How Fuel Cards Work for Company Employees in the UAE

Fuel expenses happen often, especially across logistics, sales, and field teams, yet many companies still rely on receipts and reimbursements for fuel. That approach is slow, prone to errors, and can cause VAT compliance issues. Fuel cards solve these problems by giving employees a company-issued card limited to fuel merchants, while finance teams get real-time spend visibility, automated VAT documentation, and easier reconciliation.

Why Fuel Costs Are Hard to Track

Business fuel expenses in the UAE often come with challenges:

• Paper receipts that get lost, fade, or lack proper VAT details.
• Delayed reimbursements and complicated admin.
• Difficulty assigning spend to correct teams, vehicles, or drivers.
• Risk of unused fuel costs or misuse due to weak controls.

These issues add up, making fuel one of the hardest expenses to manage until businesses move to a controlled card-based system.

What Is a Fuel Card?

A fuel card is a corporate payment card issued to authorised employees or drivers for refuelling business vehicles. The card is pre-funded (or draws from a corporate account), and is configured to allow payments only at petrol stations or authorised fuel merchants. With Qashio corporate fuel cards:

• Each transaction appears in real time on a dashboard.
• Cards can be restricted to fuel-related merchant categories only.
• Limits can be set (per-transaction, per-day, per-user).
• Digital receipts are captured automatically via mobile (e.g. WhatsApp).

Employees no longer pay out-of-pocket or wait for reimbursements, and finance teams see every dirham spent with full traceability.

Fuel Card Options for UAE Businesses

In the UAE market, businesses usually pick from three models:

Station-Specific Fuel Cards

Issued by major providers like ENOC, ADNOC or Emarat. These cards work only at branded fuel stations. Good for fixed-route fleets that refuel in known areas — but limited in flexibility if operations cover multiple regions.

Network Fleet Cards (Visa / Mastercard)

These cards work across many fuel brands nationwide. They offer broader coverage and consolidated statements. However: VAT documentation may still be manual, and spend controls are limited.

Qashio Corporate Fuel Cards

These combine the flexibility of open-network cards with enterprise-grade spend governance: fuel-only merchant restrictions, real-time dashboards, automatic receipt capture, and ERP/inventory integration. Best suited for companies with multiple departments, vehicles, or locations.

Why Qashio’s Fuel Cards Are Often the Best Fit

With Qashio, fuel cards go beyond payment tools they become part of your spend management framework. Key advantages:

• Real-time visibility: Track who, where, and how much fuel was purchased.
• Automated VAT compliance: Digital receipts with complete VAT data, ready for FTA-compliant reclaim.
• Spend controls: Set per-user or per-vehicle limits, restrict fuel purchases by location or merchant, freeze cards instantly when needed.
• Simplified accounting: Costs drop directly into your ledger, no manual entry or delayed reimbursements.
• Reduced admin load: Less time chasing receipts, fewer errors, faster month-end close.

For many UAE companies, logistics, field services, sales fleets, this combination brings clarity and control to what was once chaotic spending.

Quick FAQ

Can cards be restricted to fuel purchases only?
Yes. You can limit cards so they work solely at recognised fuel merchants.

Do businesses need physical cards for fuel stations?
Usually yes, most stations support only physical cards. But virtual cards may be used for related online payments or fuel app top-ups.

Can VAT be reclaimed with digital receipts?
Yes, as long as the invoice includes supplier name, TRN, date, invoice number, and VAT amount. Qashio’s receipt capture validates that automatically.

Does Qashio integrate with accounting software?
Yes, Qashio integrates with leading ERP and accounting platforms used by UAE companies.

Ready to Take Control of Fuel Spend?

Fuel should never drain your time or cash flow. With Qashio fuel cards, you get control, compliance, and peace of mind — all in one platform.

Get Started with Qashio

Book a demo and see how fast you can transform fuel expenses into clean, auditable, and manageable spend.

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