Business Setup in Dubai

Get a kick start on your

Business Setup

Setting up your dream agency in Dubai is one of those things where you think afterwards, “if only I knew then what I know now.” Tonnes of paperwork, potential fines, the cost, the hidden rules of each free zone, the impact of your choices & just how long it takes. 

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Calculate Your Business Setup Cost

Which Business Activity are you looking for?
Select Jurisdiction
How Many Owners will be involved?
Will you require Visa(s)?
Do you require an office Space?
Do you Have a business name in mind?
Contact Details

We make business setup easier, simpler and more affordable.

Getting a residence visa usually costs an extra fee, since this is not included in setting up a business. However, with our new business setup package, you do not have to pay extra because we have this covered! Plus, you get all these exciting benefits:

Set up your Mainalnd Company in Dubai!

There’s never been an ideal time to start a Mainland business in Dubai. The UAE government’s brand-new company law and flexible regulatory procedures with quick timeframes and simple approval procedures have made a Mainland License a favorite choice for the region’s startup community and investors. Following these new FDI laws that allow for no needing an international sponsor to start their business, meaning that ex-pats have the right to be the sole owners of companies based in the UAE. To get a company registered in Dubai, it is not necessary to own office space in the physical area and MAKE MY COMPANY’s coworking DED package is the ideal solution to begin. A DED license allows you to collaborate with government agencies easily and to trade throughout the UAE. The concierge service at MAKE MY COMPANY can make the ordinarily complicated procedure to open a new bank account a simple task.

Types of Licenses in Dubai

Professional

In professional license, 100% shares is owned by expat partner and a UAE national is appointed as a Local Service Agent. The license is acquired for non-physical services like consultancy

Commercial

Companies involved in any sort of commercial trade activity can avail this license, both general and specialized traders need to obtain the license to carry out business operations safely throughout Dubai.

Industrial

The industrial license in Dubai is issued for those companies that transform natural material or natural resources into other final products and or is into any other type of manufacturing activities.

Tourism

Dubai provides 3 main types of license namely: Travel agency license as an operator of inbound tourism, Travel agency license as an operator of outbound tourism and Travel agency license as a travel agent.

Professional

In professional license, 100% shares is owned by expat partner and a UAE national is appointed as a Local Service Agent. The license is acquired for non-physical services like consultancy

Commercial

Companies involved in any sort of commercial trade activity can avail this license, both general and specialized traders need to obtain the license to carry out business operations safely throughout Dubai.

Tourism

Dubai provides 3 main types of license namely: Travel agency license as an operator of inbound tourism, Travel agency license as an operator of outbound tourism and Travel agency license as a travel agent.

Industrial

The industrial license in Dubai is issued for those companies that transform natural material or natural resources into other final products and or is into any other type of manufacturing activities.

Here are the documents you need to get started:

A copy of your passport

A Ready Business plan

Utility bills

Starting a Business in Dubai can be Broken Down into 4 Major Steps

Step 1

Registering Your Company Name

Step 2

Acquiring a Business License

Step 3

Completing the Visa Processes

Step 4

Opening a Bank
Account

You may also want to know about the various jurisdictions and the various regions and type of company ownerships that you can opt for in the UAE. Our specialist consultants will explain the differences between owning a DED Mainland License, Freezone License, Offshore License, Limited Contract (LLC Company), Unlimited Contract, Trading Company and more based on your business activity and budget.

We Work Closely With All Government Agencies

Follow these steps to calculate the Business Formation cost

Calculate Your Business Setup Cost

Which Business Activity are you looking for?
Select Jurisdiction
How Many Owners will be involved?
Will you require Visa(s)?
Do you require an office Space?
Do you Have a business name in mind?
Contact Details

Follow these steps to calculate the Business Formation cost

Calculate Your Business Setup Cost

Choose your business category
Which Business Activity are you looking for?
Are you currently living in the UAE?
What is the main reason to set up a company in the UAE?
Ok, if you're not in the UAE, where do you currently call home?
Select Jurisdiction
How Many Owners will be involved?
Will you require Visa(s)?
Do you require an office Space?
Do you Have a business name in mind?
Contact Details

Our FAQs

Still have questions?
Our Client Success Team is always here to help

  • You Get 100% Business Ownership in Dubai.
  • Select The Industry-Specific Free Zones
  • Dubai is a Strategic international location
  • Setup Business with World-Class InfraStructure
  • Get the benefit of Limited Restriction on the Minimum Capital
  • Find Affordable Office Space which anyone can afford
  • Hassle-Free and Easy Documentation process.
  • Gain The Benefits of Low taxation rates.

Yes, a foreigner can set up a business in Dubai. Dubai’s local population is roughly 80% expatriate, many of those 100% owning their businesses.

Dubai does welcome foreign investors & business owners from overseas. The UAE is home to many startup & company formation experts, and agents to help and guide foreign business entrepreneurs through the various licenses, visas, and other business setup & incorporation processes. There are many setups and company formation processes in Dubai out there that are hidden and unknown to many. Early understanding of these complex steps to set up a business in Dubai will help make for an easy process.

Your first priority should be to find the best company setup agent in Dubai, who can guide you best through each setup step, offering consultancy & documentation support along the way.

While choosing a name for your business set up in the UAE make sure that:

  • The business name should not violate the public morals and the public order of the UAE.
  • Business names must be followed by various “legal forms of the company”, for example (LLC, FZE, etc.)
  • The name of the company must not have been previously registered.
  • The business must be 100% compatible with the required type of business activity and the legal status
  • The business should not contain the names of any religion, belief, or governing authority.

There is a lot of confusion with different types of business that can be set up in Dubai via a “foreign entrepreneur”. There is also confusion about the requirements of local UAE-based sponsors to start a business in Dubai.

So, do we really need a UAE citizen as a Local Sponsor to set up our business?

The actual answer depends on the nature of the business you select to set up whether it will be located on the UAE mainland or the Dubai free zone. These are the #2 major factors that will determine if there will be a need for a local sponsor to start a business in Dubai.

A local sponsor from the UAE is a must if a foreign investor wishes to set up his business in the UAE mainland. The local sponsor must be a UAE citizen, but this is not compulsory in the case with Dubai free zones. If you are planning to set up business in the “UAE mainland”, then 51% of the business will be managed and owned by the UAE’s local sponsor. 

So if any foreign investor is planning to set up business in the UAE, it is important to understand the various business setup procedures. The businesses can be set up in Dubai mainland through:

  • Individual Sponsorship
  • Corporate sponsorship
  • Local Service Agent

Are you planning to start a business in Dubai, UAE? Before you start with the business setup process, you have to make sure to choose the best suitable “free zone” which you want to form your business in the UAE. This business planning in the UAE may become confusing and quite a challenge when choosing from 30 free zones in Dubai.

  1. Company Registration Fee: The company registration in Dubai fee is just a one-time charge to the Dubai free zone authorities in the beginning phases of the business registration. Although, the local legal structures will determine the exact fee for company registration. The costs for “registering a company in Dubai free zone” are not always exceptionally varied; it is approx in the range of AED 9,000 to AED 10,000.
  1. Licence Fee: While forming a business in Dubai-free zones, the important step is to get your required business license. The three most important business licenses are a trading license, services license, and industrial sectors license. Although the company registration fee in Dubai, trade license fees are recurring and will cost approximately AED 10,000 – AED 50,000 per year.
  1. Office Fee: Renting an office in Dubai is an important step to get your business license in Dubai. All free zones in Dubai do offer a mix of space requirements to fit all your business requirements, all including the serviced, smart & flexible desks. Office rent in Dubai will typically cost between AED 15,000 to AED 20,000. At Make My Company, we offer a range of all-in-one office solutions perfect for any new Dubai-based business and the small to big startups. We are located in the most vibrant community of Dubai; make My company offers flexible & all types of serviced desks, individual coworking offices and spaces, and high-end business centers in Dubai. All equipped with a varied collection of basic facilities to set up & expand your dream business in Dubai.
  1. Share Capital: The minimum required “share capital amount” may differ particularly for each Dubai free zone, ranging from AED 1,000 to AED 1,000,000 depending on the nature of the business activities & the types of licenses. The “average share capital requirement” for the Dubai free zones is AED 50,000.

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