IFZA free zone company setup: license about AED 12,500 a year
IFZA licenses a Dubai free-zone company with 3 activities for about AED 12,500 a year, in 5 to 7 working days. We open the company with its license from $7,000.
IFZA Dubai
- about AED 12,500 License a year with a flexi-desk
- 5–7 Working days to the license
- 3 Activities included in one license
What IFZA means and where IFZA Dubai is
7.2 millionSquare metres of Dubai Silicon Oasis
IFZA stands for International Free Zone Authority. Its zone, IFZA Dubai, is an area inside Dubai Silicon Oasis, the technology district of 7.2 million square metres run by the Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority. IFZA companies are registered under the free-zone regulations of Dubai Silicon Oasis.
2020IFZA at Dubai Silicon Oasis since October
IFZA has worked from the district since 21 October 2020, when the Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority and IFZA signed the agreement that lets its companies work there. IFZA's offices are in IFZA Business Park and Dubai Digital Park.
FZCOThe company form and the fee
An IFZA company is an FZCO, a free-zone limited liability company, or a branch of a foreign company. IFZA works through its network of professional partners and publishes no price list, so the fee reaches you in a quote. A license with 3 activities and a flexi-desk costs about AED 12,500 a year.
The owner holds 100% of an IFZA company and pays in no share capital.
What IFZA company setup costs
IFZA quotes through its partners, so the three IFZA lines are its 2026 fees as we pass them on. The permit is DET's fee. The company, the visa and the accounting are our prices, before VAT.
Free-zone company with its license, opened by us
from $7,000Get a quote- IFZA license: 3 activities, flexi-desk, no visa, a year
- about AED 12,500
- Starter package with one visa and a flexi-desk
- about AED 14,900
- Establishment card, a year
- about AED 2,000
- Residence visa, each
- from AED 3,000
- Mainland operating permit, six months
- AED 5,000
- Accounting, a month
- from $350
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What an IFZA license includes
One license takes 3 activities, and professional and commercial ones can be mixed. Each further activity is added for a fee.
IFZA sells the license in packages by the number of visas, starting from none. Moving up later costs the difference in fees, and the license stays as it is.
The base packages come with a flexi-desk in Dubai Silicon Oasis and no office to lease. Higher visa numbers bring office space in IFZA's business park.
The card is the company's identity with the Dubai authorities. IFZA requires it before the first visa and renews it every year. We obtain it and file each renewal: license renewal and PRO services in Dubai.
Professional for consulting, IT and design, commercial for trade and e-commerce, general trading for unrelated product lines, and a branch license for a foreign company.
An IFZA license covers blockchain development, Web3 tooling and NFT infrastructure. An exchange or a custodian comes under VARA, the Dubai regulator of virtual assets.
What a free zone visa is, and how an IFZA company gets one
2 yearsThe term of a free zone investor visa
A free zone visa is a UAE residence visa sponsored by a free-zone company. Owners hold investor visas and employees hold employment visas. The holder lives in the UAE and can sponsor a spouse, children and parents. With IFZA the number of visas is written into the package. The investor visa runs for 2 years and is renewed while the license is kept valid.
4 stepsFrom the establishment card to the Emirates ID
- Establishment card: we register the company with the immigration service.
- Entry permit, or a change of status for a person already in the UAE.
- Medical fitness test and fingerprints for the Emirates ID, taken in Dubai.
- The visa and the Emirates ID card.
from AED 3,000One trip, the family and our price
You travel to Dubai once, for the medical test and the fingerprints. To bring a family, the sponsor shows a salary of AED 4,000 a month, or AED 3,000 with accommodation. A visa costs from AED 3,000, and our page on the residence visa in the UAE sets out the fees and the family rules.
Who IFZA suits, and who should look at another zone
A professional license joins consulting, design and marketing in one company at a Dubai address that clients and banks recognise.
A company with no visas holds shares, intellectual property or other assets, and its yearly cost is the license.
A commercial license covers import, export, distribution and e-commerce, with the goods kept at a logistics company.
Meydan Free Zone charges AED 12,500 as well and publishes every fee, with up to 6 visas on one license.
IFZA licenses companies and leases offices. Warehouses and industrial plots are in RAKEZ.
DMCC suits commodity traders and teams that want an office in Jumeirah Lakes Towers from the first day, at about three times the entry fee.
IFZA compared with Meydan, RAKEZ and DMCC
| Compared | IFZA | Meydan | RAKEZ | DMCC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Location | Dubai Silicon Oasis | Nad Al Sheba, Dubai | Ras Al Khaimah | Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai |
| License a year, from | about AED 12,500 | AED 12,500 | AED 6,000 | AED 35,484, Basic Biz package |
| How fees reach you | In a partner's quote | Published tariff | Published packages | Published packages |
| Activities | 3 on a license | 3 groups on a license | 1 in Basic, 10 in All-Inclusive | By license type |
| Visas | By package, from none | 0 to 6 | 1 in Lite, up to 4 in All-Inclusive | By the office |
| License issued in | 5 to 7 working days | 1 to 3 working days | 1 to 5 working days | 7 to 14 working days |
Meydan Free Zone company setup RAKEZ free zone company setup DMCC free zone company setup
Tax, bank account and mainland work for an IFZA company
0% and 9%Corporate tax and VAT
An IFZA company holds a tax registration number from the Federal Tax Authority and files one corporate tax return a year. Profit up to AED 375,000 is taxed at 0% and the part above it at 9%. For VAT the test is turnover: from AED 375,000 the company needs a VAT registration in the UAE, and we file it.
QFZP0% on qualifying income
As a Qualifying Free Zone Person (QFZP), with its core work carried out in the zone and audited accounts among the conditions, a company pays 0% on qualifying income of any amount. Our guide to corporate tax in the UAE has the rules in full.
2 to 4 weeksUsually from the file to an open bank account
We build the file for the business bank account in the UAE from the license, the articles, the establishment card, your business plan and first contracts. With that file the bank usually opens the account in 2 to 4 weeks.
AED 5,000Work on the mainland
The company invoices mainland businesses for its services. Work carried out on the mainland itself needs Dubai's Free Zone Mainland Operating Permit, AED 5,000 for six months, and the revenue earned under it is taxed at 9%.
60 to 90 daysNotice IFZA gives before a renewal
IFZA sends its renewal notice 60 to 90 days ahead. The date is in our calendar, and we renew the license and the establishment card on time.
IFZA business setup, step by step
- 1–2 working days1
Activities, name, package
Tell us the services or goods on your invoices. We choose up to 3 activities, check the name and settle the package by the visas you want.
- then2
Application and security check
Your documents go into your account, and we file them. The UAE authorities run a security check on each shareholder, director and the manager.
- 5–7 working days3
Signature and license
IFZA emails the incorporation documents for electronic signature. You sign, we pay the package, and the license is issued.
- 1–3 weeks a person4
Establishment card and visas
We register the establishment card and file each visa. You visit Dubai for the medical test and the Emirates ID.
- usually 2–4 weeks5
Tax number and bank file
We apply to the Federal Tax Authority for the tax registration number and submit the bank file.
Documents for an IFZA application
Documents
Shareholders, directors, the manager
- Passport copy
- Digital passport photo
- Proof of home address
- Emirates ID and visa, for UAE residents
- A short business description
A corporate shareholder
- Certificate of incorporation
- Certificate of good standing
- Memorandum and articles
- Board resolution, notarised
- Passport and address of each 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 IFZA free zone company setup
Is IFZA a good free zone?
It suits a consultancy, an agency, a trading or a holding company that wants a Dubai license without an office. One license takes 3 activities, the owner pays in no capital, and remote business setup takes 5 to 7 working days. The page on free zones in the UAE lists the zones for other needs.
What does IFZA mean?
International Free Zone Authority. Its zone, IFZA Dubai, lies inside Dubai Silicon Oasis.
What is a free zone visa in the UAE?
A residence visa that a free-zone company sponsors for its owner or its staff. The owner's investor visa runs for 2 years, renewal follows as long as the company keeps its license, and the holder can bring a family.
How much does an IFZA license cost?
About AED 12,500 a year with 3 activities and a flexi-desk, and about AED 14,900 for a starter package with one visa. IFZA publishes no tariff, so your quote from us states the total before you pay. The published fees of the other Dubai zones are in Dubai free zone license cost by zone.
How many visas can an IFZA company get?
The number its package states, from none upwards. The base packages need no office, and larger ones come with space in IFZA's business park.
Can an IFZA company do business on the Dubai mainland?
It bills mainland companies for its services from the zone. When the work moves onto the mainland we apply for the operating permit, AED 5,000 for six months, or add a mainland company.
Can an IFZA company hold shares in other companies?
Yes. A company with no visas serves as a holding company for shares, intellectual property or other assets.
Get a quote for your UAE company
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- 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.
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AED 6,000 Basic license a year: 1 activity, no visa
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Compare the free zones
Cost, visas and office, side by sideAlso for a company in the UAE
Investor visa in Dubai and the UAE
A 2-year residence visa through your company, from AED 3,000, 1 to 3 weeks after the license
OpenBusiness bank account in the UAE
Six accounts compared by balance and fee, 2 to 4 weeks from a complete application
OpenAccounting services in Dubai and the UAE
IFRS books, VAT and corporate tax returns from $350 a month
OpenCompany formation in the UAE
Free zone from $7,000, mainland from $8,000, offshore from $3,000
OpenGuides to a company in the UAE
All guides to a company in the UAE
Updated 13 October 2026. Reviewed by Vladyslav Drapii, Founder.
