Registering a Branch of a Foreign Company in the UAE

Who runs this process

Before you start

• The parent company is properly incorporated and in good standing in its home jurisdiction
• The parent's board can pass a resolution to open the branch and appoint a manager
• You can get the parent's corporate documents attested, which is the long pole
• You accept that the branch cannot carry on activities the parent does not carry on

The journey

Each step is marked by who acts: YouEmployerYou + employer

1. 1
   YouYour own assessment with legal advice

   Decide between a branch, a representative office, and a subsidiary

   This is a liability decision before it is a tax one

   A branch is your existing company operating in the UAE, not a new legal person. A representative office is narrower still: it can market and liaise but not trade. A subsidiary is a separate UAE company with its own legal personality and its own liability shield. The Federal Tax Authority states the position plainly for tax: UAE branches of a domestic or a foreign juridical person are an extension of their parent or head office and are therefore not considered separate juridical persons. The consequence runs both ways, since the parent stands behind the branch's obligations.

   You get

   A decision on structure

   Watch out for

   • Choosing a branch for speed and inheriting parent-level liability for UAE obligations
   • Expecting a representative office to be able to invoice

   Representative Office: A representative office cannot trade or earn revenue in the UAE. It exists to promote and liaise on behalf of the parent.

   Subsidiary Instead: A subsidiary is a separate juridical person with its own liability and its own corporate tax position. If ring-fencing matters, this is the route.

   Full guide: Decide between a branch, a representative office, and a subsidiary

2. 2
   YouHome country authorities, then the UAE mission, then MOFA

   Get the parent company's documents in order and attested

   Start here, because everything else waits on it

   The UAE authorities register the branch against the parent, so they need the parent's certificate of incorporation, memorandum and articles, a board resolution approving the branch and appointing its manager, a power of attorney for that manager, and commonly recent audited financial statements. Foreign documents run the full legalization chain: authentication in the country of issue, then the UAE embassy or consulate there, then final attestation in the UAE. Arabic translation is normally required. This is the step that determines your timeline.

   You get

   A fully attested and translated parent document set

   Typical time

   several weeks, depending on the home jurisdiction (indicative, confirm on the portal)

   Fee

   Fee varies, confirm at the official portal · paid by you (Attestation costs sit with the home country authorities, the UAE mission abroad, and MOFA. Legal translation is charged separately.)

   Watch out for

   • Attesting documents that are already out of date by the time the file is submitted
   • Passing a board resolution that does not name the manager or define the branch's activities

   Full guide: Get the parent company's documents in order and attested

3. 3
   You + employerMinistry of Economy, then the local licensing authority

   Register the branch and confirm its activities

   Federal registration alongside local licensing

   A foreign company branch is registered federally with the Ministry of Economy and licensed locally by the emirate's economic department, or by the free zone authority if the branch sits in a zone. The branch's licensed activities must match what the parent actually does, because the branch is legally the same entity. Note the ownership reform here: Federal Decree-Law No. 26 of 2020, consolidated by Federal Decree-Law No. 32 of 2021, eliminated the obligation for branches of foreign companies to appoint a UAE national service agent. That change is specific to branches, and it is the single biggest cost reduction on this route.

   You get

   Ministry registration · Local branch trade license

   Fee

   Fee varies, confirm at the official portal · paid by you (Ministry registration and local licensing are charged separately. Neither schedule could be retrieved during research: the ministry's domains and DET's domains did not resolve or returned an access error.)

   Watch out for

   • Applying for activities the parent does not carry on, which the branch cannot be licensed for
   • Assuming a service agent is still mandatory and paying an unnecessary annual fee

   Free Zone: A free zone branch is registered with the zone authority and inherits the zone's trading restrictions, including no direct mainland sales.

   Mainland: A mainland branch can serve the UAE market directly, subject to its licensed activities.

   Full guide: Register the branch and confirm its activities

4. 4
   YouLocal licensing authority, plus Ejari for Dubai mainland

   Register premises and collect the license

   Same premises rules as any local entity

   The branch needs a registered address like any other licensed entity. On the Dubai mainland that means a registered Ejari tenancy; in a free zone it means a facility agreement with the zone. The space feeds into the branch's later visa allocation. Once approvals and premises are in place the license is issued against payment.

   You get

   Registered premises · Branch trade license

   Fee

   Fee varies, confirm at the official portal · paid by you (License and tenancy registration are separate charges. No figure is asserted here.)

   Watch out for

   • Letting the payment voucher lapse, which cancels the application

   Full guide: Register premises and collect the license

5. 5
   You + employerICP or GDRFA Dubai, or the free zone

   Open the immigration file and sponsor staff

   The branch sponsors in its own name

   The branch obtains an establishment card and then sponsors residence visas for its manager and staff, each running through entry permit, medical fitness test, Emirates ID biometrics, and the visa. The branch sponsors in its own registered name even though it is not a separate legal person, because the immigration file attaches to the licensed establishment.

   You get

   Establishment card · Residence visas and Emirates IDs

   Fee

   Fee varies, confirm at the official portal · paid by you (ICP publishes itemized establishment card fees; GDRFA Dubai does not publish an equivalent itemized schedule we could retrieve.)

   Watch out for

   • Assuming the parent's overseas employees can work in the UAE without local sponsorship

   Full guide: Open the immigration file and sponsor staff

6. 6
   YouFederal Tax Authority

   Get the tax position right, because it differs from a subsidiary

   The branch does not file on its own

   Because a branch is an extension of its head office rather than a separate juridical person, its income is included in the taxable income and corporate tax return of the parent or head office rather than filed separately. Where the parent is a foreign company, the question becomes whether it has a permanent establishment in the UAE, and foreign juridical persons with a permanent establishment here fall within UAE corporate tax. The Federal Tax Authority also notes that merely earning UAE-sourced income would not by itself trigger corporate tax payable or require the foreign entity to register and file.

   You get

   Correct registration and filing position · VAT registration where the threshold is crossed

   Fee

   Free · paid by you (Corporate tax registration carries no service fee. Late-registration penalties are separate and significant.)

   Watch out for

   • Filing the branch as though it were a standalone company
   • Overlooking that the parent's exposure extends to the branch's obligations

   Subsidiary Instead: A subsidiary is a separate taxable person with its own return, which is the main practical reason groups choose it over a branch.

   Full guide: Get the tax position right, because it differs from a subsidiary

Documents checklist

Where this goes wrong

What comes next

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