Calculator

Late tax payment penalty calculator

Corporate tax, VAT and excise tax paid late carry a penalty of 14% a year on the unpaid tax, charged for each month or part of a month from the day after the due date. AED 100,000 of corporate tax due on 30 September 2026 and paid on 15 December 2026 is charged for 3 months: AED 3,500. For VAT and excise this rule applies from 14 April 2026.

By UAE Business Explained Editorial Team. Updated . Free to use; the figures you enter stay in your browser and are not sent or stored.

The unpaid tax

Tax

The tax not paid by the due date. Penalties already charged are not included.

The last day to pay without a penalty.

Leave it empty if the tax is still unpaid.

Example figures are filled in. Replace them with your own: the result updates as you type, and nothing you enter leaves your browser.

Full result

Result

Late payment penalty

AED 3,500.00

3 charges of AED 1,166.67 on the unpaid corporate tax, from 1 October 2026.

Payment
Paid on 15 December 2026
Months charged, each month or part of one
3
Charge for each month
AED 1,166.67
14% a year, charged monthly
First and last charge
1 October 2026 to 1 December 2026
Tax plus penalty
AED 103,500.00
Month by month
Each charge is the annual rate divided by 12, on the unpaid tax.
MonthCharged onPenaltyTotal so far
11 October 2026AED 1,166.67AED 1,166.67
21 November 2026AED 1,166.67AED 2,333.33
31 December 2026AED 1,166.67AED 3,500.00

The penalty is charged on the unpaid tax only, never on earlier penalties. Find the corporate tax deadline with the return due date calculator.

How to use the calculator

  1. Choose the tax: corporate tax, VAT or excise tax.
  2. Enter the unpaid tax and the date it was due.
  3. Enter the date it was paid, or leave the date empty if it is still unpaid: the calculator then counts to today's date in the UAE and shows when the next charge falls.

How the penalty is calculated

First charge: the day after the due date

Later charges: the same date in each following month

Months charged = the charge dates up to and including the payment date

Penalty = unpaid tax × 14% ÷ 12 × months charged

The decisions set an annual rate charged monthly. The calculator reads that as one twelfth of the annual rate for each month or part of a month, on the tax still unpaid. A payment made on a charge date is counted after that charge. The table in the result lists each charge with its date.

The rates and the monthly dates

RuleWhat the decision says
Corporate tax: rate14% per annum, charged monthly
Corporate tax: month without the dateLast day of the month when the monthly date does not exist
VAT and excise tax: rate, from 14 April 202614% per annum, charged monthly
VAT and excise tax: month without the dateFirst day of the following month when the monthly date does not exist

Sources: Cabinet Decision No. 75 of 2023 and its amendments on the Administrative Penalties for Violations Related to the Application of Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022, Article 3, Ministry of Finance; The Administrative Penalties for Violation of Tax Laws in the UAE: Cabinet Decision No. 40 of 2017 and its amendments (consolidated to Cabinet Decision No. 129 of 2025, unofficial translation), table 1, footnotes to items 4, 9 and 14, Ministry of Finance. Checked .

The corporate tax penalties apply from 1 August 2023, when Cabinet Decision No. 75 of 2023 took effect, so the calculator accepts corporate tax due dates from then on. For VAT and excise tax it accepts due dates from 14 April 2026.

Worked examples

Worked example

Corporate tax of AED 100,000 paid on 15 December 2026

The amount and the dates are illustrations.

  1. Due 30 September 2026. Charges fall on 1 October 2026, 1 November 2026, 1 December 2026: 3 months.
  2. One month's charge: AED 100,000 × 14% ÷ 12 = AED 1,166.67.
  3. Penalty: AED 100,000 × 14% ÷ 12 × 3 = AED 3,500.00. The charges are added before rounding, so the total can differ by a fils from the rounded monthly figures added up.

Late payment penalty: AED 3,500.00.

Worked example

VAT of AED 50,000 due on 28 January 2027

The amount and the dates are illustrations; the VAT was paid on 1 March 2027.

  1. The first charge falls on 29 January 2027, the day after the due date.
  2. February 2027 has no 29th, so the second charge falls on the first day of the next month, 1 March 2027. Under the corporate tax rule it would have fallen on the last day of February.
  3. Two charges: AED 50,000 × 14% ÷ 12 × 2 = AED 1,166.67.

Late payment penalty: AED 1,166.67.

What the calculator assumes and leaves out

  • One unpaid amount. The calculator assumes the whole amount stays unpaid until the payment date. A part payment stops the charge on that part; the penalty for each part can be worked out separately with its own payment date and added up.
  • The due date is entered. For tax from a voluntary disclosure or a tax assessment, the decisions set a later due date for this penalty, counted in business days from the day the disclosure is submitted or the assessment is received. Enter that date.
  • Other penalties are not included: late filing, late registration, voluntary disclosure and audit penalties are separate.
  • No waiver. The calculator shows the penalty as the decisions set it, before any FTA reconsideration or waiver.

Corporate tax: late return

AED 500/month (months 1-12); AED 1,000/month (month 13 onwards)

Late filing of a Corporate Tax Return is penalised at AED 500 for each month or part of a month for the first 12 months, then AED 1,000 for each month or part of a month from the 13th month, starting the day after the filing deadline.

Applies to
Corporate Tax Returns; the same scale applies to late Corporate Tax declarations
Checked

VAT and excise tax: late return

AED 1,000; AED 2,000 if repeated within 24 months

Filing a VAT or Excise Tax return late is penalised at AED 1,000 the first time and AED 2,000 for a repeat within 24 months.

Applies to
VAT and Excise Tax returns
Checked

Note

The corporate tax payment deadline is the same as the return deadline: the return due date calculator gives it for any tax period.

Frequently asked questions

How is the VAT late payment penalty calculated in the UAE?

From 14 April 2026, unpaid VAT carries a penalty of 14% a year, charged for each month or part of a month from the day after the due date and on the same date each month after that. The calculator charges one twelfth of 14% of the unpaid VAT each month.

Is the corporate tax late payment penalty the same?

The rate is the same, 14% a year charged monthly. The one difference is the date in a month that lacks the monthly date: corporate tax is charged on the last day of that month, VAT and excise on the first day of the next month.

Does paying one day late count as a full month?

Yes. The penalty is charged for each month or part of a month, so tax paid on the day after the due date carries one month's charge: AED 1,166.67 on AED 100,000.

Is the penalty charged on earlier penalties?

No. The decisions charge it on the unpaid tax. Twelve months on AED 100,000 come to AED 14,000, exactly 14% of the tax, with nothing added on earlier charges.

What about VAT that was due before 14 April 2026?

The 14% a year rule applies to VAT and excise from 14 April 2026, when the amended penalty table took effect. The calculator covers only tax due on or after that date: the previous penalty rules, and how the new rule treats tax that was already overdue on that date, are not worked out here.

Is there a separate penalty for filing the return late?

Yes. A late corporate tax return costs AED 500 a month for the first 12 months and AED 1,000 a month after that. A late VAT or excise return costs AED 1,000, or AED 2,000 for a repeat within 24 months.

Other calculators

Corporate tax calculator

The corporate tax due on the taxable income of a tax period, with the zero-rate band, the free zone split and the effective rate shown.

Open the calculator

Small business relief checker

Whether a business can elect small business relief for a tax period, and the reason if it cannot.

Open the calculator

Corporate tax return due date

The filing and payment deadline for a tax period, and how many days are left.

Open the calculator

Free zone de minimis test

Whether a qualifying free zone person stays within the limit on non-qualifying revenue, and the headroom left.

Open the calculator

All calculators

Sources

Official and primary sources we used for this page, with the date we last opened each one.

  1. Cabinet Decision No. 75 of 2023 and its amendments on the Administrative Penalties for Violations Related to the Application of Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022, table item 8 Ministry of Finance. Accessed .
  2. The Administrative Penalties for Violation of Tax Laws in the UAE: Cabinet Decision No. 40 of 2017 and its amendments (consolidated to Cabinet Decision No. 129 of 2025, unofficial translation), table 1, items 9 and 14 Ministry of Finance. Accessed .