet the threshold mentioned above then it is required to keep records which will enable the FTA to identify the details of the business activities and review transactions. The specifics regarding the documents which will be required and the time period required for keeping them can be found in Federal Law No (7) of 2017 on Tax Procedures and its executive regulation.

Businesses can register through the e-services portal on the FTA website, www.tax.gov.ae. You can contact the FTA Call center at 600-599-994 for any further assistance.