The State Audit Institution conducts financial audits of public funds. It also ensures the legality and safety of the management of these funds and of the implementation of development projects.

It does this by conducting financial audits of Ministries, Federal Government Departments, Public Corporations, Companies or any bodies in which the state or any public artificial person has a share of no less than 25 percent or for which the state guarantees minimum limit of profit or offers financial subsidy.

Other organizations can come under the audit of the SAI by order of the Federal Supreme Council or the President or the Cabinet, as can local Governments in the Emirates according to a written request of the Ruler of the Emirate.

In addition to these audits, the SAI exercises concomitant audit and inspection during contract and some operations implementation as well as having a full post audit.

The latter includes audit of public expenditures, public revenues, reconciliation accounts loans accounts investments, stores final and appropriation accounts of all authorities audited by the SAI as well as balance sheets, profit and loss accounts, operating trading and appropriations accounts of the economic sectors corporations and companies subject to the SAI audit and documents to identify the exact financial position of these authorities, corporations and companies.