Business setup in the UAE: your company set up and run online
Legarithm sets up a UAE company in a free zone, on the mainland or offshore, arranges the residence visas and keeps the books.
Open a company in the UAE
Company formation in the UAE
from $7,000 Free zone, before VAT
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Company formation in Dubai
from $7,000 Free-zone company, before VAT
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Free zone company setup in Dubai and the UAE
from $7,000 Free-zone company, before VAT
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Business setup in Dubai mainland
from $8,000 Mainland company, before VAT
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Offshore company formation in Dubai and the UAE
from $3,000 Offshore company, before VAT
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Trade license in Dubai and the UAE
1–5 Working days for a free-zone license
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Business bank account in the UAE
2–4 Weeks to open the account
See the pageInternational company formation
The same service in our other countries, side by side: cost, time and tax.
See the pageRun a company in the UAE
Accounting services in Dubai and the UAE
from $350 A month, before VAT
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Corporate tax registration in the UAE
1–3 days To file the registration with us
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VAT registration in the UAE
AED 375,000 Turnover that makes registration compulsory
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Payroll services in Dubai and the UAE
2–5 days To set up your payroll on WPS
See the page
PRO services in Dubai and the UAE
from AED 3,000 Residence visa with us
See the pageOutsourced accounting services
Books, tax returns and payroll in each of our countries, in one account.
See the page
Free zones, emirates and offshore registries
Meydan Free Zone company setup
AED 12,500 Meydan's license fee a year, desk included
IFZA free zone company setup
about AED 12,500 License a year with a flexi-desk
Dubai South Free Zone company setup
AED 12,500 License with a flexi-desk, a year
DMCC free zone company setup
AED 35,484 Basic Biz package: license and flexi-desk
DAFZA company setup in Dubai Airport Free Zone
from AED 15,000 Trade or service license a year
Dubai CommerCity free zone company setup
In your quote Company with its license
DWTC Free Zone business setup in Dubai
from AED 12,000 DWTC license, valid one year
JAFZA free zone company setup in Jebel Ali
from AED 5,000 JAFZA license fee a year
DIFC company setup
$12,000 Commercial license a year, non-retail
ADGM company formation
$1,900 ADGM's fees to register a holding SPV
Masdar City Free Zone business setup
AED 7,000 Startup package: license, 2 activities
KEZAD free zone company setup in Abu Dhabi
from AED 9,450 Start-up package a year, VAT included
Business setup in Abu Dhabi
from AED 1,200 ADDED license with 6 activities
RAKEZ free zone company setup
AED 6,000 Basic license a year: 1 activity, no visa
Shams free zone company setup
AED 5,760 Media license a year, VAT included
SPC Free Zone company setup
from AED 5,750 SPC license fee a year
SAIF Zone company setup in Sharjah
In your quote Company with its license
Sharjah free zone and mainland business setup
from AED 5,750 Free-zone license a year
Hamriyah Free Zone company setup
AED 11,000 Basic cost of a license, as the zone states
Ajman Free Zone company formation
from AED 5,555 E-commerce license package a year
Ajman NuVentures Centre Free Zone company setup
AED 4,888 Zero-visa package for a year
Ajman Media City Free Zone company setup
AED 4,999 Business Club license for a year
Umm Al Quwain Free Zone company setup
AED 5,500 UAQ LYTE: license a year, no visa
Fujairah Free Zone company setup
from $7,000 Company with its license, through us
Creative City Fujairah free zone business setup
AED 3,999 Media package for a year, no visa
RAK ICC offshore company formation
AED 3,250 Registry fee to incorporate, first year
JAFZA offshore company formation
AED 10,000 JAFZA fee to register, paid once
Where to start a UAE business: three routes and who each suits
- Issued in
- 1–5 working days
- Who takes it
- Founders with clients abroad who want a visa and a flexi-desk
- Issued in
- 1–2 weeks
- Who takes it
- Shops, contractors and importers whose buyers are inside the country
- Issued in
- 3–7 working days
- Who takes it
- Owners of shares, property or trademarks: no license, office or visa
UAE company services: need, price and time in one table
| Service | When you need it | Our price | How long it takes |
|---|---|---|---|
| UAE company formation | At the start | from $3,000 to $8,000, by route | Free zone: 1–5 working days |
| UAE business bank account | After the license | Fixed in your quote | 2–4 weeks |
| UAE residence visa | To live in the country | from AED 3,000 each | 1–3 weeks |
| Corporate tax registration | By month 3 | Fixed in your quote | 1–3 days to file |
| UAE VAT registration | Above AED 375,000 of yearly turnover | Fixed in your quote | Within 20 business days |
| Accounting in the UAE | From the first month | from $350 a month | Every month |
| Payroll in the UAE | With the first employee | Fixed in your quote | 2–5 days to set up |
| License renewal and PRO work | Every year | Fixed in your quote | Before expiry |
| Golden visa | For 10 years of residence | Fixed in your quote | 2–3 weeks |
| Tax residency certificate | To use a tax treaty | Fixed in your quote | 2–3 weeks |
First twelve months: a UAE company from license to first return
- 1 day to 2 weeks1
Route and license
Together we fix the route, the emirate, the zone and the licensed activities, then reserve the name. A zone license takes 1–5 working days, while the mainland needs 1–2 weeks.
- 1–3 weeks2
Visas
The establishment card opens the company's immigration file. Each person then passes four stages, from entry permit to visa, and travels once.
- 2–4 weeks3
Tax number, bank account
Every new company registers with the tax authority in its first three months. Meanwhile we send the file for the UAE business bank account.
- as the company grows4
VAT and payroll
Once yearly turnover passes AED 375,000, the company has 30 days to apply for UAE VAT registration. A month's salaries are due on day 1 of the next, through WPS, the state's wage system.
- all year5
Returns and renewal
VAT returns are due by day 28 after each quarter, and corporate tax is declared no later than 9 months past the year end: accounting in the UAE. License renewal falls every twelve months.
Yearly cost by route: what a UAE company pays after year one
After the first year two lines carry a public price: our accounting and the fee the authority bills for the license. The table adds them, with dirhams converted at 3.6725 to the dollar.
| A year | Free zone | Mainland | Offshore |
|---|---|---|---|
| Our accounting, 12 × $350 | $4,200 | $4,200 | $4,200 |
| License or registry renewal | from AED 4,888 | AED 12,000–15,000 | AED 2,500–3,950 |
| Total | from $5,531 | $7,468–8,284 | $4,881–5,276 |
| Office | Flexi-desk in the fee | Your lease | The agent's address, fixed in your quote |
| Visas, payroll, PRO work | Fixed in your quote | Fixed in your quote | No visas |
$7,604The free-zone column, and Meydan in Dubai
The free-zone column takes the lowest yearly fee that a zone on our list publishes for more than one year, AED 4,888 at Ajman NuVentures. With Meydan in Dubai, at AED 12,500, the year comes to $7,604. A mainland company adds the rent of its office.
Emirates and free zones: the seven we work in, zone by zone
| Emirate | Free zones we set up in | Lowest zone fee a year | Also there |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dubai | Meydan, IFZA, Dubai South, DAFZA, JAFZA, DMCC, DIFC | AED 12,500 | DET for the mainland, JAFZA for offshore companies |
| Abu Dhabi | ADGM, Masdar City | AED 7,000 at Masdar City; an ADGM tech startup license is $1,500 | ADDED for the mainland |
| Sharjah | SPC Free Zone, Shams, Hamriyah | AED 5,750 | SEDD for the mainland |
| Ajman | Ajman Free Zone | AED 5,555 | A port, warehouses, industrial land |
| Ras Al Khaimah | RAKEZ | AED 6,000 | RAK ICC for offshore companies |
| Umm Al Quwain | UAQ Free Trade Zone | AED 5,500 | A free trade zone with licenses that need no visa |
| Fujairah | Fujairah Free Zone, Creative City | AED 3,999 at Creative City | A port on the east coast, outside the Strait of Hormuz |
Run from abroad: which authority does what, and who signs
3 filesFor tax, visas and staff, after one license
One authority licenses the company: its zone, or the mainland department of the emirate. Then come 3 federal files: the Federal Tax Authority keeps the tax file on its EmaraTax portal, immigration keeps the visa file, and MOHRE, the labour ministry, the staff file.
1 tripFor a visa only; the company needs no trip
A visa needs 1 trip, for fingerprints and a medical test. A free-zone or offshore company needs none. You do your part online: you upload passports, sign the memorandum and the desk lease and approve each return. We handle every filing, fee and renewal.
1,000Mainland activities open to a foreign owner
A foreigner holds every share of a free-zone company, and of a mainland one across more than 1,000 activities. Capital and profit can be sent abroad in full. The UAE suits a business that sells worldwide or into the Gulf and an owner who plans to move there.
A platform where you open
and run a UAE company online
Your whole company is in your pocket. Sign documents, check the books and write to your accountant from your phone.
Your Company FZCO
- License expected 1–5 days
- Next deadline prepared
- Last month closed on time
- Passport copy Uploaded
- Passport-size photo Checked
- Application form Sign
- Proof of address Upload
You upload scans and sign the forms in the account. We keep the certificates and registers here afterwards, ready for a bank or an auditor.
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.
The Legarithm team
We prepare your documents, check them before they are filed and keep your books.
Legal
Christina Agapiou Corporate Lawyer
Vasiliki Chatzigeorgiou Compliance Officer
Iryna Hrabovetska Associate
Anastasiia Kolomiiets Associate
Ivanna Plieshivtseva Junior Associate
Vladyslav Khamenushko Paralegal
Alisia Navrotska Paralegal
Vladyslav Syliava Paralegal
Finance and accounting
Ioannis Akritidis Accountant
Elizaveta Pytkina Accountant
Nataliia Dobrynina Accountant
Anna Kyrylova Finance specialist
Questions about a company in the UAE
In the UAE, does the residence visa come before the bank account?
Yes, when you plan to take one. It follows the license within 1–3 weeks and widens your choice of banks, and the account then takes 2–4 weeks.
Does a UAE company that pays 0% tax need an accountant?
Yes. The law requires IFRS books and a corporate tax return every year, even at 0%, and a registration filed after the three months costs AED 10,000.
Can an offshore company own my free-zone or mainland company?
Yes. The offshore company holds the shares, and the licensed company trades, banks and sponsors the visas. We form both at once.
Does the emirate of the license decide where I can live and trade?
No. A visa issued through any emirate lets you live in all seven, and a mainland company may sell in each. The emirate decides the fee.
What does a UAE company renew each year, and what every two years?
Yearly: the license, the lease of the desk or the office and, where a zone runs one, the e-channel immigration account. Every second year: each residence visa.
Can I get UAE residency through company formation?
Yes. A free-zone or mainland company whose license carries a visa place sponsors the owner's investor visa for 2 years, from AED 3,000. Without a company the route is the golden visa: 10 years, for AED 2,000,000 in property or a deposit, or a salary of AED 30,000 a month.
Get a quote for your UAE company
Book a 30-minute call about your company
Your consultant Vladyslav Babaiev Opens in a new tab Business Setup Specialist
- We email you the Google Meet link.
- 30 minutes, free, no obligation to order.
- 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.
Guides to a company in the UAE
Videos about a company in the UAE
The film shows your first months with Legarithm in 74 seconds. The short videos open on YouTube.
1:43After registration: bank, taxes, free zone Opens on YouTube
2:44Structure, banking and tax residency Opens on YouTube
1:16When to set up a UAE company Opens on YouTubeUpdated 21 October 2026. Reviewed by Vladyslav Drapii, Founder.
