Foreign investors can own a UAE company outright in most activities, and that fact is where most guides stop. The decisions that actually shape what you end up with are narrower and duller: which jurisdiction, what the licence lets you sell and to whom, whether you need residence, and which steps you personally have to be in the country for.
We set companies up for investors who are not here yet. This page is the map of those decisions, with links to the pages that price each one, rather than an argument for any particular answer.
The four decisions that actually matter
- Who your customers are. This settles mainland against free zone more reliably than any cost comparison, because a free zone company cannot invoice a UAE mainland customer directly. If your buyers are here, start at mainland setup; if they are overseas, compare the free zones. The trade-off in full is in mainland or free zone.
- What you will actually sell. The activity on the licence governs what you may invoice, which approvals you need, and sometimes who may own the company. Describing the business plainly beats picking an activity that sounds impressive.
- Whether you need residence. Owning a company and living here are different projects. The investor route and what it costs are set out in the investor and partner visa guide, and the longer-term options in the golden visa routes for business owners.
- How you will bank. This is the decision investors leave last and regret first, because the structure you choose in week one decides which banks will look at you in week ten. See what banks actually check.
Ownership, and the structure trap
Most activities now allow full foreign ownership, and the old requirement for a local partner holding 51% no longer applies across the board. A limited set of strategic-impact activities still requires Emirati participation, so it is worth confirming against your specific activity rather than assuming either way. We check it before you commit to anything.
The trap is the layer above. Investors often put the UAE company under an existing offshore holding company out of habit, and then find the quick banking routes closed: digital business accounts here generally require the business to be owned by individuals with no layered structures, and the Central Bank's guidance requires banks to trace ownership up the chain to every individual holding 25% or more. If the holding company earns its place, keep it and plan for a slower bank. If it is there because somebody suggested it, it may cost you months.
What you can do from abroad, and what you cannot
Most of a setup runs remotely: choosing the activity, reserving the name, filing the licence, and signing what needs signing with documents attested and translated at your end. Two things reliably need a body in the country.
- The residence visa. The medical examination and Emirates ID biometrics are done here, and the sequence around them is on the company visa page.
- The bank. Banks generally want somebody on the account who is resident, which is why the visa usually has to come before the account rather than after it.
Plan the trip around those two and the rest can happen while you are elsewhere. Documents issued in your own country need attesting before they are useful here, and translating after that rather than before: the order is on the translation page.
Tax, in one paragraph
Corporate tax is 9% on taxable profit above AED 375,000, and registration is required whether or not the company profits. VAT starts at AED 375,000 of taxable supplies, with voluntary registration from AED 187,500. A qualifying free zone company can hold 0% on qualifying income, which is a set of conditions rather than a postcode. Registration deadlines and the penalty for missing them are on the tax registration page. Thresholds are the Federal Tax Authority's, at tax.gov.ae.
What it costs to start
Licence packages start at AED 4,499 and the full list is on business packages. What moves an investor's real first-year total is rarely the licence: it is visas, premises and the add-ons nobody mentions at the quotation stage. The cost calculator prices our side and names what still has to come, and minimum investment to start a business in Dubai covers the question in more depth.
How we work with an investor
- A conversation about customers, not products. Who buys from you, and where they sit, decides mainland against free zone before anything else does.
- The activity is mapped to what the business actually does, then checked for ownership restrictions and for approvals from other authorities.
- The licence is filed, with the trade name reserved and the documents prepared so you can sign them from where you are.
- The visa plan is set around the trip you are willing to make, because the medical and the Emirates ID biometrics happen here.
- The bank is approached with a file built for the structure you actually have, and a shortlist that matches it.
- Tax registration is filed inside the window it is due, which opens at incorporation rather than at first revenue.
How long all of it takes depends on which step has a queue in front of it. The licence is rarely the slow part. The bank usually is, and the honest way to plan is to start it the week the licence issues rather than the month you need the account.
Investor FAQs
No. Invest in Dubai is the Dubai government's own licensing platform, and it is not connected to us. SwiftHub is a private business setup consultancy: we file with the authorities on your behalf and charge our own fee for doing it, which is published rather than quoted on request.
In most activities, yes, and in a free zone that has always been the case. A limited set of strategic-impact activities still requires Emirati participation, so the honest answer depends on the activity rather than on the emirate. Tell us what the business does and you get a straight answer before you pay anything.
No. Ownership does not require residency. Residency becomes relevant for other reasons: banking usually wants a resident signatory, and a residence visa gives you the Emirates ID that most administrative life here runs on.
The licence side, largely yes. The residence visa needs you here for the medical and the biometrics, and banks generally want a resident signatory, so a short trip is usually part of the plan. We map which steps need you before you book anything.
It follows your customers. Selling to UAE businesses and consumers points at mainland; selling abroad or online points at a free zone, usually more cheaply. The comparison, with the cases where each one is wrong, is in mainland or free zone in the UAE.
No. We set up and run companies, and property is a different route with different advisers. Where the two meet is the visa question, and that is covered in the investor and partner visa guide.
Where to start reading
If you are early in this: starting a business in Dubai as a foreigner is the long version of the whole process. If you have decided and want a figure, use the cost calculator. If you would rather describe the business to somebody and be told which route fits, that is what the form below is for.