As we all know, Dubai is an important hub connecting Eastern Europe, West Asia and Africa, a major transportation hub for passengers and goods in the Middle East, the economic and financial center of the Middle East, one of the global international financial centers, and known as the "Trade Capital" of the Middle East and North Africa.
In recent years, due to the "Belt and Road" development policy, more and more enterprises choose to register companies in Dubai landing projects. In order to allow investors to better understand Dubai, the green circle organized the registration of Dubai company what are the advantages? What are the types of Dubai companies, how to choose? How to register a company in Dubai and other information, hoping to do a good job for more enterprises to bridge the platform.
What are the common types of companies in Dubai
Generally speaking, there are three main types of companies registered in Dubai:
1) FZE/FZCO, the Free Trade Zone (Free Zone) Corporation.
2) Non-FTA (MoEF) companies LLC/EST.
3) Offshore (offshore) companies.
I. Free Trade Zone Company
The FTZ Company allows foreign 100% to be independently owned, but the scope of its operations is limited to the FTZ and the UAE. The main features and advantages are as follows:
Special Economic Zones (SEZs) that are subject to their own regulatory frameworks;
Business Enterprise 100% Ownership;
100% Capital and profit repatriation;
Goods can be imported and exported without customs duty;
No tariffs are levied on business between FTZs;
Residence visas for shareholders and employees;
The FTZ is a business ecosystem that allows companies to come together around similar industries and themes to facilitate business.
There are currently more than 50 FTAs in the UAE, with each emirate having its own FTA, including more than 20 in Dubai. These FTZs are relatively independent and have their own registration process, fees, documentation requirements, list of business areas, and rules and regulations.
Generally most FTZs have the theme of their registered companies, such as Dubai Media City FTZ in Dubai is to the media industry mostly, CNN, Reuters, ITP, MBC, etc. are stationed here. Dubai Network City FTZ, to communications, high-tech industries as the main, stationed in the international brand IBM, Microsoft, Canon, HP, Philips, Google, Leader, Facebook, etc., stationed in the Chinese brand Tencent, Huawei, Fujian Longteng, Xiaomi, as well as China Telecom, and so on.
II. Non-FTA Companies
A non-FTA company is a company registered by a local person in Dubai.
A local UAE person must step in either as a stakeholder of not less than 51% to receive the annual premium, or as a local agent with no stake to receive a negotiated percentage of the annual share.
III. Offshore companies
An offshore company is a company that is registered in Dubai but does not physically operate in Dubai and the UAE as a whole, and is a "shell company" in Dubai.
An offshore company is 100% foreign owned but limited to operations outside the UAE and may hold freehold real estate in designated areas of Dubai. Dubai does not require an offshore company to have a physical office in the UAE. However, opening an offshore company in Dubai can be difficult due to the lack of a physical operation and a physical office.
Offshore companies are generally used for corporate structuring or global tax planning, and offshore companies are not eligible for visas.
If you do not actually operate your business in Dubai, investors generally register an offshore company to save on tax costs through the tax incentives offered by the offshore jurisdictions. If you want to operate in Dubai, you can first combine your own situation and choose the type of Dubai company that is suitable for the development of your business. All business activities in Dubai need to be approved by the government, permits and licenses. All business activities in Dubai require government approvals, permits and licenses. Therefore, after the registration of a Dubai company, you will need to apply for permits and licenses before you can start your business in the country.
Dubai Company License Options
Generally, Dubai can offer a wide range of business licenses and business activity scopes to meet the needs of companies of all sizes and industry sector solutions:
01-Professional Services License
For businesses that provide professional advice and many types of services, such as technology, lifestyle and similar types of services.
02-Trading License
For enterprises engaged in the import, export, distribution and storage of specified goods.
03-Industrial Business License
Applicable to enterprises engaged in the importation of raw materials, manufacturing, processing, packaging and exportation of specific products.
04-Branch
Foreign companies can also register their branches in Dubai.
What are the different company forms for FTZ companies, non-FTZ companies and offshore companies?
I. Types of Non-FTA Companies
1. LLC
A company with the suffix LLC is a Dubai registered company with limited liability and is locally owned in Dubai. Even if the company is invested by a foreigner, it is necessary to find a local person as a guarantee, the company in the legal sense belongs to the local insurer, the insurer accounts for at least 51% of the company's shares.
A Dubai Limited Liability Company is a company formed by 2 to 50 partners whose obligations to the company depend on their respective shares in the capital of the company. The partners' shares are non-negotiable and the UAE of Dubai requires a minimum of Dh300,000 as proof of capital, which is injected at the time of incorporation of the company in a local bank with a certificate of deposit issued by the bank.
2. EST
EST company, Sole establishment is a sole proprietorship company, is a local guarantor for the registered company, the contributing company 100% shares of the company, suitable for the opening of physical offices or stores in Dubai, large companies, the registered company must hold 100% shareholding, the company to expand the needs of the company.
Types of FTZ Companies
1. FZCO Dubai Free Trade Zone Company
Companies with the suffix FZCO, FZE are joint ventures and sole proprietorships registered in JAFZA (including the Free Trade Zone) in Jebel Ali Free Trade Zone in Dubai, such companies do not require local guarantees and are wholly owned by the investor and enjoy all the preferential policies of zero taxation in the Free Trade Zone.
FZCO is a joint venture company in Dubai's Jebel Ali Free Trade Zone, generally consisting of two to five shareholders, who can be natural persons or corporate enterprises, with a minimum capital contribution of 100,000 dirhams per shareholder and a registered capital of 500,000 dirhams.
It is proposed to register FZCO FTZs so that applicant companies can apply for employee and employer long-term work labels as well as open local bank accounts in Dubai.
2. FZE Dubai Free Trade Zone Co.
It is a type of sole proprietorship in the Jebel Ali Free Trade Zone in Dubai, consisting of only one shareholder, who can be a natural person or a corporate entity with a registered capital of Dh1 million.
III. Types of offshore companies and foreign holding companies
1. Emirates Offshore Company
A UAE offshore company is a company that does not conduct its substantive business in the UAE where it is incorporated. Some countries and regions of the world (mostly island states) have developed and nurtured some particularly liberal economic zones by legal means, which are generally known as offshore zones, and the term offshore company refers to a limited liability company or a company limited by shares formed in an offshore zone.
2. UAE Offshore Holding Company
A UAE offshore company is a company formed in the UAE as opposed to a domestic company. A domestic company is one that is incorporated in the UAE under the laws of that country. Accordingly, a company incorporated in a foreign country under the laws of that country is generally referred to as an offshore company.
Foreigners registering companies in Dubai are actually more likely to suggest registering a FTZ company. It is also relatively easy and quick to register an FTZ company, with almost no restrictions on industry and easy to open a bank account.
What are the advantages of registering a Dubai FTZ company?
I. Tax exemptions
All companies in the FTZ are exempted from corporate income tax for 50 years; workers in factories in the FTZ are exempted from personal income tax.
There is no tariff on the free entry and exit of goods, and no tariff on the processing and manufacturing processes. In other words, not only are goods imported and exported free of tariffs, but also machinery, equipment, spare parts and necessities required for their production are imported free of tariffs.
Businesses that are not locally generated in Dubai are exempted from value-added tax (VAT), which is a principle of "territoriality" that is also practiced in Hong Kong and Singapore.
If you compare Dubai's tax policy with that of Hong Kong and Singapore, you will find that Hong Kong and Singapore are low enough, but Dubai is even lower.
II. No foreign exchange control
Dubai companies can remit their profits and capital out of the country at any time and the currency is freely convertible without any foreign exchange restrictions.
The UAE's currency, the dirham, is pegged to the US dollar, as is the Hong Kong dollar, and the value of the currency is stable, open and transparent, giving businesses a greater sense of security.
III. Registration Brochure
1) Controlled by a foreigner 100%, no local insurer is required and there is no nationality restriction;
(2) There is no need to pay the registered capital and no capital verification is required;
(3) The scope of operation can cover the whole industry.
4) The registration procedures and formalities are also very convenient and are all green channels.
IV. Policy stabilization
The UAE is diplomatically neutral and determined to avoid disputes. The UAE has been able to normalize relations with Israel, and Dubai has become a hub for Russian tycoons during the Russian-Ukrainian war. By refusing to take sides on the international stage, and by making peace, Dubai has been able to bring together a diverse group of people from over 200 countries.
Internally, Dubai has a near-zero crime rate, strong policy continuity, and rarely makes drastic changes to the policies it puts in place, which provides a stable environment for doing business.
External neutrality and internal stability are attractive to businessmen.
V. Well-located and well-established infrastructure
Dubai's central location at the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa and its time zone provide easy access to many of the world's markets. At the same time, significant investment in transportation, telecommunications and industrial infrastructure has made it an attractive investment destination regionally and globally.
A free and open economy with no foreign exchange controls, no trade quotas or barriers, and a streamlined company set-up process have made Dubai a regional and global business center.
Dubai Company Registration Process
The process of registering a company in Dubai:
1. Determine the type of company to be registered, and whether the company will be located in a free trade zone or a non-free trade zone;
2, to confirm the scope of business, there are more than 2100 legal business in Dubai, generally divided into the following three types: industry, trade, services;
3、Provide the company name for verification;
4. Fill in all relevant application forms;
5. Scanned passports of shareholders and directors;
6、After completing all the above steps, the agent will take all the above documents to the Ministry of Economic Affairs to submit the application and make the payment.
7、Registration is completed, the registration information by mail.
Approximate timetable:
●-Trade Name and License: 2 to 3 working days Company Name and License: 2-3 working days
●-Immigration card: 1 working day Immigration card: 1-3 working days
●-Labour card: 2 to 3 working days Labor card: 2-3 working days
●-Partner visa: 10 working days Shareholder visa: 10 working days
●-Employee visa: 20 working days 員工簽證：20個工作日
●-Bank account opening:25 working days Bank account opening:25 working days
After registering your company in Dubai, you will need to open a bank account and undergo an annual audit, which we will introduce to you in the next issue.
About Dubai company, if you want to know more details, welcome to consult the green circle of the lady, we have a mature and professional team, to provide you with a one-stop solution for Dubai company registration.
Green Circle is a Middle East tax expert with first-hand tax resources in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, a clear price advantage, and an industry leader in time efficiency and service, and is a benchmark enterprise for one-stop Middle East tax services.
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