Short answer: Yes — a barely-active IFZA company still needs financial statements for renewal, but a Simplified Financial Statement is enough (no full audit), and it can be prepared entirely from your invoices and records — no corporate bank account required. For a company with only a few invoices, it's a short, straightforward set. Our fee is AED 500 + VAT.
Here's a situation we see often: someone set up an IFZA company, issued only a handful of invoices, has minimal revenue, and never got around to opening a corporate bank account — and now renewal is due and IFZA is asking for financial statements. It feels like a mismatch: why do I need accounts when I barely did anything, and how, when there's no bank account to show? The answer is reassuring on both counts. Let's take the worries one at a time.
Worry 1Do I still need financial statements if I barely traded?
Yes — and this is the part people most hope isn't true. IFZA requires financial statements at the annual licence renewal regardless of how little you traded. A few invoices, or even a near-dormant year, still means statements are due. Low activity doesn't remove the requirement; it just makes the statements shorter and simpler.
Think of it the other way round: the less you did, the less there is to report — so the statements are quick to prepare and there's very little in them. A near-dormant company ends up with a very short set of accounts, not an exemption from having any. So the requirement stands, but for you it's a small job, not a large one.
Worry 2Do I need a full audit for a few invoices?
No. A handful of invoices sits far below the levels at which a full audit is triggered, so a Simplified Financial Statement on IFZA's template is all you need — not a full audited report from an auditor. This is exactly what the "simplified" route exists for: small, low-activity companies that shouldn't have to bear the cost and process of a full audit.
We won't rehearse the full simplified-versus-audited decision here — our IFZA renewal cost guide sets out precisely where the line falls and what each option costs. For a company with only a few invoices and minimal revenue, the simplified route is almost always the correct one, and the cheapest.
Can financial statements be prepared with no bank account?
Yes — and this is the worry that stops most people, so it's worth being clear. Simplified financial statements are prepared from your invoices and records — what you billed and what you spent — not from a bank statement. A corporate bank account makes reconciliation tidier, but its absence doesn't stop the statements being prepared. We build them from the documents you do have.
It's genuinely common for a new or low-activity company not to have opened a corporate account yet. It doesn't block your renewal accounts. One point worth noting: revenue you invoiced in the company's name is the company's revenue, whichever account it was actually received into — so it belongs in the statements regardless of where the money landed. We simply work from your invoices to reflect it correctly.
| What people assume they need | What's actually used |
|---|---|
| A full year of bank statements | Your issued invoices and expense records |
| A corporate bank account | Not required to prepare the statements |
| A full audit | A Simplified Financial Statement on IFZA's template |
| Monthly bookkeeping in place | Just the year's few documents, gathered once |
What you actually need to provide
For a low-activity company, remarkably little:
- Your current IFZA trade licence.
- The invoices you issued during the financial year — however few.
- Any expense records or receipts — licence fees, software, professional fees and the like.
If there were only a few transactions, gathering all of this usually takes minutes. From there we prepare a complete Simplified Financial Statement — essentially a short profit-and-loss summary and a balance sheet on IFZA's template, e-signed — reflecting exactly what happened in the year.
Does tiny revenue mean I owe corporate tax?
Almost certainly not. With revenue this low you'd elect Small Business Relief, which treats the company as having no taxable income for the period — so no Corporate Tax is payable, though the return is still filed. And the same handful of invoices and records used for your simplified statements also supports the Corporate Tax return. In other words, one small set of documents does double duty: your IFZA renewal statements and your tax return both come off it, with nothing prepared twice.
Simplified statements for a quiet year — done properly
Fastlane is an IFZA Professional Partner, FTA-Registered Tax Agent and MoE-Approved Auditor. We prepare and sign IFZA Simplified Financial Statements for renewal — including for low-activity companies with just a few invoices and no corporate bank account — for AED 500 + VAT, separate from IFZA's own renewal and government fees. Send the licence and the invoices; we'll handle the rest.
+971 55 127 3479 · info@fastlanecareer.com
Related guides and services
- IFZA financial statements & audit reports — simplified statements and full audits for IFZA companies.
- IFZA renewal cost guide — simplified vs audited, and what renewal costs.
- Corporate tax filing — the return your statements also support, with Small Business Relief.
IFZA Financial Statements
Simplified statements and full audits.
IFZA Renewal Cost
Simplified vs audited, and the fees.
Corporate Tax
The return your statements support.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. IFZA requires financial statements as part of the annual licence renewal regardless of how little you traded — a handful of invoices, or even a near-dormant year, still means statements are due. The volume of activity doesn’t remove the requirement; it only affects how simple the statements are to prepare. A very low-activity company simply ends up with a very short set of financial statements, not an exemption from having them. [VERIFY the current IFZA financial-statement requirement with IFZA.]
No. A handful of invoices sits far below the levels at which an audit is triggered, so a Simplified Financial Statement on IFZA’s template is enough — you don’t need a full audited report. For the detail of exactly when a company needs simplified statements versus a full audit, and the fees for each, see our IFZA renewal cost guide. For a barely-active company, the simplified route is almost always the correct and cheapest one.
Yes. This is a common situation for new or low-activity companies, and it is not a problem. Simplified financial statements are prepared from your invoices and records — what you billed and what you spent — not from a bank statement. A corporate bank account makes reconciliation easier, but its absence does not stop the statements from being prepared: we build them from the documents you do have. Revenue you invoiced in the company’s name is the company’s revenue, whichever account it was actually received into.
Very little for a low-activity company: your current trade licence, the invoices you issued during the financial year, and any expense records or receipts (licence fees, software, professional fees and the like). That’s enough to prepare a complete Simplified Financial Statement. If there were only a few transactions, gathering everything usually takes you minutes, and the preparation is quick at our end.
A concise, standard set — essentially a profit and loss summary and a balance sheet on IFZA’s prescribed template, e-signed by the authorised signatory. They reflect exactly what happened in the year: your limited revenue, your expenses, and the resulting position. For a company with only a few invoices, the statements are short and straightforward, but they are still a proper, complete set that satisfies the renewal requirement.
Almost certainly not. With revenue this low you would elect Small Business Relief, which treats the company as having no taxable income for the period — so no Corporate Tax is payable, though the return is still filed. The same invoices and records used for your simplified statements also support the Corporate Tax return, so the two pieces of compliance are done off one small set of documents rather than duplicated.
Our fee for preparing the Simplified Financial Statements is AED 500 + VAT — an all-inclusive price for the statements themselves, separate from IFZA’s own renewal and government fees. Turnaround is quick for a low-activity company: once you send the trade licence and the few invoices, the statements can usually be prepared and returned promptly, comfortably within your renewal timeline.
Yes. We prepare the Simplified Financial Statements on IFZA’s template and provide them signed and ready for your renewal submission — you don’t need a separate auditor for a low-activity company that qualifies for the simplified route. If your circumstances turn out to require a full audit instead, we handle that too, as IFZA-experienced preparers and auditors, and would tell you before doing any additional work.
Fastlane Tax Team
IFZA Professional Partner · FTA-Registered Tax Agent · MoE-Approved Auditor
This article was prepared by the team at Fastlane Management Consultancy, a Dubai-based IFZA Professional Partner, FTA-Registered Tax Agent and MoE-Approved auditor. We prepare IFZA simplified financial statements and full audit reports for licence renewal — including for low-activity and near-dormant companies — alongside Corporate Tax and VAT compliance.