A cleaning company in Dubai needs a trade license with a cleaning activity on it, and the activity you choose decides everything after it. General cleaning of offices, shops and residential buildings needs no approval from another authority. Exterior and specialised cleaning need Dubai Municipality's approval before the license is issued, and pest control needs the municipality's no-objection certificate first. Supplying maids to households is a different business again, licensed by the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE).
Which Cleaning License Do You Need?
The cleaning activities split into two groups, and the split is about approvals rather than price. Meydan Free Zone's activity list shows it clearly:
| Activity | What it covers | Approval before the license |
|---|---|---|
| General cleaning of buildings (8121) | Non-specialised cleaning of all types of buildings, offices, other business premises and multi-unit residential buildings | None |
| Exterior cleaning of buildings (8129.01) | Facades and the outside of buildings of all types | Dubai Municipality |
| Specialised cleaning for buildings (8129.02) | Specialist cleaning work beyond routine cleaning | Dubai Municipality |
| Other building and industrial cleaning (8129.00) | Industrial and other cleaning not covered above | Dubai Municipality |
The codes are Meydan's; a mainland company picks its activity from DET's list, and the same question applies there: does the work you will invoice for need another authority's sign-off? Choose the activity for the work you plan to sell in six months, not only the first contract. Adding exterior or specialised cleaning later is a license amendment, and it waits on the municipality's approval.
Work That Needs Dubai Municipality Before You Start
Pest control
Pest control is not an add-on to a cleaning license. Dubai Municipality's list of licensed pest control companies states that every pest control company intending to work in Dubai must first obtain a no-objection certificate from the Public Health Pest Control Section, and that the certificate is a prerequisite for the trade license. After that:
- Every member of staff must carry a Pest Control ID card issued by the section, showing they passed its qualification requirements.
- The section inspects licensed companies periodically: field work, staff, pesticide stores, vehicles, materials and equipment.
- The licensed list covers general pest control only. Fumigation, termite control and bird control are outside it.
- Companies on the list are grouped by qualified staff: more than 25 (group A), 11 to 25 (group B) and 1 to 10 (group C).
Water tank cleaning
Dubai's Food Code (section 2.13) requires every food establishment's water storage tanks to be cleaned and disinfected at least twice a year, "only by a cleaning company approved by the Food Control Department". Every restaurant, café and grocery must also keep a copy of its water tank cleaning contract on file for the inspector (Annex A). That makes approved tank cleaning steady, recurring work, but only for a company holding that approval.
Exterior and facade cleaning
Exterior cleaning sits in the group that needs Dubai Municipality's approval before the license, so plan its time into the setup rather than adding it after you have quoted a building.
Home Cleaning and Maid Services Are Licensed Differently
If your plan is to place maids, housekeepers or cleaners with households, that is domestic work, and it falls under Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2022 on domestic workers. Under that law, recruiting or temporarily employing domestic workers is only allowed with a license from MOHRE. A company whose own employees clean offices and buildings under contract is a different business from one that supplies workers to homes. Tell us which one you are building before the activity is chosen; it decides which authority licenses you.
Cleaning Company License Cost in Dubai
The government lines that can be read in Dubai's published fee schedule are below. The full license amount depends on the activity and appears on DET's payment voucher during the application.
| Item | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Trade name reservation | AED 200 | Resolution No. 13 of 2011, Schedule 1 |
| License issuance or renewal (the license line) | AED 600 | Resolution No. 13 of 2011, Schedule 1 |
| Establishment card (before any visa) | AED 200 | GDRFA Dubai |
| Meydan Free Zone license with company registration, from, per year | AED 12,500 | Meydan Free Zone |
| Fine for trading without a license | AED 5,000 | Resolution No. 13 of 2011, Schedule 2 |
Our Dubai mainland license package starts at AED 10,999. For a cleaning company, the larger costs usually come after the license:
- Office and Ejari. A mainland company needs a registered office, and its size is what the visa quota is worked out from.
- Visas for the team. Each worker is a separate file: entry permit, medical, Emirates ID.
- Approvals for specialised work, if you take exterior cleaning, tank cleaning or pest control.
- Equipment, transport and uniforms, and liability insurance, which building managers usually ask to see before signing.
Mainland or Free Zone for a Cleaning Company?
Cleaning is done at the client's premises, across the city, for businesses and buildings that are mostly on the mainland. A mainland license lets you invoice those clients directly and grow the team as the office grows. A free zone license costs less to start and suits a company that is still small or serves free zone clients; check that the zone's activity covers the work, and that you can invoice the clients you plan to win. The mainland business setup page sets out the difference in full.
How to Start a Cleaning Company in Dubai, Step by Step
- Decide what you will clean. Offices and buildings only, or exterior, tanks, pest control or homes as well. This decides the activity and the approvals.
- Choose mainland or a free zone, and the legal form.
- Reserve the trade name and get initial approval.
- Get Dubai Municipality's approval or no-objection certificate if the activity needs one. It comes before the license.
- Lease the office and register the Ejari, sized for the team you plan to hire.
- Pay the fees and receive the license.
- Open the establishment card, then the visas for the team.
- Register for tax when the thresholds below apply, and open the bank account.
How Many Visas Can a Cleaning Company Get?
On the mainland the visa quota follows the office space you lease, so the office is sized for the team you plan rather than the team you start with. In a free zone the package sets the number. Cleaning is a staff-heavy business, which is why the visa plan should be fixed before the office is signed.
VAT and Corporate Tax
VAT registration becomes mandatory once taxable supplies pass AED 375,000 a year and is voluntary from AED 187,500. Corporate tax is 9% on taxable profit above AED 375,000, and the company must register whatever its profit. Most cleaning contracts with businesses carry VAT once you are registered.
Related Activities
Two activities sit next to cleaning and are often the better fit: general maintenance, if the work includes repairs, and technical services, if it includes installation. The full cost of a mainland company, line by line, is in the Dubai mainland cost breakdown.
Getting Your Cleaning Company Licensed
We choose the activity with you, run the DET side and coordinate the Dubai Municipality approvals where the work needs them, then handle the establishment card and visas through our PRO services. Tell us what you will clean, for whom, and how many people you plan to hire, and you get a written quote.
Cleaning company questions
Dubai's published schedule sets AED 200 to reserve a trade name and AED 600 for the license line; DET's voucher gives the full amount during the application. Our mainland package starts at AED 10,999, and Meydan Free Zone starts at AED 12,500 a year. The office, visas and equipment usually cost more than the license.
Not for general cleaning of buildings, offices and residential blocks. Exterior cleaning and specialised or industrial cleaning need Dubai Municipality's approval before the license is issued, water tanks may only be cleaned by a company approved by its Food Control Department, and pest control needs its no-objection certificate.
Only with Dubai Municipality's no-objection certificate, which comes before the trade license, and with every technician holding the municipality's Pest Control ID card. Fumigation, termite control and bird control are outside the general pest control list.
Placing maids or housekeepers with households is domestic work under Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2022, and recruiting or temporarily employing domestic workers needs a license from MOHRE. A company whose own staff clean offices and buildings under contract is licensed as a cleaning company instead.
Mainland if your clients are offices, shops and buildings across Dubai, because you invoice them directly and the visa quota grows with your office. A free zone costs less to start and can suit a small team or free zone clients.
Conducting an economic activity without a license is fined AED 5,000 under Dubai's fee and fine schedule.
Sources
- Guide to starting a cleaning business, Meydan Free Zone: cleaning activity codes and which need Dubai Municipality approval. Read 25 October 2026.
- Approved Pest Control Companies, DM-PHSD-P3-FO122, Dubai Municipality Public Health Pest Control Section, July 2026: no-objection certificate, ID cards, inspections, scope and groups. Read 25 October 2026.
- Dubai Food Code, Dubai Municipality: water supply (2.13 g), pest control (4.3), documents and records (Annex A). Read 25 October 2026.
- Federal Decree-Law No. 9 of 2022 Concerning Domestic Workers, MOHRE (via u.ae): licensing of recruitment and temporary employment of domestic workers.
- Executive Council Resolution No. 13 of 2011, Dubai Legislation Portal: DED fee and fine schedule.
