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ICV Certification
And A Higher Score

MoIAT runs the National ICV programme. We classify your licence under the correct formula, restructure the numbers the score is built on, and take the draft through a Certifying Body.

14 monthsValidity from the audited accounts date

50%Largest single score component

2 yearsMaximum age of audited statements

1 per entityCertificate per legal entity

Ask a consultant Read the detail

The weightings

How Your ICV Score Is Built

Two formulas exist. Both are scored out of the same six blocks, and the largest block is worth half the score. Know which column applies to you before you touch the template.

Component	Goods manufacturer	Service provider	Basis
Manufacturing cost	50%	Not applicable	(Manufacturing cost incurred in the UAE + Emirati cost + 60% of expat cost) divided by total cost
Third party spend	Not applicable	50%	((Value of purchase x ICV of supplier) + Emirati cost + 60% of expat cost) divided by total cost
Investment	25%	25%	Net book value of assets in the UAE divided by net book value of total assets
Emiratisation	15%	15%	Number of Emiratis divided by 100
Expat contribution	10%	10%	Salary, training and benefits. 2% up to AED 200,000; 2% to 15% progressive above AED 200,000 up to AED 20,000,000
ICV bonus	5%	5%	Revenue from outside the UAE excluding re-exports, divided by total annual revenue, plus Emirati headcount bands, plus growth in net book value of assets
Advanced technology and sustainability bonus	6%	Not applicable	Up to 5% through the Industrial Technology Transformation Index (ITTI); 1% for ISO 14001, ISO 14046, ISO 50001 or the Green Industries Label
Sustainability bonus	Not applicable	3%	2% in four 0.5% steps for policies on sustainability strategy and governance, material circularity, water and wastewater management and emission management; 1% for ISO 14001, ISO 14046 or ISO 50001

Classification

Which Formula Applies To You

Classification follows the licence, not the trade. It decides half of your score, so it is the first thing we check.

✓ Goods manufacturer — Manufactures and supplies a finished product to an external customer. A supplier holding a UAE Industrial Licence is a goods manufacturer.

✓ Service provider — Anyone who is not a goods manufacturer. Any licence other than an Industrial Licence lands here.

✓ Agents and traders — Treated as service providers by default, so their score turns on third party spend rather than manufacturing cost.

✓ The single-principal exception — An agent or trader established to sell the products of only one principal goods manufacturer in the UAE is treated as a goods manufacturer. The manufacturer formula usually scores better for a distributor with one principal, so this is worth checking.

✓ One certificate per legal entity — The certificate is obtained for each legal entity. Each licence is an independent legal entity, even under identical ownership.

✓ The branch exception — Branches in the same emirate with identical activities and ownership on the licences receive one combined certificate for that emirate. Multi-emirate and multi-licence groups need several certificates.

The gating requirement

Audited Accounts Set The Clock

No audited financial statements, no certificate. The statements also fix the expiry date, which is why the audit is scheduled first and finished quickly.

Rule	Detail
Standard	Prepared under IFRS and audited by a UAE-licensed auditor under ISA.
Age limit	Statements must not be older than 2 years from the certification year. For 2023 certification, statements must not be older than 2021.
New companies	A company under 10 months old with no audited statements may use management accounts for up to 9 months. Beyond 9 months an audit is required.
Certificate validity	14 months from the date of issuance of the audited financial statements, not from the certification date.
Recertification	Allowed during validity using the same statements, but the 14 months still runs from the initial issuance of those statements.
Reconciliation	Every figure in the template must correspond to the audited financial statements and supporting documents, and must include all costs incurred and revenues earned in the financial year.
Currency	Report in AED. USD converts at the fixed rate of 1 USD to 3.6725 AED. Other currencies convert at the rate in the purchase order.
Industrial Licence holders	Must additionally submit annual consumption in units: water in cubic metres, electricity in kWh and gas.

Raising the number

Levers That Move The Score

If your percentage is too low to win, these are the items that change it. Some take a year, one takes a bookkeeping change.

✓ Restructure the chart of accounts — MoIAT explicitly encourages suppliers to modify the trial balance and account codes to separately capture ICV-relevant costs, with distinct codes for Emirati payroll, training and manufacturing costs. Done once, every future certification is faster and cheaper.

✓ Buy from high-ICV suppliers — Third party spend is 50% of a service provider's score and it multiplies your supplier's ICV score. Ask suppliers for their certificate and factor it into procurement. This is the fastest way to move the number.

✓ Hire Emiratis — A 15% weighting plus bonus bands: 1% to 3% for 1 to 5 employees, 4% to 6% for 6 to 50, 7% to 9% for 51 to 200, and 10% above 200. It satisfies Emiratisation targets at the same time.

✓ Hold assets in the UAE — Investment carries a 25% weighting, with a growth bonus of 5% per band at AED 5,000,000 to 50,000,000, AED 51,000,000 to 100,000,000 and AED 101,000,000 to 150,000,000 of net book value.

✓ Certify to ISO 14001, 14046 or 50001 — A clean 1% on either formula, and a goods manufacturer can take the same 1% through the Green Industries Label.

✓ Enrol in ITTI or document your policies — Manufacturers can take up to 5% through the Industrial Technology Transformation Index. Service providers take 0.5% each for documented policies across four sustainability areas.

The process

From Registration To Signed Certificate

The whole engagement runs on the MoIAT platform at icv.moiat.gov.ae. We prepare the file and the draft; the Certifying Body verifies and signs.

Step	What happens
1. NAFIS registration	Registration on the NAFIS platform as a Partner is required for all private companies before obtaining the ICV certificate. Register at nafis.gov.ae.
2. Register the company	Log in to icv.moiat.gov.ae with UAE Pass. If no profile exists, use Register Company and complete company registration.
3. Select Certifying Bodies	Open the Bidding Process tab, click Select CBs and choose from the list of authorised Certifying Bodies you want offers from.
4. Request quotes	Complete the questionnaire with company details and request a quote. Certifying Bodies return price quotations.
5. Compare and accept	You may accept, counteroffer or reject. Accepting one quotation automatically rejects the others, and once appointed the Certifying Body cannot be changed for that year's certificate without proper justification.
6. Engagement letter	The selected Certifying Body uploads a signed engagement letter.
7. Complete the template	Download the ICV template from the MoIAT supplier page: a Microsoft Excel file with a tab per attribute. Fill only the non-shaded areas and populate the certificate information.
8. Endorsement	The Certifying Body reviews, endorses, signs and approves the completed draft.

Fee guide

Our fee for this

There is no fixed government fee. The cost is the Certifying Body's fee, set by competitive quotation through the platform's bidding process, and those fees are unpublished by design. Budget separately for the prerequisite audit, the preparation work, one certificate per legal entity, and an annual repeat. Contact us for a fee quotation on your own engagement.

Government charges are separate and are paid to the authority, not to us.

FAQ

Common Questions.

14 months from the date the audited financial statements were issued, not from the date of certification. A slow audit therefore shortens your window before you have even applied. Recertification during the validity period using the same statements is allowed, but the 14 months still runs from the initial issuance.

Expiry of the 14-month window, which means the cycle repeats annually alongside each new audit. It is also triggered by a new legal entity or a new licence, since each licence is an independent legal entity and needs its own certificate. Branches in the same emirate with identical activities and ownership are the one exception and share a combined certificate.

Only if the company is under 10 months old and has none. In that case management accounts may be used for up to 9 months. Beyond 9 months an audit is required, prepared under IFRS and audited by a UAE-licensed auditor under ISA.

They must not be older than 2 years from the certification year. For 2023 certification, the statements must not be older than 2021. Every figure in the template has to reconcile to those statements and their supporting documents.

An authorised Certifying Body: a professional services firm empanelled by MoIAT. You pick which ones to invite through the Select CBs step on the platform, then compare their quotations. The current empanelled list sits on the ICV platform and changes, so check it at the point of application.

All submitted information is verified by the Certifying Body, and MoIAT personnel may audit and review any ICV certification engagement, with both supplier and Certifying Body obliged to share information on request. Gross negligence or wilful default results in a ban from the National ICV Program. The template is a regulated filing, so we prepare it as one.

Talk to a consultant

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ICV Certification And A Higher Score