Register a company in KEZAD

KEZAD does not state that set-up is fully remote. Its applications run through the ATLP online channel, and its checklists work with notarised and attested documents and powers of attorney, so we prepare the company and licence stage while you stay abroad and confirm with KEZAD whether anyone must appear in person. Residence visas do need you in the UAE: the entry-to-residency steps run within 60 days of entry and include a medical test and the Emirates ID application.

Our registration work starts from $2,900; with a UAE bank account set up, from $5,400. Zone fees come on top: KEZAD's start-up packages run from AED 9,450 for one year with a workstation and a one-visa quota, VAT included, and AED 14,550 with four visas. The tariff adds AED 1,000 for the establishment card and lists licence renewal "after 2 years" at AED 5,000 (AED 15,000 for general trading) without explaining how the first two years are billed, so we confirm that in your quote.

KEZAD gives two answers, and we do not choose one for you. Its current free zone benefits page says "No minimum capital requirements", and its checklists ask for no bank letter. The ADFZ Companies Registration Regulations of 2011, still on KEZAD's regulations page, say paid-up capital "shall never be less than AED 150,000" and that shares must be fully paid when allotted. No newer companies regulations are published. We ask KEZAD which rule its registrar applies to your company and get the answer in writing before you commit.

Corporate tax is 0% on taxable income up to AED 375,000 and 9% above, unless the company is a Qualifying Free Zone Person, which pays 0% on qualifying income and 9% on the rest. Manufacturing, processing and logistics services are qualifying activities; sales to individuals are excluded. The status needs substance in the zone, transfer-pricing compliance, audited accounts and non-qualifying revenue of no more than 5% of total revenue or AED 5 million, whichever is lower, and one failure costs it for that tax period and the next four. VAT is 5%, withholding tax is 0% and the UAE does not tax individuals' income.

Not on the free zone licence alone: KEZAD's licensing regulations bar running any business in the UAE outside the zone "solely on the basis of a Licence". KEZAD names two routes - distributors or local agents, or a dual licence from Abu Dhabi's Department of Economic Development that lets a free zone company work outside the zone without another office. The dual licence terms and fees are not on the KEZAD pages we rely on, so we confirm them for your activity. If most of your sales will be local, KEZAD's Domestic Economic Zone, with no restrictions on domestic sales, may be the better base. For a Qualifying Free Zone Person, income of a mainland branch is taxed at 9%.

KEZAD's start-up page lists three steps - choose the package, submit documents and payment, receive the licence - and advertises company set-up in 24 hours. The time you can lose comes before that, in notarising, attesting and translating foreign documents. After the licence, corporate tax registration is due within three months of incorporation and the FTA processes it within 20 business days. Visas and the bank account run on their own clocks, which we set out in your quote.

Under the 2011 regulations, yes: at least two directors, who must be individuals aged 18 or over and not bankrupt or disqualified, plus a company secretary. KEZAD's checklists also ask for the manager's documents. One shareholder, a person or a company, is enough. Since KEZAD has published no newer companies regulations, we confirm the officer rules together with the capital question before you sign anything.

ADFZ, as the regulations call the zone, sponsors your employees under a Personnel Sponsorship Agreement and may limit how many it sponsors. Start-up packages carry one to four visas and, KEZAD says, no visa deposits; otherwise the Employment Regulations call for a bank guarantee that ADFZ can waive. KEZAD's own fees include AED 1,000 for the establishment card, AED 450 for initial approval, AED 1,500 for employment residence and AED 300 for the ID card. Government fees, the medical test and Emirates ID costs are not in KEZAD's tariff.

KEZAD says so: its free zone benefits list includes "Designated Zone for VAT Exemption". KEZAD's areas are spread across Abu Dhabi, Al Ain and Al Dhafra, so we check your plot or unit against the federal list of designated zones (Cabinet Decision No. 59 of 2017, as amended) before you rely on it. Even inside a designated zone, only certain movements of goods fall outside VAT; services supplied there are subject to VAT. The same status decides whether distribution from KEZAD can count as a qualifying activity for corporate tax.

We prepare the application and support it; the bank decides. KEZAD's pages give no banking guidance, so we pick UAE banks or EMIs that fit your activity, ownership and expected turnover, build the KYC file - source of funds, contracts, business plan - and support the meeting in person or by video where the bank allows. Each bank sets its own criteria and timeline, and we tell you where the application stands.