Setting Up a Free Zone Trading Company in the UAE

Who runs this process

Before you start

• You know which goods you will trade and can describe them by HS code family
• You have decided whether you will sell into the UAE mainland, because that changes the structure
• Passport copies for every shareholder, valid for at least six months
• A business plan or product list, which several zones ask for at application

The journey

Each step is marked by who acts: YouEmployerYou + employer

1. 1
   YouYour shortlisted free zone authorities

   Choose the free zone and the exact trading activity

   You, before paying anything

   Trading activities are licensed either as a specific trading license, which names the product categories you may deal in, or as a general trading license, which covers most goods and costs more. Pick the zone before the package. A zone attached to a port or airport suits physical cargo, while a cheaper inland zone suits paperwork-only trade where goods never touch the UAE. Restricted goods such as food, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and telecom equipment need a sector approval on top of the license, and not every zone can host them.

   You get

   Chosen free zone · Chosen activity and license type

   Fee

   Fee varies, confirm at the official portal · paid by you (Free zone license packages are promotional and quoted through cost calculators. A general trading license costs materially more than a specific trading license in every zone we checked. Treat any single published figure as indicative.)

   Watch out for

   • Buying a cheap specific trading license and then discovering your product sits outside the listed categories, which forces a paid activity amendment
   • Choosing an inland zone for cargo that will physically arrive at Jebel Ali

   Stock And Fulfil From UAE: You need a zone that can give you warehousing or a fulfilment arrangement, which rules out desk-only packages.

   Sell Into UAE Mainland: A free zone license does not let you sell directly into the mainland. Read step 6 before choosing a zone.

   Full guide: Choose the free zone and the exact trading activity

2. 2
   YouFree zone registrar

   Reserve the name and register the company

   Usually online through the zone's own portal

   You reserve a trade name, choose the legal form, and submit shareholder documents. A single-shareholder entity is normally an FZE or FZ-LLC, and a multi-shareholder entity an FZCO or FZC. The zone issues incorporation documents, and you appoint the company's officers at this point. Some zones require share capital to be stated, and a few require it to be deposited.

   You get

   Certificate of incorporation · Trade license · Share certificates

   Typical time

   a few working days once documents are complete (indicative, confirm on the portal)

   Fee

   Fee varies, confirm at the official portal · paid by you (Registration and license fees are bundled differently in every zone. Share capital requirements also differ: DMCC states AED 50,000 per company and AED 10,000 per shareholder, while several zones state none.)

   Watch out for

   • Assuming the officer named as Manager must already hold a UAE residence visa, which is not the case
   • Naming a corporate shareholder without the attested corporate documents ready, which stalls the file

   Full guide: Reserve the name and register the company

3. 3
   YouFree zone leasing team

   Take premises, which sets your visa quota

   Contracted with the free zone, not on the open market

   Free zone space is leased from the zone itself. A flexi-desk is the cheapest option and satisfies the license, but it caps how many residence visas the company can sponsor. An office raises the cap roughly in line with floor area, and a warehouse is required if goods will be stored in the zone. This is the step that quietly decides your hiring ceiling, so size it against your year-two headcount rather than your first month.

   You get

   Lease or facility agreement · Visa quota allocation

   Fee

   Fee varies, confirm at the official portal · paid by you (Facility pricing is zone-specific and often bundled into the license package for desk products.)

   Watch out for

   • Signing a desk package, then needing a fourth visa and having to upgrade the facility mid-year

   Flexi Desk: Expect a low single-digit visa cap. Confirm the exact number in writing before you sign, because it is the constraint people discover too late.

   Warehouse: Warehousing brings its own customs obligations, including a customs warehouse license in some cases.

   Full guide: Take premises, which sets your visa quota

4. 4
   You + employerFree zone immigration desk, then ICP or GDRFA

   Open the immigration file and sponsor your visas

   The company applies; each person completes medical and Emirates ID in person

   The company cannot sponsor anyone until it holds an active license and an establishment card, which is the electronic record linking the company to the immigration system. Once the card exists, each person gets an entry permit, then a medical fitness test, then Emirates ID biometrics, then the residence visa itself. Free zone companies route this through the zone rather than dealing with immigration directly.

   You get

   Establishment card · Entry permits · Residence visas and Emirates IDs

   Typical time

   around 20 working days per person once the establishment card exists (indicative, confirm on the portal)

   Fee

   Fee varies, confirm at the official portal · paid by you (ICP publishes itemized establishment card fees; GDRFA Dubai does not publish its equivalent itemized, so no single Dubai figure is asserted.)

   Watch out for

   • Booking flights before the entry permit is issued
   • Letting the entry permit lapse, since it runs 60 days and cannot be renewed

   Full guide: Open the immigration file and sponsor your visas

5. 5
   YouDubai Customs, via the Dubai Trade portal

   Register with Customs to get your customs code

   Online, once the trade license exists

   No goods clear customs against a trade license alone. The company must register as a customs client, which produces a customs code tied to the license. You submit the application online, pay, and receive the registration and code by email. The code is what appears on every customs declaration you file afterwards, and it must be renewed each year alongside the license.

   You get

   Customs client registration · Customs code issued by email

   Typical time

   1 working day

   Fee

   AED 120 · paid by you (AED 100 service fee plus AED 20 Knowledge and Innovation fees, which Dubai Customs adds to any service costing AED 50 or more. Annual renewal is AED 25 and needs only a trade license copy.)

   Watch out for

   • Trying to register before the trade license is issued, which cannot work
   • Forgetting the AED 25 annual renewal and finding declarations blocked at the worst moment

   Warehouse: Storing goods under customs suspension may additionally require a customs warehouse license.

   Full guide: Register with Customs to get your customs code

6. 6
   YouYour bank, then the Federal Tax Authority

   Open the bank account, register for tax, and settle how you will reach the UAE market

   Bank onboarding runs in parallel; tax registration has its own deadlines

   Banks want an authorized signatory who holds an Emirates ID and a residence visa and is reachable locally, so bank onboarding usually waits on step 4. Separately, the company registers for corporate tax, and for VAT if it crosses the registration threshold. A free zone company may qualify for the 0% corporate tax rate on qualifying income, but distribution activity has conditions attached, and selling into the UAE mainland is where free zone traders most often lose that status without realizing it.

   You get

   Corporate bank account · Corporate tax registration · A decided mainland-sales structure

   Fee

   Fee varies, confirm at the official portal · paid by you (Corporate tax registration itself is not a fee-bearing service, but penalties for late registration are significant. Bank minimum balances are set per bank and are not a published government figure.)

   Watch out for

   • Assuming the free zone license allows direct mainland sales
   • Treating the 0% corporate tax rate as automatic rather than conditional

   Sell Into UAE Mainland: Goods moving from a free zone into the UAE mainland are treated as an import and attract customs duty at 5% of the CIF value. You will also need a mainland distributor, a commercial agent, or your own mainland branch, because the free zone license does not grant direct market access.

   Export And Reexport Only: This is the cleanest case for both customs and corporate tax, since the goods never enter the UAE market.

   Full guide: Open the bank account, register for tax, and settle how you will reach the UAE market

Documents checklist

Where this goes wrong

What comes next

• Open the corporate bank account
• Register for corporate tax on EmaraTax
• Renew the trade license each year