Tax invoice template for the UAE: free model explained

Key takeaways

• A tax invoice template for the UAE needs the words "Tax Invoice", your name, address and TRN, the registered recipient's details, a sequential number, the dates and the VAT at 5 %, as of October 2026.
• Bilingual Arabic and English labels are common and easy to add. What matters most is that every field is present and readable.
• The worked example below totals AED 7,200 before VAT, AED 360 of VAT at 5 % and AED 7,560 payable.
• A template works while you send PDFs. Once e-invoicing is mandatory (1 July 2027 for businesses below AED 50 million), invoices in scope travel as PINT AE files through an Accredited Service Provider.
• The weak points of a template are numbering, VAT arithmetic and corrections. Software removes all three.

What a tax invoice template for the UAE must contain

A template is a fixed layout you fill in for each sale. For a VAT-registered business in the UAE, it has one job: make sure no required field is ever forgotten. The Federal Tax Authority (FTA) does not ask for a particular design. It asks for particular information.

As of October 2026, a tax invoice in the UAE shows:

• The words "Tax Invoice", clearly at the top.
• The supplier's name, address and TRN, your Tax Registration Number.
• The recipient's details where they are registered: name, address and TRN.
• A sequential number, unique and continuous.
• The dates: date of issue and, where different, date of supply.
• The VAT: the rate, the VAT amount and the total.

To show the VAT correctly, the template also needs the lines themselves: description, quantity, unit price, discount, amount before VAT and VAT per line, then the totals in AED. Check the FTA's current guidance for the complete list of particulars, since detailed rules can change.

One condition comes before any template: you must be VAT registered. As of October 2026, registration is mandatory above AED 375,000 of taxable supplies and imports over 12 months, and voluntary from AED 187,500. Without a TRN, you issue an ordinary invoice with no VAT.

The free tax invoice template for the UAE, field by field

Copy this structure into your word processor, spreadsheet or invoicing tool. The Arabic labels are optional; many UAE businesses print both.

1. Tax Invoice / فاتورة ضريبية: the title, at the top, in large type.
2. Supplier / المورد: legal business name, full address, phone, email.
3. Supplier TRN / رقم التسجيل الضريبي للمورد: your TRN, exactly as issued by the FTA.
4. Invoice number / رقم الفاتورة: the next number in your sequence, for example INV-2026-0215.
5. Date of issue / تاريخ الإصدار: the day you issue the invoice.
6. Date of supply / تاريخ التوريد: only if it differs from the date of issue.
7. Customer / العميل: legal name and address.
8. Customer TRN / رقم التسجيل الضريبي للعميل: when the customer is registered.
9. Lines / البنود: description, quantity, unit price (AED), discount, amount before VAT, VAT rate, VAT amount.
10. Total before VAT / الإجمالي قبل الضريبة: the sum of the line amounts.
11. VAT 5 % / ضريبة القيمة المضافة 5 %: the total VAT, with any 0 % lines shown separately.
12. Total payable / الإجمالي المستحق: in AED.
13. Payment terms and details / شروط الدفع: due date, bank details or a payment link.
14. Notes / ملاحظات: quote or purchase order reference, reason for any 0 % line.

A template guarantees the layout. It does not guarantee the content.

Each field explained, and why it is there

The title. "Tax Invoice" tells the reader this document carries VAT they may recover. A quote, a proforma or a delivery note must never carry this title.

Your identity and TRN. Your customer's accountant matches your TRN against their records. A single wrong digit makes the document hard to use. Paste it from your registration record.

The number. Sequential numbering proves that no invoice has been removed. Gaps and duplicates are the first thing a reviewer notices. A template is weak here, because the next number depends on someone remembering it.

The dates. The date of issue places the invoice in a VAT period. If you deliver in one month and invoice the next, show both dates.

The customer block. For a registered customer, the full tax invoice names them and shows their TRN. As of October 2026, a simplified tax invoice is allowed when the recipient is not registered, or is registered and the supply does not exceed AED 10,000. Your template can cover both by leaving the TRN line empty for unregistered customers.

The lines. Each line should let the reader rebuild the total: quantity times unit price, minus discount, plus VAT. Vague lines such as "services" invite questions. "Website maintenance, October 2026" does not.

The VAT. Standard-rated lines carry 5 %. Some supplies, such as exports, are zero-rated at 0 %. Show each rate separately, and add a note explaining a 0 % line.

Payment. Not a tax field, but it decides when you get paid. A due date and a payment link shorten the wait more than any reminder.

A filled tax invoice example in AED with 5 % VAT

Here is the template completed for a fictional Dubai office furniture supplier selling to a registered company.

• Title: Tax Invoice.
• Supplier: Al Waha Office Furniture LLC, Al Quoz, Dubai, with its TRN.
• Invoice number: INV-2026-0215.
• Date of issue: 25 October 2026. Date of supply: 23 October 2026.
• Customer: Harbour Logistics FZE, Jebel Ali, Dubai, with its TRN.
• Line 1: office chair, 10 × AED 450 = AED 4,500, VAT 5 % = AED 225.
• Line 2: desk, 2 × AED 1,200 = AED 2,400, VAT 5 % = AED 120.
• Line 3: delivery and assembly, 1 × AED 300 = AED 300, VAT 5 % = AED 15.
• Total before VAT: AED 7,200.
• VAT 5 %: AED 360.
• Total payable: AED 7,560.
• Payment terms: due in 30 days, by bank transfer or payment link.
• Notes: purchase order PO-7781.

Check the arithmetic the way your customer will: AED 7,200 × 5 % = AED 360, and AED 7,200 + AED 360 = AED 7,560. Going back, AED 7,560 ÷ 1.05 = AED 7,200. Never subtract 5 % from the total: that gives AED 7,182 and an invoice that does not add up.

Where a tax invoice template goes wrong

A template guarantees the layout. It does not guarantee the content. The usual failures:

• Numbers typed by hand: two people send INV-0215 on the same day, or a cancelled invoice leaves a gap.
• Formulas overwritten: someone types a total over a spreadsheet formula, and the VAT no longer matches the lines.
• Old copies reused: last month's invoice saved under a new name, with last month's date or customer still in it.
• Edits after sending: the amount changed on a file the customer already has. Corrections belong on a credit note that refers to the original invoice.
• Files scattered: invoices in email attachments, desktop folders and phones, impossible to search when the FTA or your accountant asks.
• No follow-up: a template does not know who has paid, so overdue invoices wait until someone notices.

Why a template stops being enough once UAE e-invoicing is mandatory

A template produces a document for people to read. E-invoicing needs data for software to read. As of October 2026, the UAE model is built on Peppol: businesses send and receive e-invoices through an Accredited Service Provider (ASP), in the PINT AE format, the UAE data dictionary on the Peppol PINT specification. There is no government portal to upload a PDF to.

The timeline, as of October 2026: a voluntary pilot since 1 July 2026; businesses with revenue of AED 50 million or more appoint an ASP by 30 October 2026 and start on 1 January 2027; businesses below AED 50 million appoint an ASP by 31 March 2027 and start on 1 July 2027; government entities appoint by 31 March 2027 and start on 1 October 2027. The dates have moved once already, so confirm them on the Ministry of Finance and FTA websites.

From your start date, a Word or Excel template cannot send an invoice in scope on its own. Cabinet Decision No. 106 of 2025 sets administrative penalties for e-invoicing non-compliance, with voluntary participants exempt. The fields in this template stay useful: they are the same information a PINT AE file carries. What changes is that they must come from software connected to an ASP.

That is where inyad Invoicing fits. It keeps your customers' TRNs, numbers invoices in sequence, applies 5 % or 0 % per line, raises credit notes against the original and sends each invoice with a payment link on WhatsApp, SMS or email. When e-invoicing reaches your business, inyad Invoicing issues and receives e-invoices through an Accredited Service Provider on the UAE's Peppol network, so the template you outgrow becomes a setting rather than a migration.

Frequently asked questions

Is there an official FTA tax invoice template?

The FTA sets the information a tax invoice must contain, not a single mandatory layout. You can design your own, as long as every required particular is present and readable. Check the FTA's current guidance when you build or update your template, because the detailed requirements can change.

Do I need Arabic on my tax invoice template?

Bilingual Arabic and English templates are common in the UAE and easy to set up, and many businesses use English alone. If you are unsure what applies to you, check the FTA's guidance and ask what your customers and accountant expect. Whatever the language, keep every field clear.

Can I use the same template for a simplified tax invoice?

Yes. A simplified tax invoice uses the same core fields without the customer's details. As of October 2026, it is allowed when the customer is not VAT registered, or is registered and the supply does not exceed AED 10,000. Leave the customer TRN line empty in those cases and keep the rest of the layout.

Can I keep my template after 1 July 2027?

For invoices in scope of e-invoicing, no: from your start date they must be sent as PINT AE e-invoices through an ASP. The template's fields remain the right checklist, and a readable PDF copy can still help your customer. Check which of your transactions are in scope before your date.