Fees and steps checked on
Published bookkeeping prices in Dubai run from AED 400 to AED 1,500 a month. The range comes from two setup agencies and one free zone, checked in . It is a spread of what firms put on their websites, not an average of what companies pay.
How much does bookkeeping cost per month in Dubai?
| Provider type | Published monthly price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Setup agency | AED 400 | Promotional price, shown plus VAT |
| Corporate services provider | Plans with tax filing included | Priced by plan, below the Meydan bands |
| Meydan Free Zone | AED 1,000 | Up to 100 transactions a month |
| Meydan Free Zone | AED 1,500 | Up to 200 transactions a month |
The Meydan bands are the clearest example of how fees scale. Double the monthly transactions and you move up a price band. Meydan sells this service to companies licensed in its zone.
How do firms count transactions?
Most bookkeeping fees are volume-based, even when the quote looks flat. A flat fee usually has a cap. Ask these questions before you agree.
- What is one transaction? A bank line, an invoice, a bill, or each entry in the ledger can all be counted differently.
- What is the cap? Find out what happens above it: a higher band, a per-line fee, or a stop.
- Are sales and purchase invoices included? Some firms count bank lines only.
- Who enters the data? Posting from scanned documents costs more than reviewing entries you make in your own software.
What makes bookkeeping cost more?
- More bank accounts and cards to reconcile.
- Foreign currency transactions.
- Payroll entries and other recurring journals.
- Late or missing documents that need chasing.
- A backlog of unrecorded months. Catch-up work is usually quoted separately.
- Management reports beyond a basic profit and loss and balance sheet.
What should a bookkeeping fee include?
At minimum, bookkeeping should give you a ledger that ties to the bank, a set of month-end reports and records you can hand to an auditor or the tax authority. The records matter because the law sets how long you must keep them and fines you if you do not. See record keeping rules in the UAE.
The Federal Tax Authority (FTA) fines not keeping required records AED 10,000 per violation, and AED 20,000 if repeated within 24 months.
Source: Federal Tax Authority, administrative penalties, checked .
Software and who pays for it
Bookkeepers either work in your system or in their own. If you pick the software, your firm needs to be comfortable in it. Our accounting software guide covers what to check. Ask whether licence costs are in the monthly fee or billed on top.
How do I compare two bookkeeping quotes?
Put them side by side on one sheet. Write the monthly fee, the transaction cap, what is included (VAT return, corporate tax return, payroll), the setup or catch-up fee and the notice period. If one quote is far lower, find which line item is missing. For more on what firms offer, see bookkeeping services in Dubai, and for other costs, the accounting cost hub.
Three examples of how a quote can differ
A freelancer with a few invoices a month. Volume is low, so a promotional entry-level price may fit. Check that it covers a bank reconciliation and month-end reports.
A trading company with many small sales. Transaction count drives the fee. A flat monthly price may hide a cap, so ask where the next band starts.
A company that wants returns filed too. Compare a bookkeeping-only fee with a plan that includes VAT and corporate tax returns. The plan can look dearer and still cost less than buying the parts separately. See VAT return filing for what that work involves.
What not to pay extra for
Do not pay a separate fee for access to your own ledger or for a copy of your records. Ask at the start how you will get your data back if you leave.
