Corporate Tax
Corporate Tax for Project Management Consultants in the UAE
UAE corporate tax for PM consultants: fee-based revenue, no contracting risk, supervision-style billing and WIP.
corporate tax project management consultant uae
UAE project management consultants pay 0% corporate tax on taxable income up to AED 375,000 and 9% above it under Article 3 of Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022. Fee income is taxed as the service months pass or milestones are delivered, the consultancy takes no contracting risk so there is no construction revenue in its computation, and unbilled work is accrued at the year-end.
Basis: UAE Federal Tax Authority
- Corporate tax rates
- 0% on taxable income up to AED 375,000; 9% above
- Article 3, Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022
- Fee timing
- Recognised as service months pass or milestones deliver
- Article 20, Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022
- Contracting boundary
- Taking build risk changes the activity and its tax profile
- Article 20, Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022
- Small Business Relief
- Revenue up to AED 3,000,000; tax periods ending on or before 31 December 2029
- Article 21; Ministerial Decision No. 73 of 2023
# How corporate tax works for project management consultants
Project management consultants advise and oversee without building: taxable income is fee income less professional payroll and overheads, taxed at the standard bands. There is no contract revenue, no materials and no subcontractor risk in the computation, which makes it the simplest construction-adjacent tax profile.
Fees accrue as the service months pass on supervision-style appointments, or by milestone on defined deliverables. Disbursements, independent testing or specialist advice procured for the client, pass through as agent.
# Computing taxable income for project management consultants
Unbilled fee accruals at the year-end follow the work performed. Success or savings-share fees are recognised when the saving is established and determinable. Proposal costs are deductible business development.
Construction businesses compute taxable income from accounting profit adjusted under Article 20 of Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022, at the standard 0%/9% bands. Long-term contracts are recognised by stage of completion: revenue and margin follow certified progress, not cash received. Retention amounts are recognised when the right to them is established, usually at the defects period's end.
Variations and claims are recognised only when instructed or agreed, never on hope. Subcontractor costs, materials, labour and equipment hire are matched to the same progress, with year-end accruals for work done but not yet invoiced. Onerous contracts, where costs will exceed revenue, need provisions following the accounts.
Deductions that matter most for project management consultants:
- Professional payroll, visas and training are deductible.
- Project office, software and travel costs are deductible.
- Professional indemnity and proposal costs are deductible.
| Expense | Treatment |
|---|---|
| Materials and subcontractors | Deductible, matched to progress |
| Direct labour, visas, accommodation | Deductible |
| Equipment hire | Deductible as incurred |
| Owned plant and scaffolding | Capitalised; depreciated |
| Performance bonds and insurance | Deductible |
| Contractual delay penalties | Reduce revenue or deductible |
| Regulatory fines | Not deductible (Article 33) |
| Tender costs (win or lose) | Deductible business development |
# No contracting risk: the boundary that must hold
The consultancy's value proposition is independence from the build, and the tax computation must reflect it: no construction revenue, no direct works costs. If the consultancy starts procuring works or taking delivery risk, it has crossed into contracting with the licensing and tax consequences that follow.
Cost-plus arrangements need the plus evidenced: where the consultant's staff are embedded with the client, the payroll remains the consultancy's deductible cost and the fee is revenue. Related-party staffing must be arm's length under Article 34.
Construction's recurring errors are progress-shaped: recognising full contract value on signing, ignoring variations discipline, missing subcontractor accruals at the year-end, and treating retention as never receivable. Related-party plant hire and labour supply without benchmarking invite Article 34 adjustments, and cash-paid day labour with no records destroys the deduction evidence.
# Free zone vs mainland for project management consultants
Construction work is performed where the project sits, which for UAE projects means mainland activity taxed at 9% regardless of where the contractor is licensed. A free zone contractor building in the mainland is a mainland taxpayer in substance on that work; construction is not a qualifying activity for the 0% rate.
Only genuinely separate free zone streams, such as design or project-management consultancy for other free zone persons, could be qualifying income. Keep contracting and consultancy segmented where both exist.
Project management consultancy for other free zone persons can be qualifying income at 0% for a Qualifying Free Zone Person; oversight of mainland projects is taxed at 9%.
# Worked example: project management consultants tax computation
A PMC recognises AED 4.5 million of fees. Professional payroll is AED 2.4 million, project offices and travel AED 500,000 and head-office overheads AED 600,000:
The computation has no construction revenue or direct works costs, which is the boundary holding. Revenue exceeds AED 3 million so Small Business Relief is unavailable.
For help applying these rules to your own business, including registration, computations and filing, contact us for a quote.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Fee revenue | AED 4,500,000 |
| Less: professional payroll | (AED 2,400,000) |
| Less: project offices and travel | (AED 500,000) |
| Less: head-office overheads | (AED 600,000) |
| Taxable income | AED 1,000,000 |
| Tax: 0% on first AED 375,000 | AED 0 |
| Tax: 9% on AED 625,000 | AED 56,250 |
Sources and legal basis
Legislation and decisions2
- Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022
- Ministerial Decision No. 229 of 2025
Authorities, systems and registers3
- UAE Federal Tax Authority
- UAE Ministry of Finance
- EmaraTax
Terms used1
- Dubai Municipality
- Corporate Tax – Federal Tax AuthorityUAE Federal Tax Authority
- Corporate Tax – Ministry of FinanceUAE Ministry of Finance
Rates, thresholds and deadlines change. Every figure above is linked to the authority that publishes it — if the two ever disagree, the authority is right and this page is out of date. Tell us and we will fix it.
Frequently asked questions
Are savings-share fees taxed differently?
The rate is the same; the timing follows when the saving is established and the fee determinable, usually at the project's commercial close. Do not recognise projected savings as revenue during the project; recognise the fee when the contract's measurement says it is earned.
What if we provide staff augmentation to clients?
Secondee fees are revenue and the secondees' payroll is your deductible cost, like any consultancy. Where secondees come from a related company, the internal charge must be arm's length under Article 34. Long-term secondees who function as the client's staff still sit in your computation until the arrangement changes in substance.
Does a contractor register before winning its first project?
Yes, if it is a juridical person carrying on business. Registration under Article 51 follows the business activity, not the first contract; a contractor tendering with staff and overheads is already within scope. Early registration also preserves tender-stage losses for carry-forward under Article 37.
When is the contractor's tax return due?
Within nine months of the end of the tax period (Articles 53(1) and 48 of Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022), with any tax payable by the same date. Stage-of-completion certifications and subcontractor accruals must be finalised before the return, because they decide the period's profit. Late filing attracts administrative penalties.