Setting up a company in Dubai: pick the right structure, and don't lose three weeks

01Free zone, mainland or offshore: the real difference

The question is not which one is cheapest. It is who your clients are. If you sell to businesses or individuals located in the UAE, you need a mainland licence, or a distributor. If you sell abroad, or to other free zone companies, a free zone is enough and costs less.

Offshore is a special case, and we advise against it if you plan to live here: an offshore company gives no visa and allows no activity in the UAE. It exists to hold assets, not to trade.

Since 2021, 100% foreign ownership is possible on the mainland as well as in a free zone. The requirement to have an Emirati partner has disappeared for almost every activity — except those of strategic impact: defence, telecoms, banking and insurance, commercial agencies, Hajj and Umrah, fishing.

02What drives the budget, and why no serious website shows a price

This has to be said, because almost nobody says it: there is no public price list for a licence in Dubai. The Department of Economy and Tourism does not publish prices, it provides a calculator that works case by case, based on the activity, the legal form, the number of shareholders and the annual rent you declare. Each free zone sets its own fees, and most do not publish them.

So any website telling you that a Dubai company costs X dirhams has picked one specific case and presented it as a rule. Five things can triple the bill: the structure you choose, the number of activities listed on the licence, the number of visas, the floor area you occupy, and whether or not a lease registered with Ejari is required.

We give you your own figure, on your actual activity, before you commit — and we tell you what comes from us and what comes from an authority.

03The timelines, and the ones we cannot promise you

The official u.ae portal states approval in 14 working days for a free zone. JAFZA states 5 to 7 working days for an offshore. The Ejari is issued in 25 minutes at an approved centre, excluding waiting time.

For the mainland, be wary of anyone promising you an overall timeline. The official procedure has nine steps, and the real timeline depends on additional approvals tied to your activity. No government source guarantees an end-to-end timeline.

04What Oh My Desk does in this file

We provide the address and the Ejari — that is our job, and it is the piece that most often blocks a mainland file. We also provide the office or the desk, and the meeting room for your bank appointments.

The licence itself is filed by a licensed partner, who invoices you directly for their work. We take no hidden commission on their fee, and we tell you their price before you commit.