Healthcare group achieves full UAE Corporate Tax compliance before Year 1 deadline
When the UAE Federal Tax Authority confirmed that the first Corporate Tax filing window would open within eight weeks, a leading private healthcare group with eight facilities across Abu Dhabi and Al Ain had a serious problem. Their accounting systems were fragmented across three different software platforms, intercompany billing had never been formally structured, and their finance team had no experience with UAE CT. Dillon & Bird was engaged the same week.
Eight facilities, three accounting systems, six weeks to file
Each of the group's eight facilities had historically operated as a standalone cost centre with no consolidation framework. Revenue recognition policies differed between facilities, making consolidated P&L production a multi-week manual exercise.
The group had significant intercompany transactions — primarily management fees from the holding entity to operating subsidiaries — that had never been formally documented or priced at arm's length, creating transfer pricing exposure.
Two of the eight entities were registered in Abu Dhabi free zones, where the CT treatment of qualifying income required specific structural analysis that the group's existing advisors were unable to provide.
A structured path from problem to outcome
Emergency Financial Triage
In the first week, we deployed a team of three across the group's finance function. We mapped every entity, every intercompany relationship, and every revenue stream — producing a consolidated entity-level P&L for the first time in the group's history.
Free Zone Qualifying Income Analysis
We undertook a detailed analysis of the two free zone entities' activities against the Qualifying Free Zone Person criteria. We determined that 78% of their income qualified — a significant and defensible tax saving versus the 9% headline rate.
Transfer Pricing Documentation
We drafted intercompany service agreements and a formal transfer pricing policy, pricing all management fees at arm's length using the Comparable Uncontrolled Price method. This eliminated the group's retroactive exposure.
CT Return Preparation & Filing
With the structural work complete, we prepared the group's CT returns across all entities, calculated the payable tax, and filed with the FTA — with four days to spare before the deadline.
Finance Team Training
We ran two full-day training sessions for the group's finance team on CT compliance, transfer pricing obligations, and the record-keeping requirements for future periods — leaving them self-sufficient going forward.
Measurable impact — delivered on time
All eight entities filed on time with zero deficiencies, penalties, or FTA follow-up queries.
The free zone income analysis delivered a tax rate of effectively 0% on the majority of free zone revenues — a material annual saving.
Despite the six-week window, the filing was accurate, complete, and submitted on time.
The entire remediation and filing process was completed with time to spare.
“The restructuring work they did for us was genuinely transformative. We now have a platform to build the next generation of this business on. We did not think that was achievable in this timeframe.”
— Group CFO, Private Healthcare Group — Abu Dhabi, UAESimilar challenges. Similar results.
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