Offshore Company Registration in Dubai (JAFZA) - Business Starting & Setup

The Emirate of Dubai is the UAE’s second largest emirate and has a high reputation both within the UAE and in the world at large. The formation of offshore companies became possible in 2003 after special Regulations were adopted.

• Can be in English or Arabic.
• Must not be identical or similar to the name of an existing company.
• Must have an ending indicating the legal form.

Offshore company registration in Ajman includes the following steps:

1. Select a company name to be checked for availability and the structure of the company (directors, members, secretary);
2. Pay fees for services;
3. Provide the documents for directors/shareholders/secretary (documents must be translated into English, certification of translation by a notary or professional translator is not currently required, documents should not be older than 3 months);
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.

An offshore company cannot rent an office in the UAE and, unlike a resident company, cannot be used to obtain visas for its employees or directors.

Dubai offshore company can own real estate in this Emirate.

Сompanies 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 of any nationality.

Corporate directors can only be appointed out of those approved by the Registrar.

The company must also appoint a secretary (may be the same person as director).

The secretary can be an individual of any nationality.

Corporate secretaries can only be appointed out of those approved by the Registrar.

The shareholders can be individuals or legal entities (except foundations and trusts) irrespective of their country of nationality/incorporation, and the company is not required to have local shareholders.

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.

There is no minimum share capital requirement, but there is a requirement to pay the share capital upon issue of shares.

A company can have par value or no par value shares, and can issue different classes of shares.