Dubai Knowledge Park (DKP) Approved Auditors
We are Approved Auditors by DKP.
Audit Services for Dubai Knowledge Park Companies
Farahat & Co. is an approved auditor for companies registered in Dubai Knowledge Park (DKP), a business district regulated under the Dubai Development Authority (DDA).
Established in 2003 as Dubai Knowledge Village and rebranded to Dubai Knowledge Park in 2014, DKP is the world’s only free zone dedicated to human resource management, training and professional development, home to more than 500 business partners.
Every DKP-registered company must prepare and submit audited financial statements annually through the AXS portal, in line with DDA’s Private Companies Regulations.
Services We Offer as Dubai Knowledge Park Approved Auditors in UAE
As approved auditors for Dubai Knowledge Park, we deliver professional audit and financial services to education and human resource development businesses in the UAE. Our team ensures full compliance with DKP regulatory requirements.
DKP Audit Requirements and Regulations
Legal basis
As a DDA-regulated business district, DKP companies are governed by DDA’s Private Companies Regulations. Members must appoint an auditor at each annual general meeting, and the auditor’s report must confirm whether the accounts give a true and fair view of the company’s financial position, prepared using IFRS or another accounting standard approved by the Registrar. Financial statements and the auditor’s report are generally submitted through the AXS portal within six months of the financial year-end.
Who must comply
The requirement applies to all free zone LLCs and branches registered in DKP, including HR consultancies, recruitment and executive search firms, corporate training providers, professional certification bodies, and the small number of university and higher education institutions that remain in the district. Companies should retain financial statements and supporting records for at least eight years, consistent with DDA’s broader retention requirement.
Penalties for non-compliance
Late or missing submission of audited financial statements can delay trade licence renewal and create broader compliance issues with DDA. Companies operating training or educational institutions with tax-exempt status should also be careful to maintain accurate records supporting that status, since documentation gaps can affect exemption eligibility.
Audit Process, Documents and Sector-Specific Considerations
Audit process
- Confirm the company’s financial year and organise accounting records.
- Prepare financial statements in line with IFRS or another approved standard.
- Appoint an auditor and complete the audit.
- Receive the audit report and Financial Statements Report Summary Sheet.
- Submit through the AXS portal within six months of the financial year-end.
Sector-specific considerations for DKP companies
- HR and recruitment firms: placement fee income, retainer contracts, and candidate-related expense recognition.
- Corporate training providers: course revenue recognition, deferred income for multi-session programmes, and instructor or subcontractor payments.
- Executive search and consultancy firms: project-based billing and success-fee arrangements.
- University and higher education campuses: tuition fee recognition, scholarship provisions, and compliance with any tax-exempt status conditions.
Documents required
Trade licence, Memorandum and Articles of Association, general ledger and trial balance, bank statements and reconciliations, sales invoices and customer or student contracts, payroll and WPS records, fixed asset register, VAT returns, corporate tax registration details including any tax-exempt status documentation, and previous audited financial statements where available.
Why Choose Farahat & Co. as Your DKP-Approved Auditor
Farahat & Co. supports Dubai Knowledge Park companies across HR consultancy, recruitment, corporate training and executive education. Our audit approach reflects the specific revenue models common in DKP, from placement-fee income for recruitment firms to multi-session course revenue for training providers, rather than applying a generic commercial audit template.
Beyond DKP, Farahat & Co. holds approvals across more than 20 UAE free zones, including DMCC, JAFZA and DIFC, and supports companies across every other DDA-regulated business district, giving education and HR groups with operations spanning DKP, Dubai International Academic City and other TECOM districts a single, consistent audit partner.
About Dubai Knowledge Park: Free Zone Profile
Dubai Knowledge Park was established in 2003 as Dubai Knowledge Village, one of the first free zones in the world to combine education and business within a single ecosystem. When Dubai International Academic City opened in 2007 to host full university degree campuses, Dubai Knowledge Village retained its focus on professional and corporate education, and was officially rebranded as Dubai Knowledge Park in 2014.
Located in the Al Sufouh corridor alongside sister free zones Dubai Internet City, Dubai Media City and Dubai Studio City, DKP is now home to more than 500 business partners and around 3,000 professionals, spanning HR consultancy, recruitment, executive search, corporate training and professional certification. A small number of university campuses, including the University of Wollongong in Dubai, remain in DKP alongside its core HR and training-focused tenant base. In December 2023, DKP marked its 20th anniversary by unveiling the world’s largest Rubik’s Cube, earning a Guinness World Record.