Accounting software for UAE businesses, with VAT built in

What accounting software in the UAE has to handle

Keeping the books for a UAE company is more than debits and credits. Since VAT arrived in 2018 at 5%, every sales invoice and purchase bill carries a tax decision, and every tax period ends with a VAT 201 return to the Federal Tax Authority (FTA). Add post-dated cheques, a petty cash box in the warehouse, suppliers who bill in USD and branches in more than one emirate, and the spreadsheet starts to crack.

Good bookkeeping software for the UAE takes that load off your desk. In Nashora, the VAT treatment sits on each line of the document, the double-entry journal is written when you post, and the return is collected from posted documents. The figures your accountant files are the same figures in your ledger — no re-typing, no second version of the truth.

How to prepare your UAE VAT return in Nashora

Here is the path from invoice to filing, using only the VAT tools that are already in the system.

1. Set the VAT on each line. When you raise a customer invoice or enter a vendor bill, each line is standard-rated, zero-rated, exempt or reverse charge. Nashora works out the 5% and records output or input VAT when the document is posted.
2. Open the VAT return for the period. Returns are prepared by period and pick up the posted invoices, bills, credit notes and debit notes that fall inside it. Drafts change nothing until they are posted.
3. Check the VAT 201 boxes. Standard-rated sales are split by the emirate of the selling branch, and goods imports and reverse-charge purchases go into their own boxes — the figures you need for the FTA portal.
4. Drill down before you file. Click a box to see the documents behind it. If a figure is wrong, correct it with a credit note or a reversal; posted documents stay locked.
5. File on the FTA portal. Enter the box values from the return when you submit your VAT 201.
6. Export the FTA Audit File when it is requested. Nashora builds the FAF for the period and validates it before download, so format problems show up on your screen rather than after you have sent it.

Because the return is built from the ledger, there is no separate VAT workbook to keep in step with your books. Late bills simply land in the period they are posted to, and the drill-down shows exactly which documents changed a box.

Once the return is filed, lock the fiscal period so nobody can post into a quarter you have already declared.

E-invoicing in the UAE: where Nashora fits

The UAE is moving business invoicing to a structured electronic format, PINT-AE, exchanged through accredited service providers. The rollout is phased, so check the FTA's current guidance for when it applies to your business.

Nashora's job is to get the invoice data right. It produces the PINT-AE e-invoice XML for your invoices, validates it and tracks the status of each one. You then pass that file to your accredited service provider. Nashora is not an accredited service provider itself — it makes sure what you hand over is complete and matches your books, so switching on e-invoicing does not mean re-keying invoices into another system.

Benefits of keeping books and VAT in one system

No double entry between sales and accounts

Invoices and stock movements from Nashora's CRM, sales and inventory module update receivables, stock and VAT automatically. Your finance team stops copying sales out of another app at month-end.

Payroll lands in the right accounts

A payroll run from WPS payroll in Nashora posts its own journal, so salary cost shows in your P&L without a manual entry.

Cash you can actually see

Import bank statements and match them for the month-end bank rec. The cheque register reminds you before post-dated cheques fall due, and petty cash is tracked per custodian with vouchers and top-ups.

Controls your auditor will like

Drafts are separate from posted documents, posted documents are locked, approval rules apply to bills, payments and journals by amount, and the audit log records every change.

Reports without the scramble

Profit & loss, balance sheet, trial balance, ledgers, aging, the tax transaction report and profitability by branch are live, and export to Excel or PDF.

Who Nashora accounting is for

Most UAE businesses that outgrow spreadsheets share the same pain: the VAT return takes days, nobody trusts the receivables list, and the bank balance never quite matches the books. Here is how the accounting module fits different teams.

Trading companies

Buy in one currency, sell in another, and add freight and customs as landed costs so margins are real. Purchase orders, goods received notes and vendor bills go through a three-way match, and stock valuation reconciles to the books.

Multi-branch businesses across emirates

Your Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi branches each feed the right VAT 201 lines, because boxes follow the selling branch's emirate. Cost centres and branches let you compare profit and budgets location by location.

Service businesses

Track income and cost by project or cost centre, set up recurring journals for rent and retainers, and let staff submit expense claims whose reimbursements post to the books after approval.

Companies dealing in foreign currency

Set your base currency, record invoices and bills in any other currency with exchange rates, and revalue open foreign balances at month-end. Exchange gains and losses are posted for you.

Accountants and finance teams

Roles control who can view, create, approve or export in each module. If you run a group, each company gets its own Nashora with its own books, TRN and VAT return, so nothing mixes.

Why it's easier to switch than you think

Nashora is cloud accounting software that runs in the browser — Dubai office, Sharjah warehouse or a laptop at home — with nothing to install. During setup our team configures your company, VAT, chart of accounts, users and roles, then imports customers, vendors, products and opening balances from Excel.

Help mode explains every screen, and a step-by-step tutorial walks new users through real examples. Most companies go live within days to a few weeks. See the full list of Nashora features, read the general Nashora FAQ, or book an accounting and VAT demo with your own workflow.