Dubai pricing, explained plainly
Nobody publishes a single Dubai bookkeeping price list — because the honest answer is “it depends on your workload.” This guide explains the three ways firms price, the six factors that move your quote, and the exact questions to ask before you sign, so you can compare proposals like a buyer instead of guessing like a gambler.
The short answer
Bookkeeping is priced on workload, not on your trade licence. A firm quoting you a number without asking about your transaction volume, VAT status and headcount is guessing — and you'll pay for that guess later, either in top-up invoices or in catch-up fees. Here's how the pricing actually works.
One flat fee per month. Predictable — but check the transaction cap and what's excluded.
You pay for time spent. Flexible — but open-ended unless it's controlled in writing.
A fixed fee per invoice or bill processed. Simple at low volume — punishes growth.
What moves the number
Two Dubai businesses can get quotes that differ 3x for “monthly bookkeeping” — and both can be fair. These six factors explain why.
Worked example
Say a 6-person Dubai consultancy decides to “sort out the books later” and runs a year on bank statements and memory. When corporate-tax filing comes due, two things surface at once: the business was never registered for corporate tax, and it crossed the VAT registration threshold eight months ago without registering.
Late corporate-tax registration: AED 10,000 FTA penalty.
Late VAT registration: AED 10,000 FTA penalty.
Reconstructing 12 months of records under filing deadline pressure: weeks of catch-up work, usually billed at a premium to monthly rates.
Against that, monthly packages at BizNex start at AED 2,000/month — AED 24,000 a year for books kept monthly, reconciled monthly, with VAT and corporate-tax workings built as you go. The penalties alone in this example (AED 20,000) nearly equal a full year of proper books — before counting the catch-up bill or the stress. Prevention is the cheapest line item in accounting.
We prepare workings, schedules and compliance-ready records. For regulated representation before the FTA we work with registered UAE tax partners.
Buy smart
Want a second opinion on a quote you've received? Our practical guides walk through the buying process step by step, or ask us directly — we'll tell you straight whether a proposal is fair.
Before you sign
Run every proposal through these questions. The firm that answers them clearly — in writing — is usually the firm worth hiring.
Spend less, keep quality
The legitimate way to pay less isn't hiring a cheaper firm — it's being a cheaper client to serve.
The cheapest bookkeeping is bookkeeping that never needs redoing. Organised clients don't just pay less — they get better reports, because the time goes into analysis instead of archaeology.
Pricing FAQs
Transaction recording, bank reconciliations, accounts payable and receivable ledgers, and a monthly profit & loss report. VAT filing, payroll and year-end tax workings are sometimes included and sometimes billed separately — always get the inclusions itemised in writing before you sign.
A monthly retainer suits steady, ongoing businesses because the cost is predictable. Hourly billing suits one-off catch-ups and backlogs. If you go hourly, get the rate in writing and agree a monthly hour cap so the bill can't drift.
Because “monthly bookkeeping” isn't a standard product. Quotes differ on transaction caps, whether VAT and payroll are included, who does the work, and turnaround times. Compare scopes line by line, not headline prices.
Yes. The AED 375,000 figure is the corporate-tax threshold for taxable income, not an exemption from keeping records — and claiming Small Business Relief still requires you to register and file a return. Clean books from day one also make VAT registration painless when you cross the threshold.
At very low transaction volumes, yes — software handles the mechanics. The risk is misclassified expenses, unreconciled banks and missed VAT and corporate-tax deadlines. Most businesses outgrow DIY books at VAT registration or their first payroll run.
The full scope of services, transaction caps and overage rates, turnaround times, fee and payment terms, who owns the data and software access, confidentiality, and the notice period for termination. If it's not written down, it isn't agreed.
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