Accounting software for interior fit-out companies in UAE, project by project

Fit-out sits between construction and retail: short projects, many suppliers and a mix of made and bought items. HelloBooks gives fit-out contractors a project-based chart.

• Project revenue, approved variations and pending variations
• Client advances received and advance recovered on each invoice
• Joinery workshop materials (MDF, veneer, hardware) and workshop labour
• Bought-in FF&E, lighting, glazing and flooring
• Authority approval fees, site insurance and snagging costs

Fit-out and refurbishment work is standard-rated at 5%. Advances matter for timing: when a client pays a deposit before work starts, VAT is generally due on that payment when it is received, not when the work is complete. HelloBooks drafts a tax invoice for the advance and then shows the advance as recovered on later invoices so VAT is not counted twice.

Imported fittings bring import VAT, normally accounted for under the reverse charge on your VAT return. The agent marks those bills so the amounts land in the right boxes of your VAT 201 draft for review.

Forward the glazing supplier’s PDF and the agent posts it to “Level 12 office, glazing”. Type “client approved variation 3, extra meeting room partitions, AED 38,500” and it adds the variation to the contract value and drafts the invoice when you are ready. Bank statement lines are matched against open project invoices.

Project managers can ask “how much have we spent on joinery for the Jumeirah villa so far?” Your accountant still reviews each claim, and any variation stays pending until you mark it approved.

Owners usually check margin by project, unapproved variations, advances not yet recovered and supplier payables. On a typical AED 1.1 million office job, a missed AED 60,000 variation is most of the profit, which is why the pending-variations report matters.

If your joinery workshop needs its own cost centre or you want a client claim format with your branding, the HelloBooks team can build it. Write to hello@hellobooks.ai or use /book-a-demo.