2026-11-10 · 4 min read · By the Kluvan team
Preparing your UAE VAT return figures with software
What accounting software can and cannot do for your UAE VAT 201 return: clean invoices, matched bank lines, locked periods, prepared figures, who files.
Accounting software can do most of the work behind a UAE VAT return: issue correct tax invoices, record supplier bills with their VAT, match your bank, lock the period and prepare the VAT 201 figures. What it should not do is decide for you or file without a person checking. In Kluvan, Books prepares VAT returns for the UAE (VAT 201) and Egypt, and "nothing is submitted to the tax authority": you or your accountant review the figures and file them yourselves. This post shows the routine that makes the figures right, and where the software stops.
Where VAT figures go wrong
Most wrong VAT returns start weeks before the return, not on the day it is due:
- An invoice issued outside the system, so its VAT is missing.
- A supplier bill entered without its VAT, or entered twice.
- Bank lines never matched, so a refund or a bill is lost.
- A change made to last quarter after the return was filed.
Software helps by making each of these hard to do.
What Books does for your VAT
| Step | What Kluvan Books does |
|---|---|
| Sales | Bilingual quotes and gapless tax invoices; in the UAE, VAT is rounded per document |
| Purchases | Supplier bills, which the AI invoice reader can read for you (AI stays off until the owner enables it) |
| Expenses | Expense claims and petty cash post their VAT journals into Books |
| Bank | Statements imported and matched in bank reconciliation |
| Period end | Closed periods are locked, so a filed quarter can't change quietly |
| The return | VAT return figures prepared for the UAE (VAT 201) and Egypt |
| Filing | Not done by Kluvan: nothing is submitted to the tax authority |
The countries page marks VAT for the UAE and Egypt as "Partial", and says plainly that it "describes the product, not legal or tax advice".
A monthly routine that makes the quarter easy
- Issue every sales invoice in Books, never in a separate template.
- Enter supplier bills as they arrive, with the VAT shown on them.
- Match the bank every week, not at the end of the quarter.
- Review expense claims and their receipts before you approve them.
- At quarter end, review the prepared VAT 201 figures with your accountant.
- Lock the period once the return is filed.
- File the return yourself, or have your accountant file it.
Your accountant can do steps 5 and 6 from their own free seat: every plan, including the free Books Starter, includes one external accountant firm at no cost, with the areas, branches and end date you choose. See the accountant workspace.
What it costs
Books on its own is USD 25 a month, billed annually, with the first 3 full users of your organisation. Books is also in the Service Business (USD 119) and Trade Business (USD 149) bundles and in Kluvan One (USD 199). Books Starter is free forever for one user. Prices are before tax and in USD only; see the pricing page.
E-invoicing and the next step
UAE e-invoicing through an accredited service provider is marked "Coming with a provider" in Kluvan. Until it is available, Kluvan does not send e-invoices for you. If e-invoicing applies to your business, keep that in your plans and check the countries page as it changes.
If you keep your VAT records in Excel today, Kluvan vs spreadsheets explains when the switch pays off, and moving to Kluvan covers bringing your history across.
When this is not for you
If you want software that files the VAT return for you, Kluvan does not: it prepares the figures and you or your accountant file. If you need e-invoices sent today, UAE e-invoicing is not available yet. If your company is registered outside the UAE and Egypt, VAT return preparation is "Not yet" for other countries. And if you need tax advice, the software is not that: check your obligations with your accountant or adviser. Read who Kluvan is not for.
Questions and answers
Does Kluvan file my UAE VAT return?
No. Books prepares the VAT 201 figures; nothing is submitted to the tax authority. You or your accountant review and file.
Can my accountant review the figures in Kluvan?
Yes. Every plan includes one external accountant firm at no seat cost, with the access and end date you choose.
Can a filed quarter be changed by mistake?
Closed periods are locked in Books, so entries in a filed period can't be changed quietly.
Does Kluvan prepare Egypt VAT returns too?
Yes. VAT return preparation exists for the UAE (VAT 201) and Egypt, and the countries page marks both as "Partial".
See your figures before the quarter ends: try every app free for 14 days.
