In short
- Selling online in the UAE needs a license: the 2023 law covers websites, apps and social media.
- eTrader costs AED 1,370: AED 1,070 to DET and AED 300 to Dubai Chamber.
- Free-zone e-commerce licenses start at AED 5,555 a year in Ajman and AED 5,750 at SPC in Sharjah.
- TDRA's no-objection certificate for online activity is free and takes 2 working days.
In this guide
Do you need a license to sell online in Dubai and the UAE?
Yes. Federal Decree-Law No. 14 of 2023 calls a digital merchant any person who sells goods or services through a website, a platform, an app or social media. Its Article 5 asks the merchant to hold the approvals, permits and licenses of the authority in charge.
The paper is one of three. On the mainland it is a commercial license with an e-commerce activity, or an individual e-commerce license, which Dubai calls eTrader. In a free zone it is the zone's own license.
This guide sets the three side by side. The fee lines of Dubai's Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) and the yearly renewal are on our page about a trade license in Dubai.
E-commerce license routes in Dubai side by side
| Point | eTrader | Mainland license | Free-zone license |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who issues it | DET | DET | The authority of the zone |
| Who may hold it | One person who lives in Dubai | A company, foreign-owned in full where DET allows | A company, its owners resident or not |
| Published fee | AED 1,070 to DET and AED 300 to Dubai Chamber | Trade name AED 620, initial approval AED 120, license AED 12,000 to 15,000 a year | From AED 5,555 a year in Ajman and AED 12,500 in a Dubai zone |
| What it allows | Sales through social media and websites, from home | Sales to consumers, companies and government bodies across the UAE | Sales abroad, inside the zone and through marketplaces |
| What it does not allow | A shop or a store; partners | Activities that are not on the license | Direct mainland sales without a distributor or a permit |
| Premises | The owner's home in Dubai | A leased office, registered in Ejari | A desk, an office or a warehouse in the zone |
| Residence visas | None for a foreign owner | By the floor space of the office | By the package |
A resident who tests an idea starts with eTrader. A brand that sells to UAE consumers under its own name belongs on the mainland. A marketplace seller or an exporter fits a free zone: Ajman Free Zone and SPC name Amazon and Noon among the channels their license covers.
The wider choice between the two company routes, with tax and market access, is in free zone vs mainland in the UAE.
e-Trader license in Dubai: who gets it, what it costs and where it stops
The e-Trader license, which DET writes eTrader and older pages call the DED Trader license, is a license for a business run from home. Dubai's government portal describes its holder as a freelancer or entrepreneur who sells through social media and online platforms from a residence in Dubai.
- Legal form: a sole establishment with one owner, who bears full legal responsibility.
- Fee: AED 1,070 to DET and AED 300 for Dubai Chamber membership, AED 1,370 together.
- Application: on Invest in Dubai, DET's portal. DET confirms there which activities the applicant may take, and we check yours before you pay.
- Premises: the owner's home. Dubai's economy department has stated that the holder cannot open a shop or a store.
- Visas: the same statement gave three visas to a license that is 100% Emirati-owned and named none for other holders.
- Tax: the owner registers for corporate tax once business turnover passes AED 1 million in a calendar year, and for VAT at AED 375,000.
Move to a company when the shop needs a partner, a warehouse, staff visas or a wall between the business and your own assets.
Mainland e-commerce license in Dubai: cost and what it allows
A mainland company sells to consumers, companies and government bodies anywhere in the UAE. Its paper is DET's commercial license with an e-commerce activity on it.
DET charges AED 620 for the trade name and AED 120 for the initial approval. The license fee follows the activity and runs from AED 12,000 to 15,000 a year.
The company leases an office and registers the contract in Ejari, Dubai's tenancy register. Residence visas follow the floor space. Dubai's portal adds one approval for every e-trade license: the no-objection certificate of TDRA, the telecoms regulator.
Free zone e-commerce license: zones, packages and published fees
A free-zone company is foreign-owned in full and starts on a desk in the zone. The zones below license online sellers and have a page on this site. Each fee is the zone's own.
| Zone | Published fee a year | What the license gives | Stock and delivery |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ajman Free Zone | From AED 5,555 | The e-commerce package: company name, license and a co-working seat | Warehouses from 100 sq m near Ajman Port |
| SPC Free Zone, Sharjah | AED 5,750; from AED 13,175 with visas | Up to 5 e-commerce activity groups | A customs code through the zone |
| Dubai CommerCity | No price list: quoted on request | An e-commerce license, up to 20 activities from four groups | Bonded clusters beside Dubai International Airport, fulfilment centres, last-mile service |
| Dubai South | From AED 12,500 in its Business Hub | A flexi-desk and up to 5 business groups | EZDubai: last-mile centres from 5,000 sq m |
| Meydan Free Zone, Dubai | AED 12,500 | A flexi-desk and up to 3 activity groups, internet retail among them | No warehouses |
| IFZA, Dubai | About AED 12,500: no published tariff | The activities Ecommerce and Online Seller, each with an undertaking letter | No warehouses |
Selling on the mainland from a free zone
The government portal puts the limit in one line. A free-zone company operates inside its zone and abroad, and to sell directly on the mainland it may need a local distributor or added approvals.
A Dubai free-zone company can add DET's mainland operating permit: AED 5,000 for six months, for trading, technology, consultancy, design and professional services. Revenue under the permit is taxed at 9%. The zones' fees and visas are compared on free zones in the UAE.
Ajman NuVentures licenses e-commerce from AED 4,888 a year, and from AED 10,800 with one visa.
We do this for you Trade license in Dubai and the UAE a company with its license from $7,000
How to get an e-commerce license in Dubai: steps and documents
- Choose the route and list what you sell: the activities on the license cover the goods and the online channel.
- Reserve the trade name and file the application with the owners' passports.
- Apply to TDRA for the no-objection certificate for online activity. It is free and takes 2 working days.
- Sign the memorandum and the desk or office agreement and pay the fee. A free zone issues the license in 1 to 5 working days, the mainland in 1 to 2 weeks.
- Register the company for corporate tax within 3 months of incorporation.
- Open the business bank account, then the merchant account with a payment gateway.
- Set your sales against the VAT thresholds before the first order and each month after it.
TDRA takes one request for each channel. A website runs on a .ae domain or has one linked to it. A social media account or an app is named by its link.
A free zone asks for few papers. SPC lists a passport copy of each owner, the trade names in order of preference and the activities. An owner who lives in the UAE adds the residence visa and Emirates ID. A mainland license adds the lease, and a founder on a UAE work visa a no-objection letter from the sponsor.
Payment gateway, bank account and what your shop must show
A payment gateway and a merchant account are set up once the license is issued. The business bank account takes 2 to 4 weeks from a complete file. Dubai South's Business Hub issues eligible licenses with an account number and an instant IBAN.
The 2023 law lists what the shop's site or app shows before the first order:
- the merchant's license, address and contact numbers
- the price of each product, and the fees for delivery and for digital payment
- the terms of sale, which the customer accepts by buying
- a channel for complaints that stays open, with a way to track each one
Delivery and payment fees may not rise above what the shop announced. The customer returns or exchanges goods that arrive defective, incomplete, late beyond use or unlike their description. A sales contract below AED 50,000 cannot send its disputes to arbitration.
Each purchase gets a detailed invoice in electronic form. Consumer law asks for that invoice in Arabic, and the seller may add other languages.
VAT for online sellers in the UAE
An online seller registers for VAT once taxable sales and imports pass AED 375,000 in 12 months and may register from AED 187,500. Your own shop and every marketplace make one turnover. The application is on VAT registration in the UAE.
| Sale | VAT |
|---|---|
| Goods delivered from stock in the UAE to a UAE customer | 5% |
| Goods the seller exports | 0%, with customs and transport evidence that they left within 90 days |
| Goods sold from abroad and imported by the customer | No UAE VAT on the sale; 5% import VAT at the border |
| A sale through a marketplace that acts in your name | Your sale and your VAT. The marketplace's commission is a separate service |
| Stock you import | 5% of the customs value, declared in your return once your customs number is linked to your tax number |
A registered seller issues a tax invoice for every sale, direct or through a marketplace. A consumer gets the short form: see the tax invoice format in the UAE.
A seller whose online sales pass AED 100 million in a calendar year also records the emirate in which each sale was received.
Delivery, warehousing and customs for an online shop
The law lets a merchant store, ship and deliver the goods itself or through a provider licensed in the UAE. Where the stock sits follows the route: Meydan and IFZA rent desks and offices alone, Ajman Free Zone rents warehouses, and Dubai CommerCity and Dubai South run fulfilment centres.
Stock in a bonded zone waits without customs duty. Dubai CommerCity describes its Business and Logistics clusters this way: foreign goods enter under customs supervision, with no duty paid on entry. Duty in Dubai is 5% of the value with freight and insurance.
Low-value parcels have a rule of their own. Under Customs Circular No. 16 of 2026, Dubai Customs waives duty on eligible e-commerce shipments worth up to AED 1,000 with freight and insurance, up from AED 300. It waives its declaration fee on shipments up to AED 30,000.
We choose the route with you, file the application and renew the license each year: trade license in Dubai and the UAE. A free-zone company with its license costs from $7,000 before VAT, a mainland one from $8,000.
