UAE e-invoicing, prepared inside the CRM that issues the invoice
From 1 July 2027 every business below AED 50 million turnover has to issue invoices electronically, in the PINT-AE format, through an Accredited Service Provider connected to the Peppol network. Zarina CRM holds the commercial data the invoice is built from and hands it to the ASP you appoint, in the structure the Federal Tax Authority expects.
- Invoice data in PINT-AE structure
- Connector to the ASP you choose
- Your server, your archive
- One licence, no monthly fee
UAE e-invoicing runs on a five-corner model over the Peppol network, in the PINT-AE format, with the Federal Tax Authority as the fifth corner. A business does not send invoices to the FTA itself: it appoints an Accredited Service Provider, and the ASP validates, signs, routes and reports the document. Zarina CRM sits upstream of that: it issues the commercial document from the quote and the client record, keeps the fields PINT-AE requires, and passes the data to the ASP through a connector. The archive stays on your own server.
Works together with: Invoicing and payments, Quotes, the full e-invoicing guide
What UAE e-invoicing actually is
Not a PDF sent by email, and not a direct upload to the tax authority. It is a structured document routed over a network, with the authority reading it as it passes.
A five-corner model
The document travels supplier to supplier ASP, supplier ASP to buyer ASP, then to the buyer. The fifth corner is the Federal Tax Authority, which receives the invoice data in near real time.
- Supplier and buyer are corners 1 and 4
- Two Accredited Service Providers in between
- The FTA reads the data as the invoice moves
PINT-AE, an XML format
The invoice is an XML file built on UBL, in the PINT-AE specification. The visual PDF stays as a human-readable copy, but the XML is the legal document.
- UBL-based structure
- Fixed field set and validation rules
- The PDF is a courtesy copy
Peppol as the network
The UAE runs on OpenPeppol, the same routing network used across Europe and Singapore. Your ASP connects you to it.
- Open, interoperable network
- Addressing by participant identifier
- No point-to-point integration per client
The ASP does the compliance work
An Accredited Service Provider validates against the PINT-AE schema and the FTA rules, signs, timestamps, routes and reports. Appointing one is a legal requirement, not an option.
- Validation and digital signature
- Routing over Peppol
- Reporting to the FTA
Your data stays yours
Zarina CRM is installed on your own server. The client records, the quotes, the invoice history and the archive do not sit with a vendor.
- On-premise installation
- Your database, your backups
- Export at any time
No per-invoice software fee
The CRM licence is paid once. What you pay per document, if anything, is whatever your ASP charges, and that is a separate commercial relationship.
- Permanent CRM licence
- Unlimited users
- ASP fees negotiated by you
The deadlines, and which one is yours
The rollout is phased by turnover. Each phase has two dates: the date by which you must have appointed an ASP, and the date from which electronic invoicing is mandatory. Position as at November 2026.
Pilot phase, voluntary
Businesses could join the pilot from 1 July 2026, on their own initiative, to test the flow before it became compulsory.
- Open since July 2026
- Voluntary
- Useful as a dry run
Phase 1, turnover of AED 50 million and above
The deadline for appointing an Accredited Service Provider was 30 October 2026, extended from 31 July 2026 by Ministerial Decision 66 of 2026. Electronic invoicing is mandatory from 1 January 2027.
- ASP appointed by 30 October 2026
- Mandatory from 1 January 2027
- Largest businesses first
Phase 2, turnover below AED 50 million
This is where most companies sit. The ASP has to be appointed by 31 March 2027, and electronic invoicing becomes mandatory from 1 July 2027.
- ASP appointed by 31 March 2027
- Mandatory from 1 July 2027
- The phase most SMEs fall into
Phase 3, government entities
Government bodies follow with the same ASP deadline of 31 March 2027 and a later start date, signalled for 1 October 2027.
- ASP appointed by 31 March 2027
- Signalled for 1 October 2027
- Public sector
What has to be ready before the start date
Appointing an ASP is the legal step. The practical step is having clean, complete commercial data in the system that issues your invoices.
- Tax registration numbers on file
- Complete client and line data
- A tested connector to the ASP
What the rules provide for non-compliance
Cabinet Decision 106 of 2025 sets the administrative penalties. They are listed here so the deadline above can be read in context, not as tax advice.
Not implementing in time
AED 5,000 per month for failing to implement electronic invoicing by the date that applies to your phase.
- Per month, while the failure continues
Not appointing an ASP
AED 5,000 per month for failing to appoint an Accredited Service Provider by the deadline for your phase.
- Separate from the implementation penalty
Per document
AED 100 for each invoice not issued or not transmitted on time, capped at AED 5,000 per month.
- Adds up quickly at invoice volume
Penalty amounts and dates are those published as at November 2026. Confirm your own position with your tax adviser or with the Federal Tax Authority before acting on them.
What Zarina CRM does, and what it deliberately does not
Accreditation as a service provider is a separate regulatory process. We are not an ASP and we do not transmit to the Federal Tax Authority. Saying otherwise would be false, and you would discover it at the worst moment.
It holds the data the invoice is made of
The client, the tax registration number, the accepted quote, the catalogue lines, the currency and the VAT treatment live in one place, so the invoice is not retyped from a spreadsheet.
- One source for client and line data
- Quote to invoice without re-entry
- VAT treatment carried through
It produces the PINT-AE data set
The fields the specification requires are captured and exported in the structure your ASP expects, rather than being reconstructed afterwards.
- Mandatory fields enforced at entry
- Structured export
- Validated before it leaves
It connects to the ASP you appoint
The connector is configured against your provider. You choose the ASP on commercial terms, we connect the CRM to it.
- Provider of your choice
- Configured per installation
- Status visible on the document
It keeps the archive on your server
The documents and their transmission status stay in your own database, which is what matters when an audit asks for history.
- On-premise archive
- Full document history
- Exportable
It is not an Accredited Service Provider
We do not validate on behalf of the authority, do not sign as an ASP and do not report to the FTA. That is the ASP role, by law.
- No accreditation claimed
- No direct FTA transmission
- The ASP remains mandatory
It is not accounting software
Ledgers, VAT returns and statutory reporting stay with your accountant and their software. The CRM issues the commercial document and tracks what was paid.
- No general ledger
- No VAT return filing
- Data handed to accounting
From the accepted quote to the authority, step by step
Six steps, of which the CRM owns the first two and the last one, and the ASP owns the middle.
- 1
The quote is accepted in the CRM
The client record, the tax registration number, the lines, quantities and VAT treatment are already there. Nothing is re-entered.
- 2
The invoice is issued and validated locally
The CRM checks that the fields PINT-AE requires are present before the document leaves. A missing tax number is caught here, not by the authority.
- 3
The data goes to your ASP through the connector
The structured data set is handed to the Accredited Service Provider you appointed, over the configured connection.
- 4
The ASP validates, signs and routes it
Schema and rule validation, digital signature, timestamp, then routing over the Peppol network to the buyer side.
- 5
The Federal Tax Authority receives the data
As the fifth corner of the model, the FTA gets the invoice data in near real time, without you sending anything directly.
- 6
The status comes back into the CRM
The document carries its transmission status, so the sales and finance view shows what went out, what was accepted and what needs attention.
What to prepare, in the order it pays to do it
Most of the work is data hygiene, and it is the part that cannot be bought late.
Clean the client records
Tax registration numbers, legal names, addresses and the correct entity for each account. An invoice rejected on a wrong registration number is a rejected invoice, however good the software is.
- TRN on every taxable client
- Legal name, not trading name
- One record per entity
Standardise the catalogue
Product and service lines with consistent descriptions, units and VAT treatment, so the same item does not leave in three different shapes.
- Consistent descriptions
- Units of measure
- VAT rate per line
Choose and appoint an ASP
This is the legal step, and the deadline for Phase 2 is 31 March 2027. Compare on coverage, support and per-document pricing.
- Accredited provider
- Commercial terms are yours
- Deadline 31 March 2027
Configure and test the connector
We connect the CRM to the provider you appointed and run documents through end to end before the mandatory date, not after it.
- Configured per installation
- Tested with real documents
- Status visible in the CRM
Agree the correction procedure
Electronic documents are not deleted. Decide now who issues credit notes and on what authority, so the first mistake does not become a tax problem.
- Credit notes, not deletions
- Named approver
- Written procedure
Where this stops
So the scope is clear before a contract, not after.
No accreditation
We are not an ASP and do not intend to become one. The provider is appointed by you.
ASP fees are separate
Whatever your provider charges per document is outside the CRM licence.
Not tax advice
Dates and penalties on this page are published information, not an opinion on your obligations.
Rules can change
The timetable has already been extended once. We track it and adjust the connector, but we cannot promise the dates will hold.
Frequently asked questions about UAE e-invoicing
Is Zarina CRM an Accredited Service Provider?
When does UAE e-invoicing become mandatory for my business?
What is the difference between UAE e-invoicing and Saudi ZATCA?
Do I still need a PDF invoice?
Is there a monthly fee for the e-invoicing capability?
Where is the invoice archive kept?
What happens if the rules change?
Can an electronic invoice be deleted if it is wrong?
Have the data ready before the deadline, not after it
We install Zarina CRM on your own server, set up the invoicing module with the fields UAE e-invoicing requires, and connect it to the Accredited Service Provider you appoint. Unlimited users, a permanent licence, and the archive stays with you.