Dubai Media City (DMC) Approved Auditors
We are Approved Auditors by DMC.
Audit Services for Dubai Media City Companies
Farahat & Co. is an approved auditor for companies registered in Dubai Media City (DMC), a business district regulated under the Dubai Development Authority (DDA).
Launched in 2001 by TECOM Group, DMC is the region’s leading media free zone, home to more than 2,000 regional and international media companies, including CNN, CNBC, MBC and Sony, and employing more than 20,000 professionals.
Every DMC-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 Media City Approved Auditors in UAE
As approved auditors in Dubai Media City, we offer comprehensive audit, tax, and compliance services for media, marketing, and communications businesses in the UAE. We support DMC-registered companies in achieving full financial and regulatory compliance.
DMC Audit Requirements and Regulations
Legal basis
As a DDA-regulated business district, DMC 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 DMC, across news agencies, publishing, advertising, marketing, public relations, broadcasting and online media activities. 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. Given the concentration of large multinational media organisations and agencies in DMC, audit quality also matters for group-level consolidation and reporting deadlines set by parent companies headquartered outside the UAE.
Audit Process, Documents and Media-Sector Considerations
Audit process
- Confirm the company’s financial year and organise accounting and client billing 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.
Media-sector audit considerations
- Advertising and marketing agencies: client retainer income, media buying pass-through costs, and project-based billing.
- Publishing and content companies: subscription revenue, advertising sales, and licensing income.
- News agencies and broadcasters: syndication fees, content licensing, and multi-currency revenue from international clients.
- PR and communications firms: retainer contracts and campaign-based project accounting.
Documents required
Trade licence, Memorandum and Articles of Association, general ledger and trial balance, bank statements and reconciliations, sales invoices and client contracts, media buying and supplier invoices, payroll and WPS records, fixed asset register, VAT returns, corporate tax registration details, and previous audited financial statements where available.
Why Choose Farahat & Co. as Your DMC-Approved Auditor
Farahat & Co. supports Dubai Media City companies across advertising, publishing, broadcasting, PR and digital media activities. Our audit approach reflects the client retainer, project-based billing and media buying pass-through arrangements common in this sector, rather than applying a generic commercial audit template.
Beyond DMC, 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 media groups with operations spanning DMC, Dubai Studio City and Dubai Production City a single, consistent audit partner.
About Dubai Media City: Free Zone Profile
Dubai Media City was launched in 2001 by TECOM Group, part of Dubai Holding, to establish Dubai as a regional hub for the media industry. DMC has grown into the region’s leading media free zone, home to more than 2,000 regional and international media companies, including CNN, CNBC, MBC and Sony, and employing more than 20,000 professionals across news, publishing, advertising and broadcasting.
DMC sits within a broader TECOM media ecosystem alongside Dubai Studio City and Dubai Production City, giving media, advertising and communications companies access to a concentrated network of complementary businesses, from production facilities to distribution and broadcasting infrastructure.