Key Takeaways
4 insights · 7 min readThe Source of Wealth Declaration is an anti-money-laundering requirement — IFZA must understand how a shareholder’s capital was legitimately earned before it renews the licence. Blank, “N/A” or “confidential” answers get the form returned.
“Savings” is not a source — it is where money sits. IFZA’s categories (salary, business income, investments, dividends, rental, sale of assets) ask how the wealth was earned; declare the real origin.
If you state savings, IFZA requires the bank name, the country of the account and an approximate amount — and will not accept “confidential”. An approximate figure is enough, but it has to be a real number.
The declaration is about the individual shareholder, not the company — and it must be signed and dated. A missing date on its own will have the form returned.
IFZA’s Source of Wealth Declaration asks each shareholder to state how their wealth was legitimately earned — salary, business income, investments, dividends and the like — for anti-money-laundering purposes. It is returned if filled in with “N/A”, “confidential” or a bare “savings”. Declare the real origin, add the bank, country and an approximate amount, and sign and date it.
Why IFZA asks for a Source of Wealth Declaration
It is not a formality — it is a legal one. UAE anti-money-laundering law requires regulated parties, including free-zone authorities and corporate service providers, to carry out customer due diligence at onboarding and throughout a licence’s life. The Source of Wealth Declaration is one of the tools IFZA uses to meet that duty, which is why it can be requested at renewal, not just at setup. The form documents the wealth of the individual shareholder who owns the company — so it asks about you, the owner, not the company’s accounts.
What IFZA needs to satisfy itself of is simple: that your capital was earned or acquired legally. A declaration that states a real, legitimate origin and supports it is accepted quickly; one that leaves the key fields blank, marks them “N/A”, or hides behind “confidential” is sent back for clarification, and the renewal waits until it is fixed.
“N/A”, blank and “confidential” get the form returned
IFZA is explicit that “N/A” or blank fields are not acceptable and will be returned — and it will not accept “confidential” for the bank, country and amount either. Each round trip delays the renewal. Get the declaration reviewed before you resubmit →
Expert Tip
You can usually tick more than one source, and most people should. Genuine wealth rarely comes from a single line, and a short, honest breakdown across the two or three sources that actually built your capital is more credible — and easier to support — than one unexplained entry.
What IFZA will and will not accept
| Field | What gets rejected | What to put instead |
|---|---|---|
| Source of wealth | “N/A”, “Savings” alone, “Confidential” | The real origin — business income, salary, investments, dividends |
| Bank / country / amount | “Confidential”, blank | Bank name, country of the account, an approximate figure |
Not sure what to declare on your IFZA form?
We complete and review the Source of Wealth Declaration so it states a defensible source and is accepted the first time.
How to complete the IFZA Source of Wealth Declaration
The form is short, but each field has a right way to answer it. Work through it in this order:
- Identify the shareholder — the declaration is about the individual who owns the company, not the company itself; where there are several owners, each may need their own.
- State the real source — the origin of the wealth — business income, salary, investments, and so on — with a one-line description, ticking more than one where genuine.
- Give the fund detail — for savings or funds held, the bank name, the country of the account, and an approximate amount — a round figure or range, never “confidential”.
- Answer every field — use “Not applicable” only where a category genuinely does not apply; never leave a source field blank or marked “N/A”.
The three reasons IFZA sends the form back
• “N/A” or blank — not accepted — IFZA wants the actual source stated, not a non-answer.
• “Confidential” — rejected for the bank, country and amount — an approximate figure is required instead.
• A missing date — the declaration has to be signed and dated; an undated form comes straight back.
The amount, the evidence, and keeping it consistent
The approximate amount does not have to be exact or audited to the dirham — a reasonable round figure or range is enough — but it has to be a real number. Have the supporting picture ready in case IFZA asks a follow-up: for business income, your company’s financial statements; for salary, proof of employment; for a sale, the contract. Keep the declaration consistent with your other filings, because the same source of wealth is looked at again at a bank’s periodic review and, later, if you ever close the company — a declaration that was accurate and complete when signed protects you at that later review, and one that was not becomes a liability. [VERIFY IFZA’s current form and evidence requirements before submitting.]
Fastlane Tax Team
FTA-registered tax agents with 4,000+ corporate tax and VAT filings across the UAE mainland and 40+ free zones. Every guide is reviewed against current FTA regulations before publishing.
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