Fixed Assets Control Services
Fixed Assets Control Services in the UAE
Fixed assets are usually the largest numbers on a balance sheet and the least examined. Property, plant, vehicles, IT equipment and fit-out are bought, depreciated and disposed of over years, and in many UAE businesses the register that is supposed to track them was last reconciled when the auditor asked for it. The result is assets on the books that no longer exist, assets in use that were never capitalised, and depreciation that bears no relation to the tax computation.
Reflechir’s fixed assets control service builds and maintains a register that agrees to the ledger, to the physical assets and to the corporate tax return, so the balance sheet can be relied on by the auditor, the FTA and anyone valuing the business.
Why fixed asset control matters under UAE corporate tax
- Depreciation drives the tax computation: UAE corporate tax starts from accounting profit, so the depreciation policy, useful lives and residual values in the register flow directly into taxable income. An unsupported register is an unsupported return.
- Disposals and impairments create taxable events: gains and losses on sale, write-offs of scrapped equipment and impairment charges all need evidence of cost, accumulated depreciation and date of disposal.
- Audited financial statements are now compulsory for many entities: Qualifying Free Zone Persons and larger taxpayers must file audited accounts, and fixed assets are the first area an auditor tests for existence and valuation.
- VAT input tax on capital assets: the Capital Assets Scheme requires input VAT on assets above the threshold to be tracked and adjusted over ten years for buildings and five for other assets. Without a register the adjustment cannot be evidenced.
- Insurance, financing and sale of the business: banks, insurers and buyers all ask for an asset schedule. A reconciled register is a due-diligence document, not a bookkeeping by-product.
What the service covers
- Fixed asset register set-up or rebuild: every capitalised item recorded with cost, acquisition date, supplier invoice, location, custodian, useful life, depreciation method and residual value, in Zoho Books or your ERP.
- Capitalisation policy: a written threshold and policy that decides what is capitalised and what is expensed, aligned to IAS 16 and consistently applied so the corporate tax computation has a defensible basis.
- Physical verification and tagging: periodic counts of assets against the register, with asset tags where useful, and reconciliation of differences: missing assets written off, unrecorded assets brought on.
- Depreciation and impairment: monthly depreciation runs, review of useful lives, and impairment assessments where assets are idle, damaged or superseded.
- Additions, transfers and disposals: controlled processes for adding new purchases, moving assets between locations or entities, and recording sales and scrapping with the resulting gain or loss.
- Audit and tax schedules: movement schedules, depreciation reconciliations and the fixed asset note ready for the auditor, plus the depreciation and disposal workings for the corporate tax return.
How the engagement works
The work starts with a review of the existing register and ledger balance, or a full asset count if there is no reliable starting point. Reflechir then agrees the capitalisation policy with management, rebuilds or corrects the register, and reconciles it to the trial balance. From that point the register is maintained as part of monthly bookkeeping or as a standalone quarterly service, with a physical verification at least once a year ahead of the audit.
Fees are fixed: a one-off amount for the set-up or rebuild based on asset volume, and a monthly or quarterly amount for ongoing control.
Why Reflechir
- Built for the tax return: the same team that keeps the register prepares the corporate tax computation, so depreciation, disposals and the realisation-basis election are handled consistently.
- Audit-ready by design: registers are maintained in the format auditors ask for, which shortens the audit and reduces the fee.
- Multi-entity and free zone experience: assets held across mainland and free zone entities, or transferred between group companies, are tracked with the transfer pricing and QFZP consequences in mind.
If your fixed asset register does not agree to the balance sheet, or has never been physically verified, contact Reflechir Consultancy for a fixed-fee assessment.