A white emitting phosphor of YAl₃(BO₃)₄:Ce³⁺, Dy³⁺is synthesized by a solid state reaction, and its luminescent properties are investigated. Its phase formation is carried out with X-ray powder diffraction analysis, and there is no crystalline phase other than YAl₃(BO₃)₄. YAl₃(BO₃)₄:Ce³⁺can produce 422 nm blue emission under 367 nm excitation. The emission spectrum of YAl₃(BO₃)₄:Dy³⁺shows several emission peaks under 350 nm excitation, and the peaks locate at 485 nm, 575 nm and 668 nm, respectively. Emission intensities of Ce³⁺and Dy³⁺in YAl₃(BO₃)₄are influenced by their concentrations, and the concentration quenching effect is observed. Energy transfer from Ce³⁺to Dy³⁺in YAl₃(BO₃)₄is validated and proved to be a resonant type via a quadrupole-quadrupole interaction, and the emission color can be tuned from blue to white by tuning the ratio of Ce³⁺/Dy³⁺. Moreover, the critical distance (Rc) of Ce³⁺to Dy³⁺in YAl₃(BO₃)₄is calculated to be 1.904 nm.