How far back can the FTA reach into an old tax period of mine?

Article 46 of the Tax Procedures Law (Federal Decree-Law No. 28 of 2022, as amended by Federal Decree-Law No. 17 of 2025, effective 1 January 2026) sets the FTA's general window to audit or assess a given tax period at 5 years from the end of that period. Once those 5 years pass without the FTA opening your file, it generally can't be reopened in ordinary circumstances.

There's a clear exception, though: that window extends to 15 years in specific circumstances such as fraud or tax evasion, or a failure to register for tax purposes despite a legal obligation to do so. The latest amendment simplified this compared to the earlier version of the law, which carried other extension mechanisms tied to the timing of an audit notification or a voluntary disclosure. The practical takeaway for any business is that getting registration and disclosure right from the start is the best protection — because any suspicion of fraud or evasion opens the door to a review reaching back far further than the standard period. RASEEKH keeps an eye on clients' tax files on an ongoing basis so no one is caught off guard by an old period resurfacing.