Yes. If your company in Dubai or anywhere in the UAE changes its trade licence, address, activities or signatory, you must update your tax record on EmaraTax within 20 business days of the change. If you miss it, the penalty is AED 1,000. If it happens again within 24 months, the penalty is AED 5,000.
Many companies file their VAT and Corporate Tax returns on time and still get this wrong. The returns are someone’s job every quarter or every year. The tax record is nobody’s job, so it stays the same while the company changes around it.
Why do so many UAE companies forget to update the FTA?
Because the change and the tax record are handled by different people.
The trade licence is renewed by the Free Zone or the PRO. The office move is handled by the operations team. A new shareholder is handled by the lawyer or the corporate services provider. Your accountant only looks at EmaraTax when a return is due, and the return itself does not ask whether your licence details are still correct.
So the company changes, the licence authority knows, the bank knows, and the FTA still has the old details.
We see this often with companies that move to InBusiness from another accounting provider. Their returns were filed, but the tax record had not been touched since the day they registered. One of the first things we do with every new client is compare their EmaraTax record with their current trade licence and company documents.
What changes must you report to the FTA?
The FTA asks you to update your tax record when the details it holds about your business change. The most common ones are:
- trade licence renewal or amendment
- a new business name or trading name
- a new principal place of business (your office address)
- new or changed business activities
- a new authorised signatory
- a change of email address or phone number
- a change of legal form
- changes to the owners, partners or managers listed in your registration
- a new bank account, if you want refunds paid to it
One item on this list catches people out more than any other. Trade licence renewal is a change. Every time your licence is renewed, the expiry date on your tax record is out of date, so most companies have at least one update to make every year, even if nothing else changed.
Do you need to update each tax separately?
Sometimes. If your company is registered for both VAT and Corporate Tax, some details sit in your shared Taxable Person profile and some sit under each tax type. EmaraTax shows the amendment option next to each registration. Check both, so you do not update VAT and leave Corporate Tax with the old details.
How long do you have to update your tax record?
You have 20 business days from the date of the change. That means 20 working days, not 20 calendar days, so it is about four weeks.
The clock starts on the date the change happened, not the date you found out about it. For a licence renewal, that is the renewal date on the new licence. For an office move, it is the date the new address became your principal place of business.
What is the penalty for not updating the FTA?
The penalty for failing to inform the FTA of a change to your tax record is:
- AED 1,000 for the first violation
- AED 5,000 for a repeat violation within 24 months
These amounts come from Cabinet Decision No. 129 of 2025, which was published on 10 November 2025 and took effect on 14 April 2026. Under the older rules, the amounts were AED 5,000 and AED 10,000, so the penalty is lower now. It is still easy to collect, and a company that renews its licence every year and never updates EmaraTax can reach the repeat level quickly.
Is there still a grace period?
No. The FTA gave companies a grace period to fix their tax records without penalties. It covered changes from 1 January 2024 and ended on 31 March 2025. Any change after that date is subject to the normal penalty.
How do you update your tax record on EmaraTax?
The amendment itself is free and takes about 25 minutes to submit, according to the FTA. The steps are:
- Log in to EmaraTax with UAE Pass.
- Open your Taxable Person account from the dashboard.
- Choose Taxable Person Details for company wide details, or the options menu next to VAT or Corporate Tax for details linked to one tax.
- Enter the new details and upload the supporting documents.
- Submit the application.
The FTA aims to review it within 20 business days. If it needs more documents, it will ask, and the review can take another 20 business days after you send them.
Which documents does the FTA ask for?
Usually:
- your valid trade licence
- your Certificate of Incorporation and Articles of Incorporation, if you have them
- your Commercial Registration Certificate or other official proof from your licensing authority
- a Continuity Certificate showing the old and new licence numbers, if your licence number changed
- any document that proves what changed and when
The details you enter must match the documents exactly. A different spelling of the company name or a missing licence page is the most common reason for a request for more information.
What should you do if you already missed the deadline?
Update the record now. The longer the old details stay on EmaraTax, the more chances there are for a second change to stack on top of the first one.
Start by putting your current trade licence next to your EmaraTax profile and checking line by line: name, licence number, expiry date, activities, address, signatory, contact details and bank account. Then check the VAT and Corporate Tax registrations separately.
If a penalty has already been issued and you think it is wrong, you can ask the FTA to reconsider it. Talk to your tax advisor first, because the reconsideration request has its own deadline.
How does InBusiness keep tax records up to date?
When a company moves to us, we check its EmaraTax record against its current trade licence, MOA and signatory details before we file anything. If something is out of date, we submit the amendment and keep the FTA’s confirmation in the client’s file.
After that, the tax record becomes part of our monthly work for clients on a retainer. When the licence is renewed or something changes in the company, we update EmaraTax as soon as it happens, without waiting for the 20 business day deadline.
If you are not sure whether your tax record matches your licence, you can book a 30 minute call with our tax team, or send us a message on WhatsApp at +971 50 219 8443.
FAQ
How long does a UAE company have to update its tax record with the FTA?
20 business days from the date of the change. This applies to companies in Dubai, every other emirate, Free Zones and Mainland. The update is made on EmaraTax.
What is the penalty for not updating the FTA about a change?
AED 1,000 for the first violation and AED 5,000 for a repeat violation within 24 months, under Cabinet Decision No. 129 of 2025, in force since 14 April 2026.
Do I need to update the FTA when I renew my trade licence in Dubai?
Yes. Trade licence renewal is one of the changes the FTA asks companies to report. The expiry date on your tax record changes with every renewal, so plan for at least one update a year.
Is there a fee to update a tax record on EmaraTax?
No. The FTA does not charge a fee to amend tax records. You only need a UAE Pass login and the supporting documents.
Is the FTA grace period for updating tax records still open?
No. The grace period covered changes from 1 January 2024 and ended on 31 March 2025. Changes after that date are subject to the normal penalties.
Can InBusiness check and update our tax records with the FTA?
Yes. If your company has an ongoing engagement agreement with InBusiness, we update the FTA as soon as anything changes in the company, such as a licence renewal, a new address or a new signatory. For new clients, we first compare your EmaraTax record with your trade licence and company documents and file any amendments.
About InBusiness
InBusiness is a Dubai-based accounting, tax, and corporate services firm, founded in 2021, that acts as the UAE finance and compliance arm for international businesses. The team provides outsourced accounting, tax advisory, company formation, admin services, and immigration across all Free Zones and Mainland. The team speaks English and Russian.
