Free Zone Company Registration in IFZA Dubai, UAE. Service offer

The company registration in IFZA Dubai includes the following steps:

1) Selecting:

• company name to be checked for availability (at least three names), which name:

1. must be in English;
2. must not be identical or similar to the name of an existing company;
3. must not be contrary to public order in the UAE;
4. must end with an indication of a legal form (“FZC”).

• company structure (director, manager, secretary, shareholder, and attorney);
• activity and geography of business;
• type of licence and type of office in IFZA Dubai.

In IFZA Dubai, companies can have the following types of licences:

1. Commercial licence – allows the holder to engage in the trading of goods, including import, storage, warehousing, supply and export of permitted goods.
2. Professional licence – allows the holder to provide the type of services specified in the licence (for example, business consulting, marketing consulting, insurance and others).
3. Industrial licence – allows the holder to conduct activities related to the production of goods, including import of raw materials, processing, production, assembly, packaging and export of finished goods.

2) Paying fees for services

3) Providing documents for directors / managers / secretaries / shareholders / attorneys:

• colour copy of the internal passport with a page containing an address stamp;
• colour copy of the international passport;
• proof of address (unless the internal passport contains an address stamp);
• copy of visa / UAE entry stamp;
• scanned copy of a 3.5 x 4.5 photo against a white background (the hair should not cover the face, no jewellery or accessories).

The shareholders will need to sign a Client Questionnaire Form for completing the compliance procedure and a Contract for administration.

A business plan may also be required to register a company for certain types of business.

4) Preparing a package of documents for company registration, having the documents signed by the company’s officers and shareholders.

5) Submitting the company registration application

The following documents are issued upon registration of the company:

• Certificate of Incorporation,
• Articles of Association,
• Share Certificates,
• Licence to conduct business (generally valid for 1 year),
• Registers of directors and shareholders,
• Office lease agreement.

A company seal is also issued.

The registration of a new company takes approximately 10 days.

The UAE does not have such a concept as a residence permit. The UAE migration rules require the issuance of residence visas which in practice are similar to a residence permit.

A residence visa can be obtained on the following grounds:

1. based on owning a UAE onshore company – investor visa;
2. by making an employment contract with a UAE onshore company – work visa.

The number of residence visas depends on the business package chosen during the registration of a company.

A visa is normally issued for 2 years. Upon expiration, a visa can be renewed.

The application for residence visas includes the following steps (a visa can only be applied for after the registration of a company):

1. Opening an Establishment Card (the migration file of the company) – 3 - 5 days. This document is necessary for the company to be able to apply for residence visas in the future.

2. Submitting documents for a residence visa and obtaining an Entry Permit (permission to enter the country) – 5 - 7 days.

To obtain a residence visa, an individual must enter the UAE with an Entry Permit.

If at the time of issuing of Entry Permit the applicant is already in the UAE, then in order to complete the issuance of a residence visa without leaving and re-entering the country, it is necessary to change the status of the visa. The service of changing the status of a visa is provided upon request and is subject to additional charges.

3. Visiting the UAE to obtain a residence visa – in most cases, a visa can be obtained within 5 business days.

The applicant needs to:

• undergo a medical examination (blood test and chest X-ray);
• submit biometric data (retina and fingerprints scan).

After receiving a passport with a residence visa inserted into it, one can leave the country.

4. Obtaining a resident ID-card - ID Emirates

The card is issued a few days after the issuance of a visa. Personal presence is not required to receive it.

The fees for obtaining a residence visa in IFZA start from USD 2 500. Please contact your consultant for more details on the application.

IFZA companies must also have a secretary that can be either an individual or a legal entity. One person can simultaneously act as shareholder, director, secretary, manager and authorized representative of the company.

IFZA has no minimum share capital requirement.

During the registration, the company and the Free Zone authority sign an office lease agreement; the address of this office is considered the official registered office address of the company.

IFZA offers various office packages depending on the needs of clients in terms of the type and number of licences, number of visas, the need for substance and placement in the Free Zone: from flexi desk and flexi office (a separate room or cell in the open plan space in first-class business centres) to warehouses and land plots.

The company must annually renew the licence, by paying a relevant fee, and the lease agreement.

Companies registered in UAE free zones are exempt from capital gains tax, property tax and other taxes, except corporate tax and VAT.

A federal corporate tax was introduced in the UAE on 1 June 2023. Free zone companies may be subject to both the standard rate of corporate tax (9%) and a zero rate. The application of a particular rate depends on a number of factors such as the company’s income, the types of its activities (whether they are excluded or qualifying, or not), counterparties, whether the company maintains adequate economic substance in the UAE, and other aspects.

From 1 January 2018, the UAE introduced a Value Added Tax.

VAT as a general consumption tax applies to all transactions with goods and services, unless such transaction is exempted or taxed at 0% rate.

The standard VAT rate in the UAE is 5%.

There is no obligation to register for VAT unless the sales turnover within the country exceeds the registration threshold, which is AED 375 000 (~ USD 100 000) in the UAE.

Registration for VAT is required in the following cases:

• there is reason to believe that the taxable turnover in the next 30 days will exceed the registration threshold (for example, a contract has been made);
• at the end of the month, the taxable turnover for the previous 12 months actually exceeded the registration threshold;
• the company receives services to be included in the return using the reverse charge method, in excess of the registration threshold.

Registration with the UAE Federal Tax Administration and allocation of the company’s Tax Reference Number (TRN) takes 20 business days, on average.

Upon registration with the Federal Tax Administration and allocation of the VAT number, a company must prepare and file a quarterly (or monthly in the case of an annual turnover exceeding AED 150 000 000 (~ USD 40 830 900)) VAT return and pay the resulting VAT within 28 days of the VAT period end.

Every company registered in IFZA must keep accounting records sufficient to confirm its financial position and reflecting up-to-date information about the assets and liabilities of the company.

There is no requirement for an audit or submission of financial statements to state authorities.

Assistance with opening corporate and personal bank accounts, including[6]:

[1] VAT of 5% is applied.

[2] The cost of the package may vary depending on the number of shareholders, type of licence, and size of office (the office size and the type of licence dictate how many residence visas a company can have).

[3] The description of the account opening stages and the conditions for charging an additional success fee can be found below, in the Fees section.

[4] VAT of 5% is applied.

[5] The cost of the package may vary depending on the number of shareholders, type of licence, and size of office (the office size and the type of licence dictate how many residence visas a company can have).

[6] For more details on how fees for account opening assistance are charged, please contact your GSL consultant.

[7] The fees for preparing financial statements and conducting an audit are charged based on the time spent at hourly rates ranging from USD 100 to USD 400, depending on the type of work and qualification of a specialist involved, but are not less than USD 2 200 – fees for audited financial statements with a minimum number of transactions.