Course syllabus
A self-taught course · Level: beginner → intermediate · Framework: the UAE (IFRS + 5% VAT + 9% corporate tax) · Currency: the UAE dirham
Who is this course for?
The founder or manager of a young online store (Shopify / WooCommerce / Amazon.ae / Instagram) who wants to:
- keep their own books in the first year or two instead of staying blind to their numbers;
- understand what their accountant is doing and check it, instead of signing off on what they do not understand;
- know when they have to register for VAT and how to file the return;
- know whether the store actually makes money after gateway fees, delivery, returns and advertising.
The course assumes no accounting background. It assumes only that you can add and subtract and that you can open a spreadsheet file.
What you will be able to do at the end
| # | The outcome |
|---|---|
| 1 | Design a chart of accounts suited to an online store and record its transactions with double entry |
| 2 | Close a full month: posting, a trial balance, adjusting entries, three financial statements |
| 3 | Calculate the landed cost per unit and the cost of goods sold under both FIFO and the weighted average |
| 4 | Reconcile payment gateway, courier and cash-on-delivery statements against the bank |
| 5 | Build a VAT record and fill in the VAT201 return with sound logic |
| 6 | Estimate the corporate tax liability and assess whether "Small Business Relief" is worth taking |
| 7 | Build a pricing model, unit economics and a break-even point for the store |
| 8 | Build a 13-week cash flow forecast and make an inventory purchase decision from it |
How the learning works
Every module runs to the same rhythm, without exception:
A short concept → a worked example step by step → short exercises (you mark them yourself)
→ a mini project on a real store → a test → a clear completion standard
Do not move on to the next module before you have met every item of the "Completion standard" at the end of the module. Accounting is cumulative: a gap in Module 2 becomes a disaster in Module 5.
The running case study
The whole course works on a single store, fictional but realistic: Nuwa Trading LLC — an online store in Abu Dhabi that imports coffee brewing equipment and sells it through its own store, Amazon and cash on delivery. You start on the day it is incorporated and walk with it month by month all the way to its first tax return.
The same numbers recur across the modules, so what you learn in Module 2 you use in Module 5 and audit in Module 9.
See: the case study
The three tracks
Choose one track and stick to it. The tracks share the same files.
🟢 The fast track — "Read your numbers" (~12 hours)
For a founder who already has an accountant and only wants to understand, read and ask the right questions.
Modules: 1 → 2 → 5 → 10 + the final project (the short version)
🔵 The basic track — "Keep your own books" (~24 hours)
For a founder who wants to keep the books themselves, all the way to the monthly close.
Modules: 1 → 2 → 3 → 4 → 5 → 6 + the final project (the basic version)
🟣 The full track — "Compliance and growth ready" (~40 hours)
For anyone who wants the whole package: books + tax compliance + pricing and cash decisions.
Modules: 1 → 10 in full + the comprehensive final project
The module map
| # | The module | Hours | Level | Tracks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The language of money and the e-commerce business cycle | 3 | Beginner | 🟢🔵🟣 |
| 2 | Double entry, the chart of accounts and the journal | 5 | Beginner | 🟢🔵🟣 |
| 3 | Posting, the ledger and the trial balance | 4 | Beginner | 🔵🟣 |
| 4 | The accrual basis, adjusting entries and the monthly close | 5 | Intermediate | 🔵🟣 |
| 5 | The three financial statements and how to read them | 5 | Intermediate | 🟢🔵🟣 |
| 6 | Inventory, cost of goods sold and landed cost | 5 | Intermediate | 🔵🟣 |
| 7 | The revenue cycle: gateways, marketplaces, returns and settlements | 4 | Intermediate | 🟣 |
| 8 | VAT in practice + e-invoicing | 4 | Intermediate | 🟣 |
| 9 | Corporate tax and Small Business Relief | 3 | Intermediate | 🟣 |
| 10 | Pricing, unit economics and cash flow | 4 | Intermediate | 🟢🔵🟣 |
| — | The final project: closing a full quarter | 6–10 | Capstone | 🟢🔵🟣 |
The companion files
| The file | The purpose |
|---|---|
| thenibras-academy-workbook.xlsx | Blank templates + Nuwa's data: chart of accounts, journal, ledger, trial balance, financial statements, inventory, VAT record, pricing, cash flow. The workbook is in Arabic. |
| thenibras-academy-syllabus.pdf | The official syllabus document, for printing or accreditation. The PDF is in Arabic. |
| Marking criteria and badges | The marking matrices (rubrics) and what it takes to pass each level |
| The answer keys | Solutions to the exercises and the tests — email us at info@thenibras.com once you have tried it |
The golden rule
Do not read accounting. Write it.
Any module you finish without having written entries by hand in the spreadsheet file = a module you have not finished.
Disclaimer
The tax content in Modules 8 and 9 is prepared for teaching, based on the regulations in force in the UAE up to September 2026, and is not tax advice. Always check the Federal Tax Authority website tax.gov.ae before taking a compliance decision, because thresholds and deadlines change.