Tax and accounting for UAE Amazon sellers.

Common tax challenges

Amazon sellers face the hardest reconciliation problem in e-commerce, because the money that arrives in your bank bears almost no resemblance to what you actually sold.

• Settlement is net of everything. Amazon deducts referral fees, FBA fulfilment fees, storage, advertising, refunds and reserves before paying out. A fortnightly deposit is a net figure. Recording it as revenue understates your sales, hides every cost line, and produces a VAT return built on the wrong number.
• Reverse charge on Amazon fees. Where fees are charged by an Amazon entity outside the UAE, they are typically imported services and the reverse charge applies. This appears on both sides of the return. Sellers routinely record neither side.
• Multiple marketplaces. Selling on Amazon.ae alongside overseas marketplaces means different places of supply and different treatments, settled in different currencies.
• FBA inventory. Stock sitting in a fulfilment centre is still your asset, and it is frequently absent from the balance sheet entirely.
• Reserves and rolling holds. Amazon holds a portion of funds. That is not a reduction in revenue, it is a receivable.

What we provide

• Settlement report reconciliation, recorded gross with every fee category split out
• Reverse charge handling on fees, advertising and software
• FBA inventory tracking and valuation
• Multi-currency and multi-marketplace bookkeeping
• True per-unit profitability after all Amazon deductions
• VAT returns and Corporate Tax filing

Typical documents

• Amazon settlement reports covering the full period
• Monthly fee and advertising invoices
• FBA inventory and storage reports
• Supplier and import invoices with customs documentation
• Bank statements in every currency

Our process

Everything starts with rebuilding gross revenue from the settlement reports. Until that exists, per-unit margin is guesswork and the VAT return rests on a net deposit figure. Once it is in place, the rest is routine. See also e-commerce accounting.

Getting started

Tell us your licence type and what is outstanding, and we will confirm which returns apply and what the deadlines are before any work begins. Send us your details, or check your position with the tax status tool.