For employers in Dubai and the UAE

Hire a Finance Manager in Dubai: 3 to 5 CA-Reviewed Profiles in 7 Working Days

A finance manager in a Dubai company runs month-end and year-end close, management accounts, cash flow, VAT and corporate tax compliance, and usually a small team of accountants. You see 3 to 5 profiles within 7 working days of our receiving the service charge, each interviewed by our team and reviewed by our founder, CA Ketul Patel.

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Paid service. The employer pays; the candidate pays nothing. See the fees

3 to 5CA-reviewed
profiles

7working days from
the service charge

The role

What does a finance manager do in a UAE company?

Runs the finance function: close, management accounts, cash flow, VAT and corporate tax, the auditors and banks, and the accounts team.

Month-end and year-end close; management accounts and cash flow forecasts; budgets and variance analysis; VAT returns and corporate tax compliance; working with auditors and banks; leading a team of accountants. In a smaller company the finance manager is often the most senior finance person and reports straight to the owner.

Skills checklist

Which skills do UAE employers ask for in a finance manager?

Hands-on VAT and corporate tax work, IFRS and audit experience, an ERP, cash flow skills and a CA, ACCA or CPA.

What we screen for

UAE VAT and corporate tax in practice: returns filed, registrations handled, audits answered
IFRS reporting and preparing the year-end audit file
Hands-on use of an accounting system or ERP, often Tally, Zoho Books, QuickBooks or SAP Business One
Cash flow forecasting and dealing with banks
A professional qualification such as CA, ACCA or CPA
Experience in your industry, which is why we recruit from the companies you name

What to ask in your interview

"Walk me through your month-end close, step by step."
"How has corporate tax changed your records and your year-end?"
"Explain a variance to me as if I am not an accountant."
A short exercise: a one-page set of monthly figures where you ask them to find what looks wrong

More questions, and how to check the answers: how to interview an accountant or finance manager in the UAE.

If your requirement is different, tell us on the first call and we screen for it. How the screening works: how we screen.

Salary

What does a finance manager earn in the UAE?

Published guides put a finance manager in the UAE at AED 15,000 to 41,000 a month. Small companies usually sit in the lower half.

Source	Monthly salary
Charterhouse 2026 source	AED 25,000 to 35,000
Hays 2025 source	AED 25,000 to 32,000
Cooper Fitch 2025, SME / large company source	AED 25,000 to 36,000 / 29,000 to 37,000
NADIA 2024-25, SME / multinational source	AED 15,000 to 20,000 / 35,000 to 41,000
Robert Walters 2026, regional finance manager (basic) source	AED 30,000 to 45,000

What moves pay: the entities and people the role covers, whether it reports to the owner or a board, the qualification, and years worked in the UAE itself. Packages often include allowances on top of basic pay. On the first call we share what candidates with the profile you want are earning now.

Sources, checked 22 October 2026: Charterhouse, UAE Salary Guide 2026 (gross: basic, housing and transport); Hays, GCC Salary Guide 2025 (total fixed monthly package); Cooper Fitch, UAE Salary Guide 2025 (basic plus fixed allowances); NADIA Global, Annual Salary Report 2024-2025 (total monthly gross); Robert Walters, Middle East Salary Survey 2026 (basic salary). Robert Walters quotes basic salary; the other guides quote a fixed or gross package, so read each range as a band, not a price. All roles in one table: UAE accounting and finance salaries 2026.

What it costs

What does it cost to hire a finance manager through Accounting Baba?

One month's salary of the person you hire, plus applicable taxes. AED 1,000 per opening is paid upfront and adjusted against that fee.

Item	Amount	When it is paid
Service charge, per job opening	AED 1,000	Before we start work
Recruitment fee	One month's salary of the person you hire, plus applicable taxes	When the candidate joins
Balance	Fee less the AED 1,000 already paid	Within 30 days of joining

For example, if you hire a finance manager at AED 20,000 a month, the fee is AED 20,000 plus applicable taxes. AED 1,000 is already paid as the service charge, so the balance is AED 19,000 plus applicable taxes, payable within 30 days of joining.

If no candidate we introduced has accepted your offer within 30 days of our receiving the service charge, we return 50% of it, subject to conditions. If the person you hire leaves within 90 days of joining, we recruit one replacement for the same role at no additional fee, subject to conditions. Full rules: UAE fees page and the Terms of Business.

Visa sponsorship, PRO steps, medical tests, Emirates ID, flights and relocation stay with the employer.

Timeline

How long does it take, and where do the candidates come from?

3 to 5 profiles within 7 working days of our receiving the service charge, mostly people already living and working in the UAE and the Gulf.

Day 0: a call about the role. We agree the role, the salary range and the companies to target. You pay the service charge.
Within 7 working days: your shortlist. 3 to 5 profiles, each interviewed by our team and reviewed by CA Ketul Patel, who checks every shortlisted profile himself.
After that: your interviews, the offer and the notice period. We schedule the interviews and support the salary discussion.

Tell us the companies you want people from, including your competitors, and we approach candidates working there. About 80% of our clients hire people already living in the UAE and the Gulf. We recruit from India when you ask for it.

Which role?

Finance manager, chief accountant or financial controller?

A chief accountant runs the books. A finance manager runs the finance function. A financial controller owns the accuracy of the numbers across entities.

A chief accountant runs the books day to day. A finance manager runs the finance function: reporting, cash, tax and the team. A financial controller owns the accuracy of the numbers across entities, with controls and group reporting. Many owner-run companies need a finance manager first.

Other finance roles we recruit for in the UAE: