Accounting & CFO Questions & Answers.

Corporate tax records generally need to be retained for at least seven years after the tax period ends. See the FTA recordkeeping reminder. General VAT records follow a five-year period after the relevant tax period, while relevant VAT real-estate records require fifteen years under the VAT Executive Regulation. Build the archive around the applicable category and longest relevant obligation. Audit, dispute or other statutory requirements may extend retention, so review the position before deleting a period's records.

Electronic copies or photocopies can be used subject to the FTA's preservation requirements. They must retain the original details and all pages in order, remain legible and be accessible when the FTA requests them; partial scans are not accepted. FTA Decision No. 4 of 2026 sets out the rules. Give files clear references and link them to the accounting entries. Maintain backups and access after changing software or accountant. Outsourcing storage does not transfer the business's responsibility for preserving its records.

For establishments registered with MOHRE, Article 1 of Ministerial Resolution 0340 of 2026 states that the previous month's salaries fall due on the first day of each Gregorian month. Read the MOHRE resolution. Confirm the employer's authority and applicable arrangements, then schedule payroll inputs, approvals and payment processing around the due date. WPS file preparation alone is not confirmation that employees have been paid. Retain the approved payroll and payment evidence, and investigate rejected or incomplete payments promptly.

Profit and available cash measure different things. Sales can appear in the accounts before customers pay, while stock purchases, supplier payments and investment can use cash ahead of the income they support. Growth may therefore increase the amount tied up in receivables and inventory even when margins look healthy. Compare the profit report with customer ageing, supplier commitments and a cash forecast. Use realistic collection dates and payment timing, then test what happens if customers pay later or planned spending goes ahead sooner than expected.

Bookkeeping records transactions and keeps the underlying ledgers organised. Accounting also considers adjustments, reporting and how the figures should be presented. Most businesses need both. We describe the actual work in your proposal so that terms such as monthly accounting do not hide important exclusions or assume a level of reporting you do not need.

They can be included in a combined engagement, but they are separate responsibilities from maintaining the books. Your proposal states who prepares each return, who reviews it, who approves submission and who makes payment. We also identify which supporting schedules the bookkeeping process must supply to the tax work.

Not necessarily. We first assess whether the existing system can support your records, reporting and access requirements. A migration is a separate decision because it involves opening balances, data history, controls and user training. If a change is needed, the scope sets out what is transferred and how it will be checked.

Yes. We can take responsibility for a defined part of the process, such as reconciliations or preparation of monthly accounts, while your team retains other tasks. We agree ownership of each ledger and adjustment, access permissions and the final reviewer so that work is neither duplicated nor left unassigned.

We identify missing items and their effect on the accounts. Some gaps can be resolved through statements, duplicate invoices or confirmations; others require a documented judgement and management approval. Larger historic gaps may need a backlog project before recurring work begins. We do not fill unexplained balances with unsupported entries.

Yes, we support businesses across the UAE. Tell us where your records and operations are based and whether you need on-site work, remote delivery or a combination. We agree practical arrangements around document access and review meetings, rather than treating location as a substitute for a clear working process.

Bank statements are a useful starting point, but they do not explain every transaction or establish all unpaid balances. We also ask for invoices, contracts, supplier statements and other evidence where available. The assessment identifies what can be reconstructed and what remains uncertain before the project scope is finalised.

Tell us the full period involved and which records remain available. We scope the work around evidence, opening balances and the purpose of the reconstruction. Older periods may depend on records held by a former accountant, bank or supplier. We establish those dependencies rather than promising a fixed period of recovery in advance.

Only if the relevant tax review and corrective filing are expressly included. Bookkeeping reconstruction produces or repairs the accounting evidence. A separate assessment determines whether a filed position needs to change and which procedure applies. We identify potential differences so that they can be addressed by the responsible tax adviser.

We can assess the records you control and create a list of the missing exports, reconciliations and explanations. You remain responsible for obtaining access and authorising any handover. If important records cannot be recovered, we explain the effect on scope and reliability rather than suggesting that every historic balance can be verified.

Share the deadline immediately, together with the number of periods and the state of the records. We assess whether a useful sequence is achievable and identify information that must arrive first. Completion depends on the work and response times; we do not promise a delivery date before reviewing those dependencies.

The handover should lead into a recurring document collection and reconciliation process, with named owners and agreed reporting dates. We can propose ongoing bookkeeping once the opening position is understood. A recurring engagement is separately scoped, so you can see the difference between the cleanup fee and the continuing workload.

Bookkeeping establishes what has happened and keeps the records organised. CFO support uses that information to plan, assess choices and oversee financial performance. It does not replace reliable books. We can work with your existing accountant, or define separate accounting and advisory responsibilities within a combined engagement.

Yes. A project might assess a new location, a contract, a hiring plan or a funding requirement. We agree the question, necessary information and decision deadline at the outset. The output explains assumptions and financial implications, while the final commercial decision remains with the business owner or board.

We can help prepare forecasts, financial schedules and explanations that a lender or investor requests, where included in the scope. Approval, pricing and availability depend on the institution and the business. We do not promise funding or act as a substitute for legal or regulated investment advice.

We first establish which figures can support a decision and which need correction. Sometimes a limited reconciliation is enough; sometimes a separate accounting or backlog project is needed. We can use clearly identified assumptions for planning, but we do not present uncertain starting data as verified historical performance.

Your authorised management retains spending, borrowing and payment approval. We can recommend controls and prepare analysis without taking custody of funds. Any system access must match the agreed work and approval policy. The engagement records responsibilities so that financial advice is not mistaken for authority to transact.

The frequency depends on cash pressure, trading volatility and the decisions ahead. A business with uneven collections may need a different rhythm from one with predictable subscriptions. We agree the review cycle and update responsibilities with you, then change them when the information or decision needs justify it.

No. The employer remains responsible for employment decisions, accurate information, approvals, funding and wage payment. We perform the calculations and administrative work included in the agreement. A clear division of duties helps prevent gaps between HR records, approved payroll and the actual payment made to employees.

Payment-file preparation and checks can be included after we confirm the employer’s applicable arrangement and the bank or payroll-provider format. The proposal states who uploads, funds and authorises the instruction. We also identify who checks acceptance and handles rejected records; generating the file alone does not complete the payment process.

Do not assume that every employer follows identical arrangements. We check the licensing authority, workforce and payment requirements that apply to your business. Your payroll process must reflect those facts as well as employment terms. Specific legal interpretations or disputes are referred for the appropriate employment-law advice.

Your authorised contact provides approved instructions and the supporting attendance, policy or contractual records. We assess the calculation basis within the agreed scope and flag unclear items. Amounts are not added or deducted simply because they appeared in last month’s spreadsheet; changes should be traceable to a responsible approval.

Yes, where included in the engagement and supported by the relevant employment records. We establish the applicable arrangement, service dates, salary components, leave balance and approved adjustments. Any disagreement about entitlement or a disputed termination needs separate legal consideration; payroll calculation does not decide the underlying employment dispute.

We record the change, assess its effect and agree whether a revised payroll or a separate adjustment is appropriate. A changed payment instruction requires the relevant approval again. The process should preserve both the original and revised records so that management can explain what changed and reconcile the eventual payment.

It should contain the information needed for your decisions, rather than every available metric. Common elements include financial results, cash, receivables, payables and comparisons with a budget or prior period. We select additional measures around your business model and define the owner and purpose of each section.

Yes, if the underlying records support meaningful allocation. We first check how revenue, costs and shared expenses are captured. Where source data is insufficient, we can propose a coding or allocation approach. Management must understand the assumptions so that a reported margin is not mistaken for a directly measured fact.

Automation depends on the source systems, access and how consistently information is recorded. Some figures can refresh automatically while others need review or adjustment before release. We agree the refresh process and approval point; a live connection does not by itself make a measure complete, accurate or suitable for decision-making.

No. Management accounts are prepared for internal use and can follow an agreed format and frequency. An external audit is a separate assurance engagement with its own scope, evidence and reporting requirements. Management reporting may help organise information, but it does not provide an independent audit opinion.

Yes. We can improve definitions, mappings, reconciliations or commentary while your team continues preparing the source data. We assess the existing software before recommending changes. The engagement identifies who maintains each source, approves adjustments and releases the final report so the process remains workable after setup.

We agree a reporting cut-off and distinguish final figures from estimates or provisional information. Material gaps are explained in the pack, with responsibility for resolving them. When later information changes a prior report, the revision should be visible so that management can follow the effect on decisions and comparisons.