Tax Invoice Format UAE: VAT Invoice Template and Required Fields

In the UAE a tax invoice is the VAT invoice that a VAT-registered business must issue for its taxable supplies. Its fields are fixed by Article 59 of the VAT Executive Regulation, and only a registrant with a Tax Registration Number (TRN) can issue one. Below is the full list of required fields, a tax invoice format you can adapt, when the shorter simplified invoice is allowed, the deadlines, and the e-invoicing dates that change all of this from 2027.

The 12 fields of a full tax invoice

Article 59(1) of the VAT Executive Regulation (Cabinet Decision No. 52 of 2017, as amended) lists them:

1. the words “Tax Invoice”, clearly displayed;
2. the name, address and TRN of the supplier;
3. the name, address and TRN of the customer, where the customer is VAT-registered;
4. a sequential or unique invoice number that shows its place in the sequence;
5. the date of issue;
6. the date of supply, if different from the date of issue;
7. a description of the goods or services;
8. for each item, the unit price, the quantity, the VAT rate and the amount payable in AED;
9. any discount offered;
10. the gross amount payable in AED;
11. the VAT charged in AED, with the exchange rate used if the invoice was converted from another currency;
12. where the customer has to account for the VAT under the reverse charge, a statement saying so, with a reference to the relevant provision of the VAT law.

The Federal Tax Authority (FTA) adds that each line must show the net value and the VAT; the gross value per line is not mandatory.

Tax invoice format (template)

Adapt this structure; every numbered field above has its place:

TAX INVOICE
[Supplier Name], [Address] | TRN: [Supplier TRN]

Invoice No: [0001] | Date of issue: [DD/MM/YYYY] | Date of supply: [DD/MM/YYYY, if different]

Bill to: [Customer Name], [Address] | Customer TRN: [if registered]

Description | Qty | Unit price (AED) | VAT rate | Net amount (AED) | VAT (AED)
[Item] | [1] | [x] | 5% | [x] | [x]

Discount: AED [x]
Total excluding VAT: AED [x]
VAT: AED [x]
Total payable including VAT: AED [x]
[If invoiced in another currency: exchange rate used, UAE Central Bank rate on the date of supply]
[If the reverse charge applies: statement that the recipient accounts for the VAT, with the article reference]

When a simplified tax invoice is allowed

A simplified tax invoice may be issued only in two situations, and never where the reverse charge applies (Article 59(5)):

• the customer is not VAT-registered; or
• the customer is VAT-registered and the supply is AED 10,000 or less. The FTA reads this as the price including VAT.

It needs five fields: the words “Tax Invoice”, the supplier’s name, address and TRN, the date of issue, a description, and the total with the VAT amount in AED. It must be issued on the date of supply. A simplified invoice is always optional: a full invoice is acceptable in every case, and once e-invoicing applies to you, simplified invoices are no longer available.

Deadlines

• Full tax invoice: within 14 days of the date of supply.
• Simplified tax invoice: on the date of supply.
• Summary tax invoice for several supplies to the same customer: within 14 days after the end of the calendar month in which the supplies were made.

The invoice must be issued and delivered to the customer. The FTA states that offering to print an invoice only if the customer asks for one does not meet the requirement.

Currency, rounding and language

Line amounts, the total and the VAT must be stated in AED. For an invoice in another currency, show the VAT converted into AED and the exchange rate used, which must be the UAE Central Bank rate at the date of supply with all its published decimals; an invoice that omits them is not a valid tax invoice. Prices in the original currency may still appear alongside. VAT may be rounded to the nearest fils, line by line.

We found no official rule that the invoice itself must be in Arabic. The Arabic rule covers documents submitted to the FTA: English is accepted, the FTA may ask for an Arabic translation, and not providing one when asked costs AED 5,000.

Tax credit notes

If you charged too much VAT, you issue a tax credit note within 14 days of the event; if too little, a new tax invoice for the extra VAT. A tax credit note carries seven fields, starting with the words “Tax Credit Note”, the supplier’s and the customer’s details and TRNs, the date, and the original value, the correct value, the difference and the VAT on that difference in AED.

Special cases

• Self-billing: a VAT-registered buyer may raise the invoice for the supplier if both agree in writing, the invoice carries all 12 fields and it is marked “Tax Invoice raised by buyer”.
• Agents: a registered agent may issue the tax invoice in its own name for a principal, if both keep records of each other’s details.
• Profit margin scheme: the invoice states that VAT was charged on the margin and does not show the VAT amount.
• Imports: from 1 January 2026, a business importing goods or services under the reverse charge no longer issues a tax invoice to itself; it keeps the supplier’s invoice instead.

E-invoicing: what changes and when

The pilot programme and voluntary adoption started on 1 July 2026. Sales to consumers stay outside e-invoicing until the Minister decides otherwise. The 30 October 2026 deadline comes from Ministerial Decision No. 66 of 2026; some official documents still show the earlier 31 July 2026 date. Penalties under e-invoicing are AED 5,000 a month for failing to implement it or to appoint a provider on time, and AED 100 per invoice not issued and transmitted through the system, up to AED 5,000 a month.

Penalties and record keeping

Failing to issue a tax invoice or a tax credit note within the legal period costs AED 2,500 for each detected case. Tax invoices are part of the records a registrant keeps for five years after the end of the tax period to which they relate; real estate records are kept for 15 years under the VAT rules.

Common mistakes to avoid

• leaving out the TRN or the words “Tax Invoice”;
• showing the VAT only in a foreign currency, without AED and the exchange rate;
• gaps or duplicates in the invoice numbering;
• issuing a simplified invoice to a registered customer for more than AED 10,000;
• using a foreign template that misses the UAE fields.

Related

If your business is not VAT-registered, use the simple invoice format for businesses without VAT instead. To see whether you must register, use the VAT registration threshold checker, and to confirm a supplier’s TRN, see how to check a TRN number in the UAE. The registration process itself is covered in the UAE VAT registration guide.