ADGM company formation from AED 6,978 in ADGM fees
ADGM company formation with us: we register your holding SPV in Abu Dhabi for AED 6,978 in ADGM fees, a licensed company from AED 20,199. Our packages from AED 2,150.
ADGM Abu Dhabi
- AED 6,978 ADGM's fees to register a holding SPV
- AED 20,199 To register a non-financial company
- 10 Business days for ADGM to approve a filing
What ADGM is and who runs it
ADGM stands for Abu Dhabi Global Market.
2015The financial free zone of Abu Dhabi
ADGM is the international financial centre and financial free zone of the capital, open since October 2015. It began on Al Maryah Island and has since taken in Al Reem Island: 14.38 million square metres in all. A private company here needs one shareholder and one director, both of any nationality, and no minimum share capital. The founder owns 100% of it.
3 bodiesRegistration, regulator and courts
ADGM is run by 3 bodies. The Registration Authority registers and licenses every company. The Financial Services Regulatory Authority, the FSRA, authorises and supervises financial firms. The ADGM Courts hear disputes in English. English common law applies directly to your contracts and to your shareholders' agreement.
At mid-2026 ADGM counted 13,974 active licenses and 3,986 operating companies.
Who should consider setting up a company in ADGM, and who should pick another zone
An SPV holds the shares, real estate and intellectual property of a family or a group apart from the trading business. A foundation or a family office manages the family's wealth under common law.
190 fund and asset managers work from ADGM. A financial firm also needs the FSRA's licence; we register the company once that is in hand.
The FSRA authorises payment firms, exchanges and custodians of virtual assets, and lets new models run first in its RegLab, a supervised test environment.
A startup with its own technology product takes the tech startup license: AED 5,509 a year for 3 years, with 3 visas for each desk. Hub71, the tech hub of Abu Dhabi, confirms eligibility before the application.
A non-financial license covers professional and business services, a regional head office or a group treasury.
A business that sells goods across the emirate belongs on the mainland: see business setup in Abu Dhabi. A software or clean-technology company on a small budget fits Masdar City Free Zone, where packages start at AED 7,000. A manufacturer or a distributor takes KEZAD free zone beside Khalifa Port.
What clients write about Legarithm
4.8 on Google from 26 reviews.
We had long been looking for someone to register a company in the UAE and help with the account. With Legarithm it went as it should: a clear process, help with the documents, no red tape.
Everything is well coordinated and clear. Half an hour of the first meeting was more useful than two weeks of trying to work it out myself.
Which legal form an ADGM company takes
- Private company limited by shares
- The form most founders take: corporate directors may sit alongside the one individual director, a secretary is optional, and accounts are filed every year.
- Restricted scope company
- A private company for holding structures that shows less on the public register and files no accounts unless the Registrar asks for them.
- Special purpose vehicle
- A private company that owns assets and runs no business of its own. It shows a link to the UAE or the Gulf, such as an owner or assets here, and takes its registered office from a licensed company service provider.
- LLP and limited partnership
- Partnership forms that professional firms and investment funds use.
- Branch
- A company from another jurisdiction registers a branch and works in ADGM under its own name, with no new legal entity.
- Foundation
- A foundation owns assets in its own name for a family or for a stated purpose. ADGM charges AED 3,673 for the application and AED 735 a year after that.
ADGM license fees by category
The license category follows what the company does, and it sets the fee. The rates are in force since 1 January 2025.
| Category | What it covers | To register | License each year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Financial | Banks, fund managers, brokers, payment and virtual-asset firms with an FSRA permission | AED 61,331 | AED 59,495 |
| Non-financial | Consulting, professional services, head offices, holding companies | AED 20,199 | AED 18,363 |
| Retail | Shops, restaurants and services on the two islands | AED 9,181 | AED 7,345 |
| Tech startup | A technology product, once Hub71 confirms eligibility | AED 5,509 | AED 5,509, for 3 years |
| SPV | Passive holding of shares and other assets | AED 6,978 | AED 4,040 |
AED 1,102Data protection a year, and two more small fees
Data protection registration costs AED 1,102 and renews for AED 1,102 every year. A name reservation costs AED 735 and holds the name for 30 days. The status of a restricted scope company adds AED 11,385. A financial firm also pays the FSRA's own application and supervision fees.
What ADGM company formation costs in the first year
The registration, license and data protection lines and the establishment card are ADGM's own fees for the two commonest cases, paid to ADGM at cost. The visa, the accounting and our fee are ours, and our fee is one of three packages.
SPV: name, registration, license and data protection
AED 6,978Get a quote- SPV license renewal, from the second year
- AED 4,040
- Non-financial company: registration and first license
- AED 20,199
- Non-financial license renewal, a year
- AED 18,363
- Data protection renewal, a year
- AED 1,102
- Establishment card, before the first visa
- AED 1,127
- Residence visa, our fee on top of ADGM's
- from AED 1,450
- Accounting, a month
- from AED 1,300
- Our incorporation, in three packages
- from AED 2,150
Office and residence visas in ADGM
A registered office on the islands
Every ADGM company keeps its registered office on Al Maryah Island or Al Reem Island. An operating company leases a desk or an office, which we find, and an SPV uses the address of its company service provider.
Visas by desk or by floor area
A desk in a business centre carries 2 visas, or 3 for a technology company. A leased office carries 1 visa for every 8 square metres, and a shop 1 for every 6.
Card in 5 working days, visa in 7
ADGM issues the establishment card, the company's immigration file, in 5 working days and the e-channels account in 1. The Registration Authority then issues each work permit and 2-year visa in 7 working days, and the holder sponsors a spouse and children.
ADGM company setup, step by step with the Registration Authority
- 1–3 days1
Legal form and license category
You tell us what the company will hold or do. We choose the form and the category, and for an SPV we document its link to the UAE.
- same day2
Name reservation
We reserve the name with the Registration Authority for AED 735. The reservation holds for 30 days.
- 2–5 days3
Application in the online registry
You upload passports and sign the resolutions in your account. We file the application, the articles and a short business plan in ADGM's online registry.
- 10 business days4
Approval and license
ADGM expects to approve a complete application within 10 business days. It then issues the certificate of incorporation and the commercial license.
- 1 to 3 weeks later5
Lease, establishment card and visas
We register the lease, obtain the establishment card and the e-channels account, then file the work permits and visas.
- 2 to 4 weeks6
Tax registration and bank account
We register the company with the Federal Tax Authority and send the application for a business bank account in the UAE to a bank that already works with ADGM companies.
ADGM or DIFC: the two financial centres side by side
| Compared | ADGM | DIFC |
|---|---|---|
| Where | Abu Dhabi, Al Maryah and Al Reem islands | Central Dubai |
| Financial regulator | FSRA | DFSA |
| Law and courts | English common law applied directly, ADGM Courts | Its own civil and commercial laws, DIFC Courts |
| Non-financial company, first year | AED 20,199 | AED 29,380 to incorporate plus AED 44,070 for the license |
| License renewal, a year | AED 18,363 | AED 44,070 |
| Startup license, a year | AED 5,509 for 3 years | AED 5,509 for 2 years |
| Holding vehicle | SPV, AED 6,978 to register | Prescribed company |
| Data protection fee | AED 1,102 a year | AED 2,754 |
| Time to a non-financial license | 10 business days from filing | 2 to 4 weeks |
Documents for ADGM company setup
Documents
Each shareholder and director
- Passport copy, valid for 6 months or more
- Recent photo on a white background
- Utility bill or bank statement under 3 months old
A company as shareholder
- Certificates of incorporation and of good standing
- Memorandum and articles of association
- Registers of directors and of shareholders
- Board resolution to set up the ADGM company
- Passport and address proof of every beneficial owner (UBO)
You send them in your account. We check each document the day it arrives and tell you what is missing.
See the platformQuestions about ADGM company formation
What does ADGM stand for?
Abu Dhabi Global Market, the international financial centre of Abu Dhabi.
Is ADGM a free zone?
Yes, a financial free zone, one of two in the country: the other is DIFC in Dubai. Our guide sets the two side by side: DIFC vs ADGM by fees, law and regulators. Its companies are 100% foreign-owned and follow ADGM's own regulations.
How much does it cost to set up a company in ADGM?
ADGM charges AED 6,978 to register an SPV, AED 5,509 a year for a tech startup license and AED 20,199 to register a non-financial company, then AED 18,363 a year. Our fee is one of three packages, from AED 2,150 for the incorporation, and your quote adds the office and the visas. Cheaper zones are on our page about a free zone company in the UAE.
How long does ADGM company formation take?
ADGM expects to approve a complete application within 10 business days, then issues the certificate of incorporation and the commercial license. The establishment card follows in 5 working days and each work permit and visa in 7.
What is an ADGM SPV used for?
To own shares in other companies, real estate, intellectual property or one investment, apart from the rest of a group. It is a passive holding company, registered online through a licensed company service provider.
Can an ADGM company do business on the Abu Dhabi mainland?
It serves clients across the UAE from its office on the islands. To work outside them it adds a license from ADDED, the economic department of Abu Dhabi, and a tech startup receives that license with no second office.
What tax does an ADGM company pay?
A company that meets the Qualifying Free Zone Person (QFZP) rules pays 0% on qualifying income. Any other pays 0% on the first AED 375,000 of taxable income and 9% above it. VAT is 5%, and VAT registration in the UAE becomes compulsory at AED 375,000 of turnover. We file the corporate tax registration with the setup.
What does an ADGM company file each year?
The license renewal, the data protection renewal and annual accounts within 9 months of the year end, unaudited when turnover is up to AED 49.6 million and staff up to 35. A company that claims the 0% tax rate has them audited at any size, and we keep the books from AED 1,300 a month. See audit requirements in the UAE and accounting in the UAE.
Get a quote for your UAE company
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- After the call we email you the checklist of documents for your country.
We reply by the end of the next working day with the cost and the dates for your case. The first call is free and confidential.
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Updated 9 November 2026. Reviewed by Vladyslav Drapii, Founder.
