Auditing
From pre-audit preparation to internal audit execution. Where local expertise is required, we activate our regional network.
Why audit-readiness matters.
Audit-readiness should not be a fire drill.
Most businesses panic three months before an audit, scramble to find documents and patch up books that should have been clean all along. The pattern costs time, money and credibility.
For a free zone company the stakes are higher than most owners realise. If you want to keep the 0 percent rate on qualifying activities, an annual audit is mandatory. DMCC, JAFZA, DAFZA and IFZA require audited financial statements from every registered company regardless of activity, and some free zones set a revenue line, commonly around AED 50 million, above which an audit becomes mandatory anyway.
An FTA audit is not a short event. A field audit typically runs 2 to 4 months. A comprehensive audit can extend past 6 months, particularly where it covers several years or there is a dispute in it. Whatever your documentation looks like on day one is what you are working with for that whole period.
We handle audit work two ways. Pre-audit preparation when you have an external audit coming, and internal audit execution when you need a structured review of your own. Where the situation requires specific jurisdictional expertise, we activate our regional network so the right people are on it.
When an audit becomes mandatory.
Audit obligations in the UAE come from more than one direction: your free zone, your tax position and your revenue. Any one of them can make it compulsory.
| Free zone 0 percent rate | An annual audit is mandatory to keep the qualifying rate, whatever your free zone category |
|---|---|
| Free zones requiring it from everyone | DMCC, JAFZA, DAFZA and IFZA require annual audited statements from all registered companies |
| Revenue-based trigger | Some free zones set a line, commonly around AED 50 million, above which an audit is mandatory regardless of activity |
| Corporate Tax | Statements must be audited by a UAE-licensed auditor once revenue exceeds AED 50 million |
| Field audit duration | Typically 2 to 4 months |
| Comprehensive audit duration | 6 months or more, especially across multiple years or where there is a dispute |
| Records you must be able to produce | 7 years for Corporate Tax, 5 years for VAT |
What we handle.
From preparation through to post-audit follow-through.
- Pre-audit documentation review
- Free zone audit requirement assessment against your category and revenue
- Internal audit planning and execution
- Multi-jurisdiction audit network coordination
- Audit response and correspondence handling
- Documentation systems for ongoing audit-readiness
- Post-audit finding remediation
- Audit committee reporting where relevant
How we run it.
Establish what is actually required
Your free zone rules, your category, your revenue and your tax position. Owners are often audited for a reason they had not identified, and the requirement decides the scope of everything after it.
Review the documentation
What exists, what is missing and what will not stand up. If past books need clean-up first we do that work, because the clean-up is often what makes the audit possible in the time available.
Prepare or execute
Pre-audit preparation with the external auditor, or internal audit run directly by us. Statutory sign-off is coordinated with licensed audit firms where the law requires it. Two to three weeks to mobilise on a standard engagement.
Close the findings
Findings turned into changes in how the books are kept, so the same points do not come back next year. That is the difference between passing an audit and being audit-ready.
Across four jurisdictions.
UAE free zone and mainland audit requirements as the anchor, with coordinated execution where a US LLC, a UK LTD or a Hong Kong Limited Company also needs sign-off. One timeline and one set of books, rather than four audits that each discover the same problem.
Common questions.
Does a free zone company need an audit?
Often yes, and for more than one reason. If you want the 0 percent rate on qualifying activities the annual audit is mandatory whatever your category. DMCC, JAFZA, DAFZA and IFZA require audited statements from every registered company anyway, and some free zones make it compulsory above a revenue line that is commonly around AED 50 million.
How long does an FTA audit take?
A field audit typically runs 2 to 4 months. A comprehensive audit can extend past 6 months, especially where it covers several years or involves a significant dispute. Plan around the longer figure rather than the shorter one.
What tends to trigger an audit in the first place?
Numbers that disagree with each other. Sales per the VAT returns differing from sales per the P&L by more than 5 percent. Round-figure expense entries with no invoice or contract behind them. Director compensation that makes no sense next to the profit the company reports.
Do you perform statutory audits yourselves?
We coordinate them with licensed audit firms where statutory sign-off is required. For internal audit and pre-audit work, we execute directly.
How fast can you mobilise on an upcoming audit?
Two to three weeks for standard engagements. Faster if the situation is urgent and we have prior knowledge of your books.
Can you handle a multi-entity audit across jurisdictions?
Yes. This is exactly where the regional network comes in: coordinated execution with jurisdiction-specific expertise.
What if past books need clean-up before the audit can start?
We do that work first. Often the clean-up is what makes the audit possible in the timeline you have.
