An NCR invoice book is a carbonless duplicate book: you write once and the copy transfers to the sheet underneath. In Dubai, a 2-part (1+1) A5 book with single-colour printing starts at AED 265 for 5 books, and ready-made stock books such as Delivery Order Books start at AED 185. Below you'll find how 2-part, 3-part and 4-part sets differ, which size fits which use, how sequential numbering works, what the FTA requires on a tax invoice, and a full price table pulled from our live catalogue — all VAT-inclusive with UAE-wide delivery.
What "NCR" actually means — and why nobody uses carbon paper anymore
NCR stands for No Carbon Required. Instead of a messy sheet of carbon between pages, the paper itself is coated: the back of the top sheet carries micro-capsules of dye, and the front of the sheet below carries a reactive clay. Pressure from a pen bursts the capsules and the image forms on the sheet underneath. No smudging, no black fingers, no separate carbon sheet to insert or remove.
That's why every delivery driver, service technician, cash-counter and site supervisor in the UAE still runs on NCR books. A phone can lose signal in a basement car park in Al Quoz; a triplicate delivery note cannot. The customer signs, keeps the white copy, you keep the pink and yellow, and the paper trail closes the same minute.
2-part vs 3-part vs 4-part: which set do you actually need?
The number after "part" is simply how many sheets are in each set. Printers write it as 1+1 (two sheets), 1+2 (three sheets) and 1+3 (four sheets). The first number is the top sheet; the rest are the carbonless copies.
2-part (1+1) — the default for most SMEs
White original for the customer, pink copy for your file. This covers cash receipts, quotations, petty cash and most invoicing where accounting works from one filed copy. If you're unsure, start here — it's the cheapest per book and the fastest to produce.
3-part (1+2) — delivery notes and job cards
White for the customer, pink for accounts, yellow stays bound in the book as the driver's or technician's record. This is the standard for delivery orders, LPOs and service job cards, because three separate people need a copy at three different moments. Our 10-book A4 full-colour 1+2 set is AED 580.
4-part (1+3) — logistics, warehousing and contracting
Adds a fourth colour (usually green or blue) for the warehouse or the sub-contractor. Worth it only when you genuinely have four hand-offs; every extra ply adds cost and makes the bottom copy harder to read, because pen pressure has to travel through more layers. If your fourth copy is only ever scanned and filed, use 3-part and scan the yellow instead.
A4 or A5? Size guidance that saves money
- A5 (14.8 × 21 cm) — receipts, petty cash vouchers, simple cash invoices, salon and clinic bills. Fits in a glovebox or a counter drawer. Cheapest option.
- A4 (21 × 29.7 cm) — tax invoices with multiple line items, LPOs, delivery notes with product tables, job cards with a service checklist. If you regularly need more than six line items, go A4; cramming 12 rows onto A5 produces a document nobody can read.
- Half-A5 / custom slips — valet tickets, cloakroom tags, gate passes. These are quoted per job because they're trimmed from a parent sheet.
A useful rule: A4 costs roughly 10–15% more than A5 in single colour (AED 294 vs AED 265 for five books), but A4 is far cheaper than reprinting because your invoice layout didn't fit.
Printing colours: 1-colour, 2-colour or full colour?
NCR books are printed offset, so the price scales with the number of ink plates, not with how much ink covers the page.
- 1 colour — usually your brand colour or plain black. Logo, company details, table rules and the numbering all in one ink. This is what most UAE businesses order, and it's the cheapest.
- 2 colours — brand colour for the logo and header, black for the form grid. Looks noticeably more finished for AED 35–86 more on a 5-book run.
- Full colour (CMYK) — needed when your logo has a gradient, a photo, or more than two brand colours. On a 10-book A4 run that's AED 500 for 1+1.
One thing to watch: colour on the second and third plies is always weaker, because those sheets receive the image from pen pressure, not from a press. Design the form so that critical fields (amount, TRN, signature) rely on line work, not on a coloured background.
Real prices from our catalogue (VAT inclusive)
These are live prices on our NCR Books collection, not estimates. All include VAT and delivery within Dubai.
| Product | Size | Plies / Printing | Quantity | Price (AED) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NCR Books, one colour | A5 | 1+1, 1 colour | 5 books | 265 |
| NCR Books, one colour | A4 | 1+1, 1 colour | 5 books | 294 |
| NCR Books, two colour | A5 | 1+1, 2 colour | 5 books | 300 |
| NCR Books, two colour | A4 | 1+1, 2 colour | 5 books | 380 |
| NCR Books, one colour | A5 | 1+1, 1 colour | 10 books | 390 |
| NCR Books, full colour | A4 | 1+1, CMYK | 10 books | 500 |
| NCR Books, full colour | A4 | 1+2, CMYK | 10 books | 580 |
If you don't need custom artwork at all, we also stock standard business forms ready to brand:
| Ready-made book | Typical use | Price (AED) |
|---|---|---|
| Delivery Order Books | Goods handed over and signed for | 185 |
| Invoice Books | Standard sales invoicing | 225 |
| LPO Books | Local purchase orders to suppliers | 235 |
| Payment Vouchers | Cash and cheque payments out | 145 |
| Receipt Vouchers | Cash received | 145 |
| Petty Cash Vouchers | Small office expenses | 135 |
Sequential numbering, perforation and binding
Three finishing decisions matter more than most buyers expect:
Numbering. Sequential numbers are applied by a numbering machine on press, in red or black, at the top-right of every set. Tell us the start number when you order — if you're on book 4 of an old series and now at 1,847, we start at 1,848 so your audit trail stays unbroken. Numbers repeat across the plies of a set so all copies of one transaction share an identity.
Perforation. Decide which plies tear out. The common setup is: white tears out for the customer, pink tears out for accounts, yellow stays glued in the book. Say this explicitly on your order — "white and pink perforated, yellow fixed" — and you'll never get a book where the wrong copy leaves the building.
Binding and backing. Books are glue-bound at the head with a stiff board at the back. That board is not decoration: it's what you slide under the set so pen pressure doesn't transfer into the next ten sets of the book. Always use it.
Sets per book. 50 sets per book is the UAE standard. 100-set books exist but get thick and awkward for 3-part and 4-part — the block becomes 300 or 400 sheets.
What a UAE tax invoice must actually show
If your NCR book is used as a tax invoice, the layout has to leave room for the fields the Federal Tax Authority expects: the words "Tax Invoice", your legal name and address, your TRN, the customer's name and address (and their TRN for B2B), invoice date and supply date, a description of goods or services, unit price and quantity, the taxable amount, the VAT rate and VAT amount, and the gross total.
Two practical layout tips. First, pre-print your TRN — it's the single most common thing staff forget to write in. Second, give the VAT column its own printed box rather than expecting someone to add "+5%" by hand; handwritten tax maths is where reconciliation disputes start. Rules do change, so confirm current requirements with the FTA or your accountant before you commit a design to a 5,000-set print run.
Continuous computer invoices for accounting software
If you print from an accounting system rather than by hand, you need continuous (fanfold) stationery with sprocket holes rather than a bound book. We supply these by the box in 2- or 3-colour: 35 boxes at AED 3,940 and 50 boxes from AED 5,200 on the same collection page. Order these well ahead — they're produced in longer runs than bound books.
How to order NCR books in Dubai
- Pick the format. Size (A4/A5), plies (1+1, 1+2, 1+3), colours, and quantity of books.
- Send artwork or a sample. Print-ready PDF at 300 dpi with 3 mm bleed is ideal. Don't have artwork? Send a photo of your current book and we'll rebuild the layout. Free design help is available — see our designer request page.
- Confirm the numbering start. This is the step people forget, and it can't be fixed after printing.
- Approve the digital proof. Check the TRN, phone number and bank details character by character.
- Production and delivery. Standard turnaround is 5 business days after final approval, with delivery across Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi.
Frequently asked questions
What is the minimum order for custom NCR books in Dubai?
Five books. That's a real 5-book job, not a token minimum — AED 265 for A5 1+1 in one colour. Because NCR is printed offset, the plate setup is the same whether you print 5 books or 50, so the per-book price drops sharply with volume: 10 A5 books are AED 390, which is AED 39 per book against AED 53 at the 5-book price.
Can I get my own sequential numbering and start from a specific number?
Yes. Tell us the starting number and we'll continue your existing series. We can also add a prefix (for example INV-2026-) so books from different branches or years never collide.
How long does NCR book printing take?
Five business days from final artwork approval for standard bound books. Continuous computer invoice boxes take longer because of the run length. If you're running out of your current book, order at the 10-set-remaining mark, not the last set.
Are the prices VAT inclusive, and do you deliver outside Dubai?
All prices shown on the site are VAT inclusive. We deliver across the UAE — Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman and Abu Dhabi included. Ask about timing for Abu Dhabi and the Northern Emirates when you place the order.
What's the difference between an invoice book and a delivery order book?
An invoice book records what the customer owes and carries the tax fields. A delivery order book records what physically left your premises and carries a signature line for receipt. Many businesses need both, and it's a common mistake to try to make one document do both jobs — the driver ends up carrying pricing information they shouldn't be showing.
Can you match my existing book exactly?
In most cases, yes. Send a clear photo or courier us a used book. We'll match the size, ply colours, field layout and numbering position, and continue the sequence. This is the fastest route if your staff are already trained on a form.
Ready to reorder?
Browse the full range on our NCR Books collection, or send us a photo of your current book on WhatsApp and we'll quote the exact match within the hour.
Call or WhatsApp: 0522100909 (WhatsApp +971522100909)
Setting up a new company? You'll likely need matching stationery too — see our guides to letterhead printing in Dubai and envelope sizes and prices.
