UAE e-invoicing timeline: 2026 and 2027 dates by business size

Dates as they stand under the decision and its amendments:

• 1 July 2026: voluntary adoption opens and the pilot programme starts.
• 1 October 2026: Ministerial Decision No. 197 of 2026 takes effect, changing exclusions and storage rules.
• 30 October 2026: businesses with revenue of AED 50 million or more must have appointed an ASP.
• 1 January 2027: those businesses go live.
• 31 March 2027: businesses below AED 50 million, and government entities, must have appointed an ASP.
• 1 July 2027: businesses below AED 50 million go live.
• 1 October 2027: government entities go live.

Article 1 of Ministerial Decision No. 244 of 2025 defines revenue as gross income earned during the most recent accounting period, based on financial statements prepared under UAE law, or other documentation the FTA accepts. A Dubai distributor whose 2025 statements show AED 54 million of revenue is in the first wave. One with AED 31 million is in the second.

After both waves, Article 5(1)(d) brings in any remaining person or government entity subject to the system, so no business should assume it sits outside the timeline altogether.

Appointment is not the finish line. After you choose an ASP, you onboard through EmaraTax, clean master data, map invoice fields, test with real customers and train staff. For a business going live on 1 July 2027, a sensible plan is to shortlist providers by the end of 2026, appoint by early 2027 rather than on 31 March, and run test invoices through the spring.

HelloBooks helps with the data side of that plan. Ask the AI agent "which active customers are missing a TRN or full address?" and it lists them for your team to update. Sending and receiving e-invoices is done by the ASP you appoint; HelloBooks does not perform that role.