By Shoayb Patel, ICAEW Chartered Accountant and founder of RDvault. Based on the guidance of the Emirates Research and Development Council (ERDC) as at November 2026.

UAE R&D tax credit pre-approval comes before any claim. The UAE’s R&D Tax Credit applies to tax periods beginning on or after 1 January 2026, and before a company can claim it, each R&D project needs pre-approval from the Emirates Research and Development Council (Cabinet Decision No. 215 of 2025, Article 3(1)(b); Ministerial Decision No. 24 of 2026, Article 4(1)). Applications are made through TAWWER, ERDC’s digital platform.

Quick answer

A company whose tax year ends on 31 December 2026 must apply through TAWWER within 40 business days of the year end, which is 26 February 2027. A company whose tax year ends during 2027 must apply by the last day of that tax year. After the year ends, an Expenditure Confirmation is due within six months, and the claim itself is made in the Corporate Tax return, due nine months after the year end.

For each stage in more detail, RDvault publishes a guide to pre-approval through TAWWER.

The credit in brief

The credit reduces Corporate Tax and, for companies within its scope, Top-up Tax. In this first phase it is non-refundable: a company with no tax to pay in a year receives no cash and carries the credit forward instead, subject to ownership conditions (MD 24, Article 2(2) and Article 5).

It is calculated in bands, each with a minimum average number of R&D staff: 15% on the first AED 1 million of qualifying expenditure (at least 2 staff), 35% on the portion up to AED 2 million (at least 6), and 50% on the portion up to AED 5 million (at least 14) (MD 24, Article 2(1)).

Qualifying expenditure is capped at AED 5 million a year, so the maximum credit is AED 2 million. Each project also needs at least AED 500,000 of qualifying expenditure in the tax period, measured before the 30% uplift on staff costs (CD 215, Article 5(3)(b)).

For example, a company with AED 1.5 million of qualifying R&D expenditure, after the 30% staff uplift, and an average of 6 R&D staff would earn 15% on the first AED 1 million (AED 150,000) and 35% on the next AED 500,000 (AED 175,000). That is a credit of AED 325,000, used against its Corporate Tax, with any unused amount carried forward.

What TAWWER does, and what it does not

TAWWER is the only channel for pre-approval. ERDC decides whether the activities qualify as R&D; the Federal Tax Authority (FTA) calculates the credit when it is claimed in the Corporate Tax return. A claim needs proof of pre-approval (CD 215, Article 9(1)(a)).

UAE R&D tax credit pre-approval: when do you have to apply?

The deadline for UAE R&D tax credit pre-approval depends on when the company’s tax year ends, not when the project ends. Two rules cover every case, depending on whether the year ends in 2026 or later:

• Tax years ending on or before 31 December 2026: apply within 40 business days of the year end.
• Tax years ending after 31 December 2026: apply on or before the last day of the tax year.

For a company whose tax year matches the calendar year 2026, that means applying by 26 February 2027, submitting the Expenditure Confirmation by 30 June 2027 and filing the claim by 30 September 2027.

The second rule is the one most likely to catch companies out. A company whose tax year runs from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027 must apply by 31 March 2027, while the year is still running.

It must then submit the Expenditure Confirmation by 30 September 2027 and file the claim by 31 December 2027.

For a company whose tax year matches the calendar year 2027, the three dates are 31 December 2027, 30 June 2028 and 30 September 2028. The credit applies only to tax periods that begin on or after 1 January 2026.

Corporate Tax returns are due nine months after the end of the tax period (Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022, Article 53(1)). Late claims are not considered except in exceptional circumstances accepted by the FTA (CD 215, Article 9(2) and (3)).

Applying early also leaves time to answer any questions ERDC raises during its review, which must be done within 20 business days or the application is rejected.

Projects already under way

A project already under way can be applied for. A project that started before 2026 can qualify for its activity and spending in a tax period beginning on or after 1 January 2026, but not for earlier periods. A project running across several tax years needs a separate application each year.

The work must still meet all five statutory conditions for the period claimed (MD 24, Article 3(1)). One is being systematic: following a plan and budget. That is tested against records made at the time, and documentation written up afterwards will not show it.

After the year ends: the Expenditure Confirmation

An Expenditure Confirmation must be submitted through TAWWER within six months of the end of the tax year. It reports the activities actually carried out, the actual spending and the average number of R&D staff. If it is late, or fails ERDC’s compliance check, the pre-approval ceases to have effect for that project and year, and no credit can be claimed. No extension can be agreed in advance.

Common questions

Can a loss-making company apply for UAE R&D tax credit pre-approval?

Yes. A company with no Corporate Tax to pay receives no cash, but the credit is carried forward to use against future tax, subject to ownership conditions (MD 24, Article 5).

Do free zone companies use a different process?

No, the process is the same. A Qualifying Free Zone Person must also either be taxed at 9% on income derived from its R&D or be subject to Top-up Tax (CD 215, Article 3(2)). One taxed at 0% on that income and outside the Top-up Tax cannot currently claim.

What if we have elected Small Business Relief?

A company that has elected Small Business Relief cannot claim the credit for that period (CD 215, Article 4(2)).

Does the TAWWER deadline clash with the e-invoicing dates?

It can. Businesses with revenue below AED 50 million must appoint an accredited e-invoicing provider by 31 March 2027, which is also the TAWWER deadline for a company with an April-to-March tax year. Both dates sit early in the 2027 diary.

Those e-invoicing dates come from our UAE e-invoicing guide, based on the Ministry of Finance decisions we read on 22 October 2026. That smaller-business group must then implement the system by 1 July 2027, and larger businesses implement it from 1 January 2027. A calendar-year company has 26 February 2027 for TAWWER and 31 March for the provider, a month apart. Whoever owns tax compliance in the business may be asked to deliver both, so put both dates in one diary.

What to prepare now

• Find your tax year end and diary the application deadline.
• Check that the FTA holds the right details for your authorised signatory, who approves access to TAWWER.
• Define each R&D project and check it against the AED 500,000 minimum.
• Record R&D staff month by month, and keep project plans, budgets and test results as the work happens. Records must be kept for seven years (MD 24, Article 12(1)).
• Add the e-invoicing dates above to the same compliance calendar, so the two workstreams do not collide in March.

Shoayb Patel is an ICAEW Chartered Accountant and the founder of RDvault, an R&D tax credit practice working in the UK and the UAE. RDvault is independent of ERDC. General information only, not tax advice.