UAE e-invoicing for SMEs: the timeline and what to do now

• Pilot programme and voluntary adoption from 1 July 2026. (source, as of 20 October 2026)
• Revenue of AED 50 million or more: appoint an accredited service provider by 30 October 2026; go live by 1 January 2027. (source, as of 20 October 2026)
• Revenue below AED 50 million: appoint a provider by 31 March 2027; go live by 1 July 2027. (source, as of 20 October 2026)
• Government entities: appoint a provider by 31 March 2027; go live by 1 October 2027. (source, as of 20 October 2026)
• Business-to-consumer transactions are outside the system until the Minister decides otherwise. (source, as of 20 October 2026)
• A business not registered for VAT must issue each e-invoice within 14 business days of the transaction (from 1 October 2026). (source, as of 20 October 2026)
• Transactions between members of the same VAT Tax Group are excluded for 24 months from 1 January 2027. (source, as of 20 October 2026)
• Each accredited service provider commits to 100 free e-invoice exchange and reporting services a year per customer. (source, as of 20 October 2026)

Under the UAE’s Electronic Invoicing System, an invoice is no longer a document you email. It is structured data in a national format called PINT AE, sent over the Peppol network. You don’t connect to the network yourself: you appoint an accredited service provider (ASP), which validates and sends your invoices to your customer’s provider and reports the data to the Federal Tax Authority (FTA).

The Ministry of Finance calls this the five-corner model:

1. You (the supplier) create the invoice.
2. Your provider checks it and sends it.
3. Your customer’s provider receives it.
4. Your customer gets it in their system.
5. The invoice data is reported to the FTA.

Your customer must be on the system too. From the go-live date, both sides of a covered transaction send and receive invoices this way.

The Ministry of Finance set the phases in Ministerial Decision No. 244 of 2025. Ministerial Decision No. 66 of 2026 later moved the deadline for large businesses to appoint a provider.

Revenue here means the gross income in your most recent accounting period, taken from financial statements prepared under UAE rules, or from other documentation the FTA accepts if you have none.

Most owner-led SMEs are in the AED 50 million-and-below group. That gives you until 31 March 2027 to choose a provider and until 1 July 2027 to go live. But your larger customers must be live from 1 January 2027, and some will expect their suppliers to be ready sooner.

The rules apply to any person conducting business in the UAE, in respect of every business transaction, unless the person or the transaction is excluded. You don’t need to be registered for VAT to be covered.

Sales to consumers are out, for now. Business-to-consumer (B2C) transactions are not subject to the system, and a business that only sells to consumers is not covered, until the Minister decides otherwise. Sales to other businesses (B2B) and to government (B2G) are covered.

The excluded transactions, as amended by Ministerial Decision No. 197 of 2026, are:

• Transactions by government entities in a sovereign capacity that don’t compete with the private sector.
• International passenger flights where an e-ticket is issued, and an airline’s ancillary passenger services under an electronic miscellaneous document.
• International air freight under an airway bill, for 24 months from when the system takes effect.
• Financial services that are exempt from VAT or zero-rated under the VAT Executive Regulation.
• Transactions between members of the same VAT Tax Group, for 24 months from 1 January 2027.
• Anything else the Minister decides.

If you are registered for VAT, you issue the e-invoice or e-credit note within the timeline the VAT law already sets for tax invoices.

If you are not registered for VAT, you must issue it through the system within 14 business days of the transaction. This rule has applied since 1 October 2026, under Ministerial Decision No. 197 of 2026.

You issue an electronic credit note when a transaction is:

• cancelled;
• reduced in price;
• refunded in full or in part;
• or corrected for an administrative or numerical error.

You keep e-invoices, credit notes and their data for the period the Tax Procedures Law sets, and must be able to produce them to the FTA on request.

No, not for covered transactions after your go-live date. The Ministry’s guidelines say traditional PDF or paper commercial invoices are replaced by e-invoices. An e-invoice that meets the tax invoice requirements counts as your tax invoice.

There is a transition rule. If your customer isn’t on the system yet, the guidelines say you send the e-invoice and a regular tax invoice, for example a PDF. The e-invoice then carries a predefined endpoint in place of the customer’s Peppol ID.

The Ministry of Finance publishes the official list of accredited service providers and updates it as more are accredited. Each entry gives the company, its accreditation number and contact details. You select your provider in EmaraTax and then complete onboarding with them.

On cost, providers set their own prices. Under Ministerial Decision No. 168 of 2026, each accredited provider commits to 100 free e-invoice exchange and reporting services a year for each customer. Some accounting software companies are themselves accredited providers, and others connect to one. Ask your software vendor which applies before you choose.

The Ministry of Finance lists a Cabinet Decision on e-invoicing penalties, No. 173 of 2026, which replaces the repealed Cabinet Decision No. 106 of 2025. We haven’t been able to read the published text of the new decision, so we don’t quote amounts here. Check the current figures with your tax adviser or on the Ministry’s e-invoicing page.

If your revenue is below AED 50 million, a sensible order is:

1. Confirm which phase you are in from your latest financial statements.
2. List your customers by type. Note which are businesses or government (covered) and which are consumers (not covered for now). Note which large customers will be live from 1 January 2027.
3. Clean your customer records. Each business customer needs a correct TRN where they have one, a structured address and, once they are onboarded, their Peppol participant ID. In the UAE that is 0235 followed by their 10-digit tax identification number.
4. Check every invoice line has a VAT treatment: standard, zero-rated, exempt, out of scope or reverse charge.
5. Ask your accounting software vendor whether it is an accredited provider, connects to one, or neither, and when.
6. Pick a provider from the Ministry’s list and appoint it in EmaraTax before 31 March 2027.

E-invoicing isn’t live in Yako yet. We are preparing it for both the UAE and Nigeria, and Yako is not an accredited service provider.

What Yako already does is keep the invoice data that e-invoicing depends on:

• your TRN and your customer’s;
• structured addresses;
• the customer’s Peppol ID in the UAE;
• a VAT treatment on every line.

Invoices are titled Tax Invoice when you have a tax number, and you correct an issued invoice with a credit note rather than editing it.

So if you invoice from Yako today, the clean-up in step 3 and step 4 is largely done. See how VAT and tax work in Yako, the UAE VAT and Corporate Tax overview, and our guide to filing your VAT return.

When does e-invoicing start in the UAE?

A pilot and voluntary adoption began on 1 July 2026. It becomes mandatory in phases: businesses with revenue of AED 50 million or more go live by 1 January 2027, businesses below AED 50 million by 1 July 2027, and government entities by 1 October 2027.

What is the deadline to appoint an accredited service provider?

Businesses with revenue of AED 50 million or more must appoint one by 30 October 2026. Businesses below AED 50 million, and government entities, must appoint one by 31 March 2027. You select the provider through EmaraTax.

Is e-invoicing mandatory for small businesses in the UAE?

Yes, unless all your sales are to consumers or fall in an excluded category. The rules apply to any person conducting business in the UAE, whether or not they are registered for VAT. Businesses with revenue below AED 50 million are in the second phase, live by 1 July 2027.

Does UAE e-invoicing apply to sales to consumers (B2C)?

Not for now. Business-to-consumer transactions are outside the system, and a business that only sells to consumers is not subject to it, until the Minister decides otherwise. Sales to other businesses and to government are covered.

Is a PDF invoice an e-invoice?

No. An e-invoice is structured data in the UAE's PINT AE format, exchanged over the Peppol network through accredited service providers. While some of your customers are not yet on the system, the Ministry's guidelines say you also need to give them a regular tax invoice, for example a PDF.

How is revenue measured for the AED 50 million threshold?

Revenue means the gross income earned in your most recent accounting period, taken from financial statements prepared under UAE rules, or from other documentation the FTA accepts if you have no financial statements.

Where can I find the list of accredited service providers?

The Ministry of Finance publishes the list of accredited service providers on its e-invoicing pages and updates it as new providers are accredited. Each listing gives the company, its accreditation number and contact details.

How much does an accredited service provider cost?

Providers set their own prices. Under the accreditation rules, each accredited provider commits to 100 free e-invoice exchange and reporting services a year for each customer, counted from when that customer signs its agreement.

• Ministry of Finance: UAE eInvoicing
• Ministry of Finance: list of eInvoicing Accredited Service Providers
• Ministerial Decision No. 243 of 2025 on the Electronic Invoicing System
• Ministerial Decision No. 197 of 2026 amending Ministerial Decision No. 243 of 2025
• Ministerial Decision No. 244 of 2025 on implementing the Electronic Invoicing System
• Ministerial Decision No. 66 of 2026 amending Ministerial Decision No. 244 of 2025
• Ministerial Decision No. 168 of 2026 on accreditation of service providers
• UAE Electronic Invoicing Guidelines, version 1.1 (1 June 2026)
• Ministry of Finance: UAE eInvoicing Programme (October 2026)

Last reviewed 20 October 2026 against the FTA and Ministry of Finance sources listed on this page.

This guide is general information, not tax advice. For your own position, speak to a registered tax agent or your accountant.