SETUP | GOVERNMENT APPROVALS | REGISTRATION | LICENSE
IFZA Dubai Free Zone Company Setup
IFZA — the International Free Zone Authority — is based at Dubai Silicon Oasis, operating from IFZA HQ and IFZA Business Park within the Dubai Silicon Oasis technology district. IFZA began in Fujairah in 2018 and announced its move to Dubai in October 2020, the first free zone in the UAE to relocate from one emirate to another. A company licensed through IFZA today is a Dubai free zone company, registered and administered from Dubai Silicon Oasis.
IFZA structures its licences around the activities you intend to carry out and the number of residence visas the company will sponsor, with workspace leased inside Dubai Silicon Oasis. In a UAE free zone, premises are leased rather than bought, and free zones offer furnished and partly furnished options. Which combination suits you depends on your activity, headcount and visa requirements — we confirm all of it in writing before you commit to anything.
Key advantages
Some benefits availed on establishing business at IFZA
No currency restrictions
The UAE places no restrictions on payments or transfers for international transactions, and currencies trade freely at market rates.
0% corporate tax on qualifying income
UAE corporate tax has applied since 1 June 2023 at 9% above AED 375,000. A free zone company pays 0% only on qualifying income, and only while it meets every Qualifying Free Zone Person condition. Take advice on your own position.
No customs duty inside the free zone
Goods may be imported into the free zone without customs duty. Duty becomes payable when goods move out of the free zone into the UAE market.
Costs quoted in writing
Licence, workspace, immigration and visa costs set out line by line before you commit, rather than a headline figure.
100% foreign ownership
Free zone companies are wholly owned by their shareholders. No UAE national partner or local sponsor is required.
Dubai Silicon Oasis address
A Dubai address inside an established technology district, with the emirate’s air and sea links to regional and global markets.
Incorporate without travelling
IFZA states that no physical presence is required during the incorporation process itself. Residence visas are a separate step and do require entry to the UAE.
Workspace leased, not purchased
You lease your space inside the free zone rather than buying it, and free zones offer fully and partly furnished options.
Full repatriation of profits and capital
There are no UAE restrictions on repatriating capital or profits out of the country.
Limited liability
Shareholder liability is limited to the capital subscribed, keeping personal assets separate from the business.
Individual or corporate shareholders
IFZA accepts both. A corporate shareholder provides a notarised board resolution, memorandum and articles, certificate of incorporation and a valid trade licence.
The process
Business setup in IFZA
Incorporation through IFZA is handled largely online, and IFZA states that no physical presence is required during the incorporation process itself. How long it takes depends on your activities, whether any external approval applies, and how quickly documents come back — so we give you a realistic date in writing once we have seen your activity list rather than quoting a headline number. The sequence below is the route most clients follow.
01
Confirm your business activities against IFZA’s approved activity list. The activities on the licence determine the licence category, the scope of trade permitted, and whether any additional approval is needed.
02
Reserve the trade name and settle the legal structure — a free zone company held by individual shareholders, corporate shareholders, or a combination of the two.
03
Choose the workspace and licence package inside Dubai Silicon Oasis, together with the number of residence visas you want the licence to carry.
04
Submit the incorporation documents. For an individual shareholder IFZA asks for a passport copy, a passport-size photograph and, if you are already in the UAE, copies of your Emirates ID and residence visa. A corporate shareholder additionally provides a notarised board resolution, memorandum and articles of association, certificate of incorporation and a valid trade licence.
05
IFZA reviews the application and issues two electronic legal forms. These are signed by the shareholders before the incorporation documents are released.
06
IFZA approves and issues the trade licence and incorporation documents. The establishment card, residence visas and bank account follow. Note that a UAE residence visa is issued once the applicant is inside the country, having entered on an entry permit, and has completed the medical test and Emirates ID registration — so that step does require travel.
Licensing
Licence types available at IFZA
IFZA issues licences by the category your activities fall into, so it is worth settling the activity list first. These are the categories most clients use:
Professional Licence
For consultants and skilled professionals — advisory and consultancy practices, IT and marketing services, designers, medical practitioners and similar service-based work.
Commercial Licence
For trade — importing, exporting and trading goods, including e-commerce. A commercial licence can carry a number of related activities under one licence.
Industrial Licence
For manufacturing and processing — production, assembly and packaging using imported or locally sourced materials. This category needs premises suited to the activity.
Tourism Licence
For travel and tourism businesses such as travel agencies, tour operators and holiday rentals. Activities in this category carry Department of Economy and Tourism requirements.
Getting the activities right
The activity list is the first decision, not an afterthought: it sets the licence category, the scope you may trade in, and whether an external approval is triggered.
Not sure which applies?
Send us what you intend to do. We will confirm the licence category in writing, with the fee and what it covers, before anything is filed.
Why consider establishing business in IFZA?
IFZA’s appeal is a Dubai licence with a straightforward, largely online incorporation route and workspace inside the Dubai Silicon Oasis technology district. What it costs and how long it takes depend on your activity, licence category, workspace and visa count, which is why we quote in writing rather than advertising a single figure. Tell us what you intend to do and we will set out the licence category, the fees and a realistic timeline before you commit to anything.
What you get
What an IFZA company gives you
- Largely online incorporation
- Costs set out in writing before you commit
- Wide approved activity list
- Dubai Silicon Oasis registered address
- No physical presence needed to incorporate
- Commercial, professional and industrial licences
- Individual or corporate shareholders
- Workspace leased, not purchased
- Limited liability for shareholders
- No currency restrictions on transfers
- 100% foreign ownership
- 0% corporate tax on qualifying income, subject to conditions
- Residence visas sponsored through the licence
- Full repatriation of profits and capital
Investment
What an IFZA setup costs
Licence fee
Set by IFZA according to the licence category, the number of activities on the licence and the visa allocation you choose.
Establishment card and immigration
Opened before the company can sponsor anyone, and required for each residence visa the licence will carry.
Workspace
The space you lease inside Dubai Silicon Oasis. The package you choose affects both the fee and the number of visas the licence supports.
Residence visas
Charged per person and covering the entry permit, medical test, Emirates ID and visa stamping. This is the step that requires the applicant to travel to the UAE.
