- A licence works like a switch, because issuing it turns on tax registration, VAT, renewals and filings that did not exist the day before.
- The seller usually moves on once the licence is issued, so the duties sit unattended until a deadline arrives.
- Skipping support is a false saving when the duties are live, since a missed one lands as a fixed penalty.
What ongoing business support services cover
Four continuing obligations begin with the licence: corporate tax registration, VAT once turnover passes AED 375,000, the annual renewal, and recurring returns and filings. Getting licensed completes none of them.
Whoever sold the licence has usually moved on, so a duty nobody owns lands as an FTA penalty on a fixed schedule, often when you can least plan for it.
Are your obligations light, or live?
Most founders move into the live column sooner than they expect.
Light, licence is enough
The licence is the whole job
- A simple business you can administer yourself
- Turnover comfortably below the VAT threshold
- A tax position you understand and can register for
- No staff or visa renewals to run
If all stay true, the licence may be enough.
Live, support pays for itself
The obligations are the real work
- Turnover near or above the VAT threshold
- A tax position you are unsure of
- Staff and visas to manage
- No reliable system for deadlines
If any is true, support is usually cheaper than the penalties a busy quarter can bring.
In practice we do not sell a package to a light case, and a live case does not leave us underprepared.
The cost of an unowned tax calendar
These are statutory figures, and they apply whether or not anyone reminded you.
VAT becomes mandatory at this turnover
AED 375,000
Fixed penalty for registering VAT late
AED 10,000
Corporate tax: 0% up to AED 375,000 of taxable income, 9% above
0% then 9%
Small Business Relief ceiling, if elected correctly
AED 3,000,000
Where it quietly costs more: Small Business Relief, available to tax periods ending on or before 31 December 2029, has to be qualified for and elected correctly. One penalty, or a missed relief, can outweigh the saving from skipping support.
When the duties are live, we own the calendar.
We prepare the registrations, the VAT and corporate tax returns, the renewals and the relief elections, and track every date.
See the options overview and what we do beyond the licence.
