A typing center or document clearing business needs a trade licence carrying the right activity. Typing, photocopying, scanning and printing sit under Typing & Photocopying Services (code 8219.95 at Meydan Free Zone). Preparing, submitting and following up clients' documents with government bodies sits under Documents Clearing Services (8299.85 at Meydan, 8299.12 at SPC Free Zone), which SPC says needs no third-party approval. Neither covers legal advice. On the mainland, DET's fee tool gives AED 8,000 for a sole establishment or AED 14,000 for a single-owner LLC, plus 5% of the office rent; in free zones, SPC's licences start at AED 5,750 and Meydan's at AED 12,500. Through us, document clearing can be the activity on a RAKEZ licence with residence visas, from AED 6,499 with one visa.
Below: which activity you need, what a clearing licence lets you do and what it doesn't, mainland against free zone, the costs, the steps and seven common questions.
Which Activity You Need
| What the business does | Activity | Outside approval |
|---|---|---|
| Typing, photocopying, scanning, printing and clerical support | Typing & Photocopying Services (8219.95 at Meydan) | None: Meydan says no specialist permit applies |
| Preparing, submitting and following up clients' documents with government bodies, including through their portals | Documents Clearing Services (8299.85 at Meydan, 8299.12 at SPC) | None: SPC says it needs no third-party approval |
| Advising clients on the law | Not covered by either | Legal consultancy is licensed separately, as our consulting guide explains |
Most typing centers carry both activities. Meydan notes that operators bundle typing and copying with visa applications, Emirates ID renewals, attestations and other government submissions, which is where most of the work is.
What a Documents Clearing Licence Lets You Do
Meydan describes the activity as helping individuals and companies process, submit and follow up official documents with government and regulatory bodies, from company formation and visa renewals to Emirates ID applications and licence submissions. SPC's description is the same work: preparing, validating and submitting permits, licences and contracts for clearance, as an intermediary with government entities.
- It is administrative, not legal. Meydan is explicit that the activity does not permit legal advice or consultancy; a client who needs a document interpreted goes to a licensed legal professional.
- It excludes transcription and captioning, which SPC lists as outside the activity.
- Light compliance: SPC says economic substance filing and anti-money-laundering obligations do not apply to it.
Mainland or Free Zone
Where your customers come from decides it. Meydan points out that a mainland licence needs commercial space on a registered Ejari tenancy, while a free zone licence can run from a flexi-desk or a business centre; a typing center with walk-in customers therefore needs a street-level mainland unit, while a clearing office that works for companies online can sit in a free zone. Meydan puts the time to licence at 3 to 7 working days in a free zone and 2 to 4 weeks on the mainland.
On the mainland, Meydan notes that foreign owners can hold 100% of the company since the 2021 changes to the Commercial Companies Law; DET's own tool adds that a foreign owner of a sole establishment needs a local service agent, at a privately agreed fee, while a single-owner LLC needs a manager. What a business license costs sets DET's figures beside every zone's own price.
What It Costs
| Route | Price |
|---|---|
| Dubai mainland (DET), normal licence | AED 8,000 sole establishment or AED 14,000 LLC, plus 5% of the annual rent |
| SPC Free Zone licence | From AED 5,750, with an instant licence and five activity groups |
| Meydan Free Zone licence | From AED 12,500 |
| RAKEZ through us, with document clearing as the activity | One visa from AED 6,499, four from AED 11,500, eight from AED 21,999 |
On our RAKEZ packages, health insurance from AED 500, WPI at AED 300 and visa typing at AED 200 are charged for each visa on top. Staff need the company's establishment card and their own visas, and the employment visa cost guide has every government line for a first hire. VAT registration becomes mandatory once taxable supplies pass AED 375,000 a year.
How to Open a Typing Center, Step by Step
- Choose the activities: Typing & Photocopying Services, Documents Clearing Services, or both.
- Choose the mainland or a free zone, by whether customers walk in or work with you remotely.
- Reserve a trade name and apply through Invest in Dubai or the free zone's portal; DET issues a normal licence in ten minutes once the application is complete.
- Secure the premises: a registered Ejari tenancy on the mainland, or a flexi-desk or business centre in a free zone.
- Get the establishment card and staff visas, within the company's visa quota.
- Register for corporate tax, and for VAT once you pass the threshold; we file both through tax and VAT registration.
Typing Centers and Clearing Offices: Working With Us
We set up typing centers and clearing offices on the mainland or in a free zone, and we also work with typing centers and clearing offices that bring us their own clients' company setups and visas, through our PRO services and RAKEZ packages. Tell us which side you are on, and we will put the licence, the visas and every fee in writing. Book a free consultation.
Typing center licence questions
On the mainland, DET's fee tool gives AED 8,000 for a sole establishment or AED 14,000 for a single-owner LLC, plus 5% of the annual rent of the shop. In free zones, SPC's licences start at AED 5,750 and Meydan's at AED 12,500; through us, a RAKEZ licence with one residence visa starts at AED 6,499.
In five steps. Choose the activities (Typing & Photocopying Services, Documents Clearing Services or both); choose the mainland for walk-in customers or a free zone for remote work; reserve a trade name and apply through Invest in Dubai or the zone; lease the premises; then get the establishment card, staff visas and tax registration.
Preparing, submitting and following up official documents with government bodies for individuals and companies: company formation papers, visa renewals, Emirates ID applications, permits and licences. It is administrative work, licensed as Documents Clearing Services, and it does not include legal advice.
Not beyond the licence itself, according to SPC Free Zone, which says the activity needs no third-party approval and that economic substance and anti-money-laundering obligations do not apply to it.
No. Meydan Free Zone says the activity does not permit legal advice or legal consultancy; legal consultancy needs its own licence from Dubai's Legal Affairs Department.
Yes. Meydan notes 100% foreign ownership on the mainland since the 2021 Commercial Companies Law changes, and free zones allow full ownership. On the mainland, a foreign-owned sole establishment needs a local service agent; a single-owner LLC needs a manager instead.
A clearing or typing business that serves clients remotely can run from a free zone flexi-desk or business centre. A shop with walk-in customers needs street premises, which is a mainland licence with a registered Ejari tenancy.
Sources
- Meydan Free Zone: Documents Clearing Services licence: the activity code, scope, the limit on legal advice, mainland against free zone and timings. Read 3 November 2026.
- Meydan Free Zone: Typing & Photocopying Services licence: the activity code, scope, premises and ownership. Read 3 November 2026.
- SPC Free Zone: Document clearance services: the activity code, scope, exclusions and compliance. Read 3 November 2026.
- Invest in Dubai: Request to issue a trade licence: DET's licence types and timings. Read 3 November 2026.
- DET: Business Set-Up Recommendations, run for one foreign owner: the mainland licence fees. Read 27 October 2026.
