SAIF Zone company setup in Sharjah: offices with 3, 5 or 8 visas at the airport
SAIF Zone leases offices, warehouses and land beside Sharjah International Airport and promises a license within an hour. We form your company there and quote its fees.
SAIF Zone Sharjah airport
- 1 hour The zone's promise for a license
- 3, 5 or 8 Visas with an office, by its type
- 125–600 sq m Pre-built warehouses, in four sizes
SAIF Zone in Sharjah: what the airport free zone is, who runs it and its location
1995The free zone beside Sharjah airport
SAIF Zone is the Sharjah Airport International Free Zone, the free zone beside Sharjah International Airport. The Sharjah Airport International Free Zone Authority, founded on 8 May 1995, runs it as landlord and licensor in one.
8,000Companies from 165 countries
By its release of February 2026 the zone has passed 8,000 companies from 165 countries. It describes itself as the first free zone inside an international airport in the UAE.
100%Ownership, capital and customs
A company here is 100% foreign-owned and sends capital and profit abroad with no currency restriction. Goods enter, stay in and leave the zone free of customs duty.
20 minutesDubai airport, and what stands inside
Dubai International Airport is a 20-minute drive away. Banks, a customs centre, clinics and housing for workers stand inside the gates. The emirate's other zones and its mainland license are on business setup in Sharjah.
SAIF Zone office, warehouse and land: sizes, visas and rent
Every license sits on premises leased from the zone, on a long lease paid by the year. The premises set the number of visas.
| Premises | What you lease | Visas |
|---|---|---|
| SAIF Office | A furnished desk space of your own | 3 |
| SAIF Executive Office | An unfurnished office, utilities inside the rent | 5 |
| SAIF Suite | A furnished executive suite | 8 |
| Pre-built warehouse | 125, 250, 400 or 600 sq m with an office | 15 to 45 on the form of 2019 |
| Plot of land | From 2,500 sq m for your own building | By the project |
AED 60,000A year's warehouse rent on the 2019 form
The zone's lease form of July 2019, still on its site, prints the warehouse rent for a year. It gives AED 60,000 for 125 sq m, AED 110,000 for 250, AED 160,000 for 400 and AED 205,000 for 600.
AED 48,000Where rents for the same units began in 2020
A package of April to June 2020 let the same units for AED 48,000 to 164,000. We ask the zone for this year's offer on your unit and put it in your quote. The zone also lets container parking and furnished rooms for workers.
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SAIF Zone license cost: what the zone prints and what your quote carries
SAIF Zone prints no license tariff: it makes each company an offer on its license and premises. The dirham lines come from the zone's own forms, and our lines are before VAT.
SAIF Zone company with its license, our fee
Fixed in your quoteYou get the figure in writing by the end of the next working day.
Get a quote- License fee for your activity, a year
- in your quote
- Rent of the office, warehouse or plot, a year
- in your quote
- No-objection letter for the bank account
- AED 100
- Certificate of good standing or incumbency
- AED 500
- Transfer of shares to a new owner
- AED 10,000
- Letter for a branch outside the zone
- AED 3,000–5,000
- Residence visa, each
- from AED 3,000
- Accounting, a month
- from $350
SAIF Zone license types and company forms
- Trade license
- Import, export, distribution, consolidation and storage of the goods the license names, in 3 similar product lines at most.
- Service license
- The one service written on it, such as business consultancy, freight forwarding or e-commerce.
- Industrial license
- Raw materials come in, and the company manufactures, processes, assembles, packs and exports. The zone's Health and Environment Department clears the project first.
- FZE or FZC
- One owner, a person or a company, forms an FZE, and two to five form an FZC. Share capital is AED 150,000, shown by a bank's capital letter or by the owners' undertaking for AED 1,000.
- Branch
- A UAE or foreign company opens a branch under its own name, with no share capital.
Business setup in SAIF Zone: who it suits, and who belongs in another zone
Stock lands at the airport next door and clears at the Sharjah Customs centre inside the zone, open daily from 8:00 to 20:00. Stored or re-exported goods carry no customs duty.
A pre-built warehouse of 125 to 600 sq m has the power load for heavy equipment. A plot from 2,500 sq m takes a factory of your own, with staff housing on site.
The Gold, Diamonds and Commodities Park holds 55 gold refineries and 250 firms in gold, platinum, silver and titanium, by the zone's count of September 2025.
A consultancy, a freight forwarder or an online seller takes an office with 3, 5 or 8 visas.
For a desk and a low fee, SPC Free Zone charges AED 5,750 a year and asks for no paid-up capital, and Shams AED 5,760. Heavy industry at a quay belongs in Hamriyah Free Zone.
SAIF Zone compared with Hamriyah, Shams and SPC Free Zone
| Free zone | License fee, a year | With one visa | To the license | Built for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SAIF Zone | in your quote | An office with 3 visas | 1 hour, complete file | Air cargo, trade and light industry |
| Hamriyah Free Zone | AED 11,000 | Start-up package, 1 visa | 1 hour, complete file | Heavy industry at its own port |
| Shams | AED 5,760 | AED 11,760–14,760 | 1–3 working days | Media and services, 50 visas at most |
| SPC Free Zone | AED 5,750 | from AED 13,175 | 1 day | E-commerce and publishing |
Corporate tax, VAT in a designated zone and the bank account for a SAIF Zone company
0% and 9%One corporate tax return a year
A SAIF Zone company files one corporate tax return a year: 0% on taxable income up to AED 375,000, 9% on the rest. One that is a Qualifying Free Zone Person pays 0% on qualifying income. Ministerial Decision No. 229 of 2025 counts manufacturing, logistics and the distribution of goods from a designated zone among such activities.
2018A designated zone for VAT
SAIF Zone has stood on the Federal Tax Authority's list of designated zones for VAT since 1 January 2018. Goods sold inside it for resale stay outside UAE VAT. Goods that cross to the mainland are an import with 5% due, and services carry 5%.
AED 375,000When VAT registration is due
VAT registration in the UAE is compulsory once taxable sales pass AED 375,000 in 12 months, and our accountants obtain both tax numbers. Accounting with us is from $350 a month.
48 hoursEmirates Development Bank, from a complete file
For the bank the zone writes a no-objection letter for AED 100. By the zone's account its partner Emirates Development Bank opens a business account within 48 hours of complete documents, and other banks usually take 2 to 4 weeks.
Company formation in SAIF Zone in five steps
- day 11
License, form and premises
Tell us what the company trades or makes and how many people need a visa. We match the license, the legal form and the unit, and obtain the zone's offer.
- then2
Application
We file the application form, the project summary and the passport copies. A company as owner adds its attested papers.
- 1 hour3
Contract, payment, license
The zone approves the file and draws up the registration contract. You sign and pay, and the license follows, by the zone's promise within an hour.
- 1–3 weeks4
Immigration card and visas
We apply for the immigration card, then for each visa: entry permit, medical test, Emirates ID and residence stamp.
- usually 2–4 weeks5
Tax numbers and bank
We register the company for corporate tax and send the bank its file with the zone's letter.
Documents for a SAIF Zone company
Documents
Every company
- Application form, completed
- Project summary
- Passport copies of the owners and the manager
A company as owner, or the parent of a branch
- Certificate of incorporation or registration
- Memorandum and articles of association
- Board resolution to open in SAIF Zone
- Power of attorney for the person in charge
- All four notarised, then attested by the UAE embassy and the UAE foreign ministry
You send them in your account. We check each document the day it arrives and tell you what is missing.
See the platformQuestions about SAIF Zone company setup in Sharjah
What is the meaning of SAIF Zone?
SAIF stands for Sharjah Airport International Free Zone. People also search for it as SAIF free zone and Sharjah Airport Free Zone.
How many companies are in SAIF Zone, and is there a companies list?
It has passed 8,000 companies from 165 countries, by its release of 10 February 2026. The Investors Directory on its site finds a company by name.
What is the SAIF Zone contact number?
The general line is +971 6 557 0000 and the sales line +971 6 517 8361. The offices open Monday to Thursday from 7:30 to 15:30 and Friday from 7:30 to 12:00.
Does SAIF Zone have approved auditors?
Yes: its Auditors Directory held 144 entries on 12 October 2026. An FZE or an FZC hands in audited accounts at each yearly renewal of the lease and license, and our accountants keep the books behind them.
Where are the SAIF Zone forms and the portal?
On saif-zone.com. The Forms page sorts them by department, from client and investor services to lease and license, and requests go through the investor e-services portal. We file them for you.
How does company liquidation in SAIF Zone work?
The owners file a closure application with a board resolution, on 90 days' notice or at the end of the lease. The zone asks for clearances from its own departments and an auditor's liquidation certificate, and takes AED 500 for the newspaper notice.
Can a SAIF Zone company sell on the UAE mainland?
Yes, with customs duty paid as the goods leave the zone. A branch outside takes the zone's no-objection letter, AED 3,000 to 5,000, and the local authority's approval. Other zones' terms are on free zones in the UAE.
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Updated 19 October 2026. Reviewed by Vladyslav Drapii, Founder.
