We help you relocate and set up your business
End-to-end support — from incorporation to the bank account and bookkeeping.
Company Registration
Full incorporation support — document preparation, filings and liaison with government authorities.
Visa Processing
Work and residence visas for founders, employees and their families.
Establishment Card
Obtaining the official establishment card for your company.
Office Solutions
Flexible office and property solutions matched to your needs.
Banking Services
Opening corporate and personal accounts with local and international banks.
Accounting & Compliance
Bookkeeping support, preparation and analysis of financial statements and key metrics.
Company registration
The first decision is mainland or free zone, and it is not a matter of taste. A mainland company may trade anywhere in the UAE and with government entities; a free-zone company is licensed by its zone and may qualify for a 0% corporate tax rate on qualifying income, subject to conditions it must satisfy every year. Both allow full foreign ownership across more than a thousand activities — the exceptions are the eight strategic sectors listed in Cabinet Resolution No. 55 of 2021.
A mainland company must have a physical address. Premises have to satisfy the emirate’s economic department and municipal planning rules, and in Dubai the tenancy contract must be registered with Ejari. A free-zone company can normally satisfy the premises requirement with a flexi-desk or co-working package — which is one of the practical reasons free zones dominate small set-ups.
We handle the whole sequence: name reservation, initial approval, memorandum and articles, notarisation where required, licence issue and the corporate document pack. Full comparison of the six jurisdictions we work with is on our corporate services page.
Residence visas
A UAE residence visa is what makes relocation real: it comes with an Emirates ID, the ability to open personal accounts, to sponsor family, and to build the day count that supports tax residence. Which category fits depends on what you are bringing — capital, skills or a business.
| Category | Duration | Main requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Golden visa — public investment | 10 years | AED 2,000,000: an investor’s share in a company, a bank deposit or sukuk frozen for at least two years, or property. An annual government tax contribution of AED 250,000 also qualifies |
| Golden visa — real estate | 10 years | Property of at least AED 2,000,000, fully owned and not disposed of during the period, confirmed by the land department |
| Golden visa — entrepreneurs | See note | Project value of at least AED 500,000, certified by an accredited auditor, with a letter from the competent authority confirming its innovative nature |
| Golden visa — specialised talent | 10 years | Endorsement from the relevant body: arts and culture, innovators, athletes, digital technology, exceptional talent. No published financial threshold |
| Green visa — skilled employee | 5 years | Salary of at least AED 15,000 per month, a bachelor’s degree or equivalent, MOHRE classification levels 1 to 3, and a valid employment contract |
| Green visa — freelancer | 5 years | A MOHRE freelance or self-employment permit, a degree or specialised diploma, and self-employment income of at least AED 360,000 in each of the two preceding years, or proof of solvency |
| Green visa — investor or partner | Up to 5 years | Partnership agreement or investment contract, trade licence and competent-authority approval |
| Employment visa | 2 years | A job offer and work permit; free zones may issue longer terms under their own rules |
| Family sponsorship | Follows the sponsor | Sponsor’s salary of at least AED 4,000, or AED 3,000 with accommodation. Parents’ visas are granted annually |
The duration of the entrepreneur route is stated as 10 years by the immigration authorities and 5 years on the government summary portal. We confirm the position for your specific case rather than repeat either figure blindly.
How the process actually runs
Before any individual visa, the company needs an establishment card. Then, for each person: an entry permit valid 60 days and not renewable; a status change if the applicant is already in the country; the medical fitness test, mandatory for everyone over 18; Emirates ID biometrics; and issuance of the residence permit.
There is no passport sticker any more
The residence sticker was discontinued on 11 April 2022. The Emirates ID card now serves as proof of residence and the permit is issued electronically. Anyone still quoting you a price for “visa stamping in the passport” is describing a step that has not existed for four years. Note also the deadline that does bite: residency formalities must be completed within 60 days of entry, and overstaying costs AED 50 per day.
Establishment card
The establishment card is the company’s immigration file. Without it a company cannot sponsor anyone — no entry permits, no residence visas, no Emirates IDs. It is issued by the immigration authority (GDRFA in Dubai, ICP elsewhere), not by the free zone, although free-zone entities apply through their zone.
It is valid for one year and must be renewed against a valid trade licence with all fines settled. Renewal fees at ICP are AED 100 for the application and AED 100 for the annual renewal, with a late penalty of AED 100 per month up to AED 1,000 if renewal is more than 30 days overdue. Processing is quoted at two days by ICP and 48 hours by GDRFA Dubai.
You may see this called an “immigration card” or “e-channel card”. Those are market shorthand; the official term is establishment card.
Office solutions and visa quota
On the mainland the office is a legal requirement, and in Dubai the lease must be registered with Ejari. In a free zone a flexi-desk or serviced office usually suffices, subject to the zone’s insurance conditions.
The number of visas a company can sponsor is tied to its premises, and each free zone sets its own scale. DMCC, to take a published example, allocates up to three visas for a flexi-desk, four or five for a serviced office depending on size, and one visa per nine square metres of physical space; increases require full use of the existing quota and management approval. Other zones differ, so we check the specific scale before you commit to a package — getting this wrong means paying twice to move.
Banking
The bank assesses the beneficial owner, not the licence. Nationality, tax residence, source of funds, the geography of your counterparties and the currency of settlement drive the outcome, and the same licence in two different pairs of hands clears compliance with very different probability.
There is one published standard worth knowing. Under the Central Bank’s SME Market Conduct Regulation, banks are expected to have systems allowing a low-risk applicant with standard documentation to open an account within three business days, to disclose documentary requirements clearly, and to keep registers of account-opening requests and rejections. An account may be opened but cannot transact until due diligence — financial crime screening, risk assessment, sanctions checks — is complete, and funds received beforehand are blocked until it is.
What we do and do not promise
We assess the banking outlook for your specific profile before incorporation, prepare the business-model narrative that compliance teams actually read, and manage the process. We do not sell “company with a guaranteed bank account”, because no adviser controls a bank’s risk appetite. Minimum balances, capital expectations and timelines are each bank’s own commercial policy, not a published rule — treat anyone quoting them as universal facts with caution.
Accounting and compliance
This is where set-ups quietly go wrong, because the obligations start before there is any revenue and the penalties are fixed rather than proportionate.
Corporate tax registration
A company incorporated on or after 1 March 2024 must apply to register for corporate tax within three months of incorporation. Late registration carries an administrative penalty of AED 10,000 under Cabinet Decision No. 10 of 2024. There is a live remedy: the penalty is waived where the taxable person files its first tax return, or annual declaration if exempt, within seven months of the end of its first tax period rather than the usual nine.
The corporate tax return is due, and the tax payable, within nine months of the end of the tax period — so a year ending 31 December 2026 means filing and payment by the end of September 2027.
VAT
| Threshold or rule | |
|---|---|
| Standard rate | 5% |
| Mandatory registration | Taxable supplies and imports exceeded AED 375,000 in the previous 12 months, or are expected to exceed it in the next 30 days |
| Voluntary registration | AED 187,500, measured on supplies and imports or on taxable expenses |
| Filing period | Three calendar months as standard; the tax authority may assign monthly periods |
| Return and payment | By the 28th day after the end of the tax period, moving to the next business day if that falls on a weekend or holiday |
| Deregistration | Application within 20 business days of the obligation arising; final return and payment within 28 days of the effective date |
Audit — two separate requirements that are often confused
The first is company law. Article 27 of Federal Decree-Law No. 32 of 2021 requires every joint stock company and every limited liability company to appoint auditors and have its accounts audited annually. There is no revenue threshold. Accounting records must be kept at the head office for at least five years.
The second is tax. Ministerial Decision No. 84 of 2025, applying to tax periods beginning on or after 1 January 2025, requires audited financial statements from a taxable person with revenue above AED 50 million, and from every Qualifying Free Zone Person regardless of revenue. Tax groups must maintain audited special purpose financial statements — a new obligation. It replaced Ministerial Decision No. 82 of 2023, which still governs earlier periods.
The mistake this section exists to prevent
“Audit is only needed above AED 50 million” is wrong, and it is the most consequential error in this field. That threshold belongs to the corporate tax rules. A mainland LLC needs an annual audit under company law whatever its revenue, and a free-zone company claiming the 0% qualifying rate needs audited statements whatever its revenue. Free zones also impose their own deadlines — DMCC, for instance, requires audited statements within six months of the financial year end.
Beneficial ownership
Under Cabinet Decision No. 109 of 2023, in force since 16 November 2023, companies maintain registers of shareholders, beneficial owners and nominee directors. First disclosure is due within 60 days of registration, changes within 15 days, and responses to registrar requests within 14 days. Companies licensed in DIFC and ADGM run their own regimes.
What the first year looks like
| When | What has to happen |
|---|---|
| Before incorporation | Activity and structure chosen, banking outlook assessed, premises and visa quota matched to the plan |
| Weeks 1–3 | Name reservation, initial approval, memorandum, licence issue, establishment card |
| Weeks 3–6 | Entry permit, status change if needed, medical test, Emirates ID biometrics, residence permit issued electronically |
| In parallel | Bank account application, business-model narrative for compliance, signatories |
| Within 60 days of registration | Beneficial ownership disclosure |
| Within 3 months of incorporation | Corporate tax registration — AED 10,000 penalty if missed |
| On crossing AED 375,000 | Mandatory VAT registration; quarterly returns by the 28th thereafter |
| Annually | Trade licence and establishment card renewal, audited accounts where required, corporate tax return within 9 months of year end |
Frequently asked questions
Mainland or free zone?
How many visas can my company sponsor?
Do I still get a visa stamp in my passport?
How long do I have to complete the visa after arriving?
What is an establishment card and do I need one?
Which visa should I aim for?
When do I have to register for corporate tax?
When is the corporate tax return due?
When do I need to register for VAT?
Does my company need an audit?
Can you guarantee a bank account?
Can this be done remotely?
This page covers setting up in the UAE. If you are still deciding where to incorporate, compare it against Hong Kong, Singapore, Cyprus, Panama and the Seychelles on our corporate services page. For transactions and valuation, see transaction advisory and business valuation.
Let us scope your set-up
Tell us what the business does, who owns it and where you are tax resident. You will get a realistic plan, a three-year cost, and a straight answer on banking before you commit to anything.