VAT return workflow for UAE accounting firms

Build a register of every client's tax periods from their VAT certificates or EmaraTax. Quarterly filers have staggered periods, so each month has its own group of returns due on the 28th. Monthly filers, usually those above AED 150 million of turnover, sit on top.

• Columns: client, TRN, period frequency, current period end, due date, preparer, reviewer, status
• Status steps: books closed, working drafted, reviewed, sent to client, approved, filed, paid
• Target: every return filed by the 20th, leaving eight days of buffer

Once the period's books are closed, the AI agent drafts the working from the ledger: standard-rated and zero-rated supplies, exempt supplies, reverse charge on imports, and recoverable input tax, mapped to the return boxes. It attaches a list of exceptions: bills with VAT but no supplier TRN, invoices with no treatment, entertainment where recovery may be blocked, and large one-off items.

The reviewer works through the exceptions first, then compares each box to the previous period and the same period last year. A 40% swing in zero-rated sales needs an explanation in the file before anything goes to the client.

Send the client a short summary with the payable or refundable amount and the payment deadline, and record their approval. A person at the firm, or the client, files the return on EmaraTax and records the submission reference. The AI agent never files.

• Exceptions cleared or explained
• Box movements against prior periods reviewed
• VAT control accounts agree with the working
• Client approval recorded with date
• Submission reference and payment recorded in the file

Because every client file uses the same VAT treatments and working format, reviewers move between clients without relearning. White-label firms track close and VAT status across all clients in the firm console. Firms can ask for a custom VAT review report or a client approval summary in their own branding by emailing hello@hellobooks.ai.