FTA Reconsideration Request UAE (2026): How to Challenge a Tax Decision

The clock starts on the date you were notified of the decision — not the date you opened the email or noticed the penalty in your dashboard. Keep the notification itself; it establishes the start date. This window was extended from 20 to 40 business days by amendments to the Tax Procedures Law, but it remains strict: miss it and the decision generally becomes final, leaving only narrower routes such as a penalty waiver application waiver and installment requests →.

Business days exclude weekends and public holidays, so 40 business days is roughly two calendar months — but never calculate it loosely when a five-figure penalty depends on it.

The reconsideration request and its justification must be submitted in Arabic. Supporting documents in English generally require legal translation. This single requirement is why most businesses do not file these themselves — a request that is procedurally correct but poorly argued in Arabic tends to fail on its merits, and you only get one attempt within the window.

This is the procedural trap. Under Article 28, if your dispute concerns a tax assessment itself, a Tax Assessment Review Request is the correct first step. Filing a reconsideration request when the law requires an assessment review — or the reverse — can invalidate your challenge and burn the deadline. Establish which decision you are actually contesting before drafting anything.

Reconsideration applies to decisions issued to you specifically — penalties, registration refusals, assessments after the review stage. It does not apply to general replies, complaints, or clarifications, which are not “decisions” in law.

• The decision reference and date of notification
• A reasoned Arabic submission setting out the factual and legal grounds
• Documentary evidence: returns, invoices, bank records, correspondence, proof of payment
• Trade licence, Emirates ID of the signatory, and a power of attorney if filed by a representative

Requests that simply ask for leniency rarely succeed. Requests that identify a specific error — a wrong tax period, a payment the FTA did not register, a filing that was in fact submitted on time, a misapplied penalty rule — are the ones with a real prospect.

The FTA reviews and issues a decision within 40 business days of receiving the request, then notifies you within 5 business days. Three outcomes: the decision is amended in your favour, it is upheld, or no decision is issued in the period. If you disagree with the outcome, the next stage is an objection to the Tax Disputes Resolution Committee within 40 business days objecting at the TDRC →.

Late registration (AED 10,000), late filing (AED 500 per month for the first 12 months, then AED 1,000), late payment (14% per annum), and record-keeping penalties (AED 10,000, AED 20,000 on repeat). The full list is here all UAE corporate tax fines →.

Send us your penalty notice — we assess the grounds and handle the Arabic submission penalty advisory →.