Register a company in DIFC

Mostly. The application runs on the DIFC Client Portal, the Articles are signed by DocuSign, and passport copies of shareholders and directors are certified by a registered lawyer or notary, a chartered accountant or a bank manager, or checked through a vetted digital verification tool at DIFC's discretion. The trip comes with the visas: the medical test and the Emirates ID are done in the UAE. Banks may also ask for documents attested by a UAE embassy and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Our registration work starts from $4,900; with a UAE bank account set up, from $7,400. Zone fees come on top: an Innovation Licence is subsidised at $1,500 a year, with a flexi desk at $500 a month plus VAT in the first year, while a standard non-financial company pays $12,000 a year for its licence under the Operating Regulations, plus incorporation per DIFC's current fee table. A new Establishment Card is AED 2,370 plus an AED 2,500 PSA deposit, and the licence and the card renew every year.

Federal ones. Corporate tax is 0% on the first AED 375,000 of taxable income and 9% above. If it qualifies as a Qualifying Free Zone Person, the company pays 0% on qualifying income only, and keeps the status only while it has substance, follows transfer pricing rules, stays within the de minimis and prepares audited statements; one failure costs the status for that tax period and the next four. VAT is 5%, withholding tax 0%, and there is no personal income tax. The 50-year zero-tax promise in Dubai Law No. 5 of 2021 is without prejudice to federal tax.

DIFC's Innovation Licence guide gives about 5-7 working days for initial approval and 3-4 weeks for the full incorporation. For a standard company or a branch, we confirm timing in the quote. After the licence, a new Establishment Card takes 3 working days (1 day express) and an employment visa 7 working days (3 express). Corporate tax registration with the FTA is due within three months of incorporation under FTA Decision No. 3 of 2024; we check the FTA's 2026 decision on registration timelines before filing.

The bank decides. DIFC recommends banks without endorsing them, and its Innovation guide lists what banks ask for: an ownership chart, beneficial owner documents, the certificate of incorporation or Articles, a board resolution and the lease. Some documents may need attestation. We build the KYC file, pick UAE banks and EMIs that fit your profile and tell you where the application stands; the opening timeline is the bank's.

Not on a DIFC commercial licence. The Operating Regulations say a licence does not authorise financial services that require a DFSA licence, and the DFSA alone regulates financial and ancillary services in the centre. Regulated firms start with the DFSA, which this page does not cover. An SPV also cannot be used to set up a DIFC fund without DFSA authorisation.

Often not, and we will tell you so. The standard licence alone is $12,000 a year, before an office that must be in the DIFC; Meydan, for comparison, publishes a licence with a flexi-desk from AED 12,500. If your firm builds technology, the Innovation Licence changes the sums. DIFC earns its cost when you need its law and courts or work beside financial clients; an SPV is a separate calculation.

Not freely. Federal guidance says a free zone company reaches the mainland through a licensed mainland distributor or its own mainland branch or company. Dubai's 2025 mainland permit excludes financial firms licensed in the DIFC, and DIFC's pages say nothing about non-financial ones, so we confirm that route case by case. DIFC's 2020 dual-licence guidance lets qualifying firms run a Dubai mainland (DED-licensed) branch from DIFC premises, but only with a large DIFC office, such as 7,000 sq ft for a consultancy. For a QFZP, a mainland branch's income is taxed at 9%.

A subsidised commercial licence at $1,500 a year for technology and innovation firms. You must provide a technology, have a physical presence in the DIFC, stay out of financial services and not trade or sell physical products. The licence is issued only with an active lease; DIFC's guide starts you on a flexi desk at $500 a month plus VAT in the first year, with up to 4 visas on the first desk. DIFC's page gives the subsidy as 2 to 5 years and its guide as 2; from the third year the fee depends on staff numbers and reaches $12,000 above 10 FTEs. We check the current terms with DIFC before you commit.

When the company only holds assets. A Prescribed Company is limited to holding activity, may not employ anyone and, unless exempt, must appoint a corporate service provider, whose office becomes its registered office. DIFC charges $100 to incorporate and $1,000 a year for the licence; the provider's own fees are not published by DIFC. If the holding company needs staff or an office of its own, a Private Company fits better.