As the UAE moves closer to mandatory e-Invoicing, businesses must start preparing well beyond just technology upgrades. Successful e-Invoicing implementation requires coordinated changes across people, processes, and systems. This article outlines a department-wise checklist to help organizations understand what needs to be addressed internally to ensure a smooth and compliant transition.
Preparing various departments for compliance with e-invoicing - A checklist
To smoothly adopt e-Invoicing, changes need to be implemented in processes, systems and workflows of various departments. Here are the departments that will need to adapt a few changes to be ready for e-Invoicing:
Finance and accounting department
The finance team owns the accuracy, legality, and tax integrity of every invoice. They decide how tax applies and not how it is transmitted.
Regulatory and applicability assessment
- Determine whether your turnover exceeds AED 50 million.
- Identify whether your transactions fall under B2B, B2G, or both.
- Monitor Ministry of Finance (MoF) announcements for confirmed registration timelines.
- Align internal compliance timelines with Pilot (July 2026) and mandatory phase (January 2027 for applicable businesses).
Commercial data accuracy
- Validate customer and supplier TRNs.
- Confirm VAT registration status of all trading partners.
- Review invoice descriptions for commercial clarity.
- Standardize payment terms and currency treatment.
- Clean duplicate, inactive, or inconsistent master records.
- Finance ensures the invoice content is legally and commercially correct.
VAT treatment and tax integrity
- Verify correct VAT treatment for all goods and services.
- Confirm tax category application at line-item level.
- Review zero-rated and exempt supplies for correct classification.
- Reconcile invoice tax values with VAT return logic.
- Validate that every invoice is VAT-ready before finalization.
Governance and internal controls
- Define accountability between Finance, Tax, and IT.
- Establish invoice approval workflows aligned with compliance requirements.
- Maintain complete documentation supporting each invoice.
- Ensure audit readiness with traceable commercial justification.
- Document procedures for rejected or corrected invoices.
Pre-go-live validation
- Review sample invoices for commercial correctness before system testing.
- Validate credit note business scenarios.
- Confirm that financial reporting reflects structured invoice data accurately.
- Sign off on commercial readiness before mandatory rollout.
IT department
IT owns the system capability, integration, security, and transmission architecture required for e-invoicing. It ensures infrastructure compliance and data protection.
Assessment and planning
- Review the Ministry of Finance rollout timeline (Pilot – July 2026; Mandatory Phase – Jan 2027 for applicable businesses).
- Confirm whether your organization falls under the large taxpayer threshold (> AED 50M turnover).
- Plan system readiness in line with the expected registration window (registration not yet open).
- Evaluate ERP compatibility with structured e-Invoice generation in PINT AE format.
System and data readiness
- Enable structured e-Invoice generation in the prescribed format (as per UAE framework).
- Capture mandatory invoice fields including TRNs, VAT rates, tax categories, and line-level details.
- Standardize tax treatments and validation logic within the ERP.
- Ensure capability to generate structured credit notes.
ASP integration
- Select an Accredited Service Provider (ASP) approved under the UAE framework.
- Confirm that your ERP can integrate directly with the chosen ASP.
- Coordinate testing timelines with the ASP prior to pilot or mandatory rollout.
Testing and validation
- Conduct end-to-end invoice testing through the ASP (creation → validation → submission).
- Test rejection handling and resubmission workflows.
- Validate invoice exchange between supplier and buyer through the ASP network.
- Confirm tax data reporting flow to the FTA.
Storage and compliance controls
- Store all e-Invoices and credit notes within the UAE as per retention requirements.
- Maintain secure audit logs and time-stamped records.
- Prepare systems for potential FTA access to invoice data.
- Implement access controls and data security protocols.
Go-live readiness
- Align internal go-live with your mandated phase (Pilot July 2026 / Mandatory Jan 2027 as applicable).
- Prepare contingency plans for system downtime.
- Monitor MoF updates for changes in technical specifications or registration process.
Operations and procurement department
To ensure that routine and daily business activities support the relevant compliant e-invoicing processes, the operations department must aligned. They must:
- Onboard the chosen ASP provider
- Reviewing and verifying master data for customers, suppliers and products to ensure accuracy and valid TRNs before the new system is implemented.
- Align procurement processes to handle incoming e-invoices through the ASP platform.
HR and training department
The HR team is responsible for developing clear ownership across different teams, like IT, finance, and taxation.
- Develop a comprehensive training program for the affected staff on the new workflows, dealing with rejected invoices, as well as e-invoice compliance.
- Update Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and internal policies that may be affected.
Navigating the changes that come along with the einvoicing protocol can be challenging, but this checklist makes it a lot easier for you by segregating the tasks departmentally. Adhering to this checklist will ensure that your business is more or less compliant to deal with the changes that are associated with the implementation of e-invoices across the UAE.
