FAB is the default account for many free-zone consultants and DIFC tech freelancers. Separate client wires from SALIK, DEWA, and personal POS lines in seconds.
Convert your FAB statementFirst Abu Dhabi Bank is the largest bank in the UAE by assets (around AED 1.3 trillion) and the default banking relationship for many free-zone consultants — DIFC tech, ADGM finance, DMCC trade, twofour54 media. The 9% corporate tax that came into force in June 2023 applies to net profit above AED 375,000. The return is mandatory either way; the FTA wants P&L numbers tied to actual bank movements.
Because FAB skews corporate, a freelancer's FAB current account often sits next to a corporate FAB account or a free-zone entity's account. Mixing the two in one filing is a fast way to lose Qualifying Free Zone Person status. A clean per-account export is the first step in keeping the entity boundary tight.
FAB issues an English-dominant PDF with dates in DD/MM/YYYY. Foreign client wires arrive as inbound SWIFT entries with the sender BIC, original currency, and the AED-converted amount on the same row. Local AED transfers from UAE clients arrive over the UAE Funds Transfer System and print the originating IBAN.
Multi-currency holders see AED, USD, and EUR sub-accounts as separate ledgers in the same PDF — useful when a Stripe payout in USD and a Wise payout in EUR both feed the same freelance entity. Pre-2017 entries from the FGB/NBAD legacy migration still surface occasionally on older accounts; the header layout differs from the post-merger FAB template.
The FTA wants business revenue separated from personal flows. Pull out inbound client wires, qualifying business expenses, and any VAT-bearing supplier debits. Park personal POS, SALIK, and family transfers in a separate bucket so they do not contaminate the revenue figure.
English-dominant PDF. Dates DD/MM/YYYY. Account summary panel at top (opening balance, total debits/credits, closing balance). Multi-currency lines show original currency + AED equivalent. Every transaction has a unique reference number. Pre-merger FGB or NBAD statement formats may appear in older archives — headers differ but column structure is consistent.
| Label | Meaning |
|---|---|
| POS PURCHASE | Card payment at merchant POS |
| ATM WITHDRAWAL | Cash withdrawal at ATM |
| SALARY TRANSFER | WPS salary credit from employer |
| SWIFT TRANSFER IN | International wire received |
| SWIFT TRANSFER OUT | International wire sent |
UAE freelance permit holders are subject to 9% corporate tax on profits above AED 375,000 (since June 2023); statements must distinguish service income from personal transfers to calculate taxable profit.
Download your FAB PDF
Open FAB Mobile, go to Accounts, request a statement covering the full tax period, and save the PDF. Drop it into Kashfbank. English-dominant FAB PDFs are read directly without OCR fallback.
Verify currency and period
Confirm AED as the base currency. If your account holds USD or EUR sub-accounts, each appears as its own ledger — they become separate sheets in the export. Most UAE freelancers file on the Gregorian calendar year.
Filter to freelance income only
Sort by Category. Keep International Wire and Inbound Transfer rows. Drop POS, SALIK, DEWA, and family transfers unless defensible as business expenses. What remains is gross freelance revenue.
Export to Excel or CSV
Download the filtered file. Columns match the Date, Description, Debit, Credit, Balance, Category layout that Zoho Books UAE VAT edition imports without remapping.
Common challenges
Does Kashfbank handle multi-currency FAB statements?
Yes. FAB AED, USD, and EUR sub-accounts each become a separate sheet in the output Excel file. The bank's printed FX rate stays on each row, so a USD client wire can be reconciled against the AED that landed.
I have a free-zone freelance permit in DIFC. Does the 9% CT apply?
Qualifying Free Zone Persons can claim 0% on qualifying income if they meet the FTA's conditions, but the corporate tax return is mandatory regardless. The converted FAB statement gives you the revenue figure either way. We do not give tax advice — check with a UAE-registered tax agent for your situation.
My account predates the 2017 FGB/NBAD merger. Will old entries read correctly?
Yes. Pre-merger entries from First Gulf Bank or NBAD use a different header layout than current FAB statements. Kashfbank handles both formats. Some legacy descriptors carry a merger-migration tag; those rows still parse with full amount, date, and balance preserved.
Do I need to keep the original FAB PDF after converting?
Yes. The FTA requires source documents for at least seven years. Keep the original FAB PDF alongside your CSV export and invoice records.
Tax Preparation
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Regulator: Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE)
Fiscal year: Jan 1 – Dec 31 (Gregorian)
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