How to Write an Invoice in Arabic (Terms, RTL & VAT Rules)

Many freelancers and agencies work for clients in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt and the wider Arab world. English invoices are often accepted, but an Arabic invoice is easier for local accounts teams, and in Saudi Arabia, Arabic is required on tax invoices. The tricky part isn't the vocabulary; it's the right-to-left layout, which most invoice tools get wrong.

Arabic Invoice Vocabulary

• Invoice: فاتورة
• Tax invoice: فاتورة ضريبية
• Invoice number: رقم الفاتورة
• Issue date: تاريخ الإصدار
• Due date: تاريخ الاستحقاق
• Billed to: فاتورة إلى
• Client: العميل
• Description: الوصف
• Quantity: الكمية
• Unit price: سعر الوحدة
• Amount: المبلغ
• Subtotal: المجموع الفرعي
• Discount: الخصم
• Tax: الضريبة
• VAT: ضريبة القيمة المضافة
• Total due: الإجمالي المستحق
• Payment instructions: تعليمات الدفع
• Bank transfer: تحويل بنكي
• Tax registration number: الرقم الضريبي

Getting Right-to-Left Layout Right

• The whole page flips: your business details and the client sit on the right, and columns read from right to left, starting with the description.
• Numbers, invoice numbers, emails and website addresses still read left to right inside Arabic text. Good tools keep them from being scrambled.
• Arabic needs a font that supports Arabic letters joining correctly; a Latin-only font shows broken or disconnected letters.
• Don't just translate the words on an English layout. A left-to-right page with Arabic labels looks wrong to Arabic readers.

Example: An Arabic Invoice for a UAE Client

• Invoice (فاتورة) number: INV-000031
• Issue date (تاريخ الإصدار): 10 October 2026 · Due date (تاريخ الاستحقاق): 25 October 2026
• Billed to (فاتورة إلى): Al Nukhba Design Co. (شركة النخبة للتصميم) · Dubai, UAE
• Website design (تصميم موقع إلكتروني): 6,500.00 AED
• Monthly maintenance, October (صيانة شهرية): 800.00 AED
• Logo design (تصميم شعار): 1,200.00 AED
• Subtotal (المجموع الفرعي): 8,500.00 AED · VAT at 5% (الضريبة): 425.00 AED
• Total due (الإجمالي المستحق): 8,925.00 AED
• Payment instructions (تعليمات الدفع): bank transfer (تحويل بنكي), IBAN

VAT Points for the UAE and Saudi Arabia

• UAE: VAT is 5%. VAT-registered businesses issue a 'Tax Invoice' showing their tax registration number (TRN). Arabic isn't mandatory, so English or bilingual invoices are common. The UAE is phasing in mandatory e-invoicing from 2027, starting with larger businesses.
• Saudi Arabia: VAT is 15%. Tax invoices must be in Arabic (another language may appear alongside), and VAT-registered businesses must issue e-invoices through ZATCA's FATOORA system. A PDF from a general invoicing app doesn't replace that.
• Foreign freelancers billing Gulf clients: Your own country's invoicing and tax rules apply. An Arabic invoice is a courtesy that helps your client; it doesn't make you VAT-registered in the Gulf.
• Dates and thresholds change. Check the UAE Federal Tax Authority or ZATCA, or ask a local accountant, before relying on these points.

Getting Paid in Dirhams or Riyals

Agree the currency first. Gulf clients often pay in AED, SAR or USD by bank transfer, so include your IBAN and SWIFT/BIC code. Our multi-currency invoicing guide explains how to avoid losing money on conversion, and how to invoice international clients covers the rest.

Create Arabic Invoices in InvoiceNexora

InvoiceNexora lets you choose the invoice language for each invoice, separately from the language you use the app in. Pick Arabic and the PDF switches to a right-to-left layout with Arabic labels (فاتورة, تاريخ الاستحقاق, الإجمالي المستحق and the rest), while invoice numbers, emails and amounts stay readable. Set the currency to AED, SAR or any other and add your VAT rate. The same works for Urdu, also right to left, and for eight more languages, including Spanish.