Company Registration in Dubai Internet City Free Zone - Business Starting & Setup

The Emirate of Dubai is located on the Arabian Peninsula, in the south of the Persian Gulf. Among the seven emirates that make up the UAE, it is the most populated one and second largest after Abu Dhabi. Dubai has more than 20 free zones.

The Dubai Internet City (DIC) is the North Africa’s and Middle East’s biggest information and communication technologies (ICT) centre. Since 2000 it has successfully established a thriving ecosystem for technology-related entities and was one of the pioneers in embracing the vision of Dubai as a knowledge-based economy. The DIC is home to more than 1 600 companies, including several ones from the Forbes top lists and most dynamic and successful technological SMEs and startups that include all elements of the ICT value chain.

• Can use Latin characters.
• Must not be identical or similar to the name of an existing company.
• Must have an ending indicating the legal form (“FZE”).

Company registration in Dubai Internet City Free Zone includes the following steps:

1. Select a company name to be checked for availability (at least 2 names), the structure of the company (directors, members, manager) and type of licence (Trade, Service, Industrial, For educational services);
2. Pay fees for services;
3. Provide the documents for directors / shareholders / attorneys (either originals or notarized copies);
4. Prepare and submit a set of documents for company registration, get the documents signed by the officers and shareholders of the company;
5. Receive the certificate of registration, articles and seal in the specified address.

The UAE does not have public company registries that would contain details of shareholders or directors. Information about free zone companies can only be obtained at the request of a local court.

The register of shareholders and directors of the company is not accessible to third parties.

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

DIC offers various office packages depending on the needs of clients in terms of type and number of licences, number of visas, the need for substance and placement in the Free Zone: from smart desk (a separate workstation in first-class business centres) to a proper office.

Companies are required to have a common seal.

The redomiciliation of companies either to or from the UAE is permitted.

The director can be an individual. There are no requirements as to the residence of director.

The minimum number of directors is 1, the maximum is 5.

Details of directors are not accessible to public.

The minimum number of members/shareholders in a company is 1, the maximum is 7. Both individuals and legal entities can be shareholders. There are no residence requirements.

DIC does not require a company to necessarily have a local shareholder in its structure.

Details of shareholders are not accessible to public.

The manager can be an individual. There are no requirements as to the residence of manager.

The maximum number of managers is 1; can be the same person as director.

Details of the manager are not accessible to public.

Despite that many jurisdictions consider creating a public register of beneficial owners, the UAE does not have one yet. This means that there is no open access to the beneficial ownership information. It is stored by a service provider, namely a company registration agent, trustees, lawyers, accountants and other professionals, subject to strict confidentiality. Information about the beneficial owner can only be disclosed to regulatory authorities (for example, during inspections for its availability) or by court order.

A company can only issue one class of shares of equal par value. Bearer shares are not permitted.

The capital can be denominated in UAE Dirhams (AED) only. The minimum capital is AED 10 000, a higher share capital can be required for certain business activities.

To register a company in DIC, it is necessary to deposit the share capital into a trust account of the regulator (Dubai Development Authority); after the company opens its account, the share capital will be transferred from the regulator’s trust account to the account of the company.