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Company formation in the UAE
Mainland, free zone or offshore. The three are not interchangeable, and the cheapest licence is rarely the one that lets you invoice the customers you actually have.
01THE FIRST DECISION
Which structure, and why
Mainland
Licensed by the emirate’s economic department. Trade anywhere in the UAE, invoice government entities, and take on visas subject to office space.
SUITS
Retail, contracting, professional services selling into the UAE market.
WATCH FOR
Physical office and Ejari are usually mandatory, which sets the real annual cost.
Free zone
Full foreign ownership, flexi-desk options and packaged visa quotas. Each zone has its own activity list, quota rules and reputation with banks.
SUITS
Export, e-commerce, consultancy and holding structures.
WATCH FOR
Selling into the mainland usually needs a distributor or a branch. Zone choice also affects which banks will open for you.
Offshore
A holding vehicle for assets and shareholdings. No visas, no UAE trading, and a narrower set of banks willing to open accounts.
SUITS
Holding shares, succession planning, group structures.
WATCH FOR
Not a route to residency. Sold as one more often than it should be.
02FREE ZONES WE WORK IN
Compared on what matters
| Free zone | Emirate | Commonly used for |
|---|---|---|
| Ajman Free Zone | Ajman | Trading, light industrial and service companies |
| IFZA | Dubai | Consultancy, professional services and trading |
| Meydan | Dubai | Services, e-commerce and holding structures |
| SHAMS | Sharjah | Media, creative and consultancy activities |
| RAKEZ | Ras Al Khaimah | Industrial, manufacturing and trading operations |
Requirements and pricing move with each authority. We confirm current details on the call.
03SCOPE
What the engagement covers
Government charges are billed at cost and appear as a separate line on every invoice.
Activity and structure advice
A written recommendation covering jurisdiction, activity codes and shareholding.
Name reservation
Including the naming rules that catch most first applications.
Initial approval
Filed with the relevant authority and tracked through to issue.
MOA and notarisation
Drafted, reviewed and notarised, remotely where permitted.
Office or flexi-desk
Arranged to meet the authority’s requirement and your visa quota.
Trade licence issue
Plus establishment card and immigration file where visas follow.
Post-licence registrations
Corporate tax registration, and VAT where the threshold applies.
Handover pack
Every document, every deadline, and the renewal calendar for year two.
Visas and accounting are part of the same engagement
Once the licence is issued, we handle the investor and employee visas that come with it, and we keep the books and filings current in year one. Neither is a separate product — they are covered by the same advisor as part of getting the company running, not quoted or scoped on their own.
04WHAT GOES WRONG
Mistakes we are asked to fix
- A licence issued in a zone whose activity list does not cover what the business actually sells
- An activity so narrowly worded that the client cannot invoice half their customers
- A structure chosen on setup cost alone, then abandoned at renewal when the real annual cost lands
- Shareholding arranged without thinking about how the bank will read it
Start with the advice, not the invoice
Thirty minutes, a written recommendation, no obligation. If the UAE is not right for you, we will say so.