Input VAT is charged when any goods are purchased or services are rendered; and if a buyer is registered with the VAT tax authorities, they can deduct the amount from his/her settlement.

Output VAT is directly calculated and charged on the sale of goods and services delivered.

VAT accounting is an accounting process that deals with the VAT segment of a business entity. It becomes essential for every taxable person to maintain a book of records under UAE Tax Law, and it requires detailed documentation. It helps to identify the consumption tax that needs to be paid on time, lowers the tax burden and maintenance of such records have become a mandate at a global level.

The UAE, a part of GCC countries, have agreed on the principle regarding implementation of the VAT. The GCC countries have signed an agreement known as the Unified VAT Agreement (UVAT). An added benefit behind the acceptance of this concept was to dilute the dependency of the entire country on oil and other hydrocarbon products. This gave birth to VAT Accounting in UAE and is also considered as another source of revenue. The proposed rate of VAT in the UAE is 5% initiated on 1^st January 2018.

Classification of UAE VAT

There are 3 kinds of VAT rates in the UAE:

1. Standard Rate

Most of the goods and services have been taxed at the standard rate of 5%. These include electronic items, automobiles, fuel, jewellery, food & beverage, apparel, entertainment services, cosmetics, restaurants & hotels, commercial leasing, construction, etc.

2. Zero Rate

For certain categories of goods and services, VAT is charged at zero rates, i.e., such items are taxable but with a zero rate. Items under this bracket include export of goods or services, international transportation of goods and passengers, supply of certain means of transport, supply or import of investment precious metals (of 99% purity or more), residential buildings, buildings used by charities, certain education services, and certain healthcare services.

3. Exempt

VAT is not applicable for goods and services falling under this category. It includes financial services, certain residential buildings, bare land, and local passenger transportation.

Any business whose taxable supplies and imports exceed AED 375,000 must register for VAT. Voluntary registration is also applicable if the amount exceeds AED 187,500. Each individual or business entity is provided with a Tax Registration Number (TRN) which consist of 15 digits.

Essential Documents for VAT Accounting

Any business needs to submit a set of documents in order to initiate the process of VAT Accounting. The set of essential documents includes:

• • • Record of all supplies and imports of goods
    • Tax credit notes and alternative documents
    • All tax invoices
    • Reports of goods exported
    • Taxable supplies received or made
    • Due on tax supplies
    • Recoverable tax supplies or imports

Apart from these, the Federal Tax Authority (FTA) can also ask for certain details like Annual Account details, General Ledgers, VAT Ledgers, Purchase daybooks, Invoices issued, Credit and Debit notes, etc.

Penalty for Not Keeping Proper Records

An individual or business who fails to keep a track of proper records needs to pay a penalty of AED 10,000. If the offence is repeated again, a sum of AED 50,000 needs to be paid.

You have got a clear idea of what VAT is all about and its types. Now the question arises that why is VAT accounting important? The answer is as below:

By performing VAT accounting, a company will be able to access all the necessary documents relating to tax filing at a single place which would greatly ease the process of filing the tax return of the company.

In case a company decides to expand it, vat accounting would provide the estimated total amount that has to be paid in the form of taxes. The management of the company can go through the VAT accounting report, and according to the framed budget, it can decide to expand the business.

VAT accounting allows the company and the concerned authorities to check whether all the tax-related documents are submitted or not. It serves as a checklist which consists of the names of the materials to be correctly filled and submitted.

By utilizing VAT accounting, the company will have the data relating to all the transactions conducted by the company. The chances of a tax audit being conducted by the concerned authorities will be drastically reduced.

In case the concerned authority decides to conduct a tax audit of your company, VAT accounting will help the management to provide all the accurate details of the transactions related to tax done by the company.

VAT accounting would see to it that the company is compliant to all the rules and regulations as set by the concerned authority which would reduce the risk of getting penalised by the government. It would also keep updating the VAT accounting procedures with time.

From time to time, the government keeps on bringing new schemes relating to Value Added Tax. VAT accounting would generate alertness among the companies about how the various companies can avail the benefits

GSPU is a business consultancy firm that specializes in providing taxation and accounting services. When it comes to the VAT accounting front, we provide the following VAT compliance services:

• • • VAT Registration process
    • Invoicing and VAT treatment
    • Maintaining the book of records
    • Looking into the matter of inspection of records

GSPU has been dealing with the crucial process of accounting and taxation for multiple clients engaged in multiple businesses at a global level and has been consistently performing as one of the top VAT consultants in UAE. Our experts understand the nature of your business, takes care of your VAT issues and makes it easier to deal with. To know how, please do contact us. We’d be happy to assist.