What a Dubai trade license actually costs. The whole number, not the headline.

That is the point of it. Every figure on this page is a range because the variables are not set until someone asks you the 4 questions that set them: what you will sell, who you will sell it to, how many residence visas you need, and whether your activity requires premises. 30 minutes, free, no obligation, at a time that works in your timezone. You leave with your actual number, itemised, including what renews in year 2 and what you can do without leaving Australia. If the honest answer is that you should not set up in the UAE at all, we will say so — it is a worse outcome for us to sell you a structure you did not need.

Free zone licenses start from around $9,000. The honest answer to the cost of setting up a company in Dubai is that a UAE free zone company setup cost and a mainland one are different orders of number, and mainland we quote individually, and you should be wary of anyone who publishes a mainland figure — it depends on your activity, which approvals that triggers, the premises and tenancy behind your registered address, and how many residence visas you need. A published mainland number has to assume all of those, and the assumption is where the gap between the quoted price and the real one appears. Australian dollar figures are indicative and move with the exchange rate; your proposal is issued in AED with every line itemised. Payment plans are available.

Usually: government and authority fees, which vary by jurisdiction, activity and visa count; residence visas, which are quoted per person; premises, if your setup requires them; and the annual renewal, which is the figure most people never ask about until it arrives. None of those are hidden exactly — they are just rarely in the number on the website. Ours are in the proposal before you commit.

The cheapest free zone in UAE terms will almost always beat mainland, and usually by a wide margin, because the premises requirement is the single biggest difference. A free zone license typically needs only a flexi-desk; a mainland license is issued against a registered address with a real tenancy behind it. But cheaper is only relevant if it fits — if your customers are UAE businesses and consumers, a free zone license restricts you to selling through a distributor or opening a mainland branch, and the saving disappears. We will tell you which one fits on the call.

The trade license is the company — same thing, different wording. In the UAE there is no separate registration step you complete and then license afterwards — the license is what makes the company exist and lets it operate, and it names the activities you are permitted to carry out. If you are trading, you need one. Which authority issues it depends on whether you go mainland or free zone.

Yes. A UAE residence visa by investment is, in practice, the investors visa in UAE terms that your own license supports — a renewable investor or partner visa, typically 2 years. A freezone visa Dubai-side, or a UAE freezone visa, works the same way — it is the license that supports it, and you can sponsor family on it — spouse, children and in many cases parents. How many visas you can hold depends on your setup: free zone packages generally cap it, while on mainland it is usually driven by the size of your premises. The medical fitness test and Emirates ID biometrics generally require you to be in the UAE in person; the rest is handled while you are in Australia.

This is where most new companies stall, and it depends on your activity, your structure, your own background and how the file is presented. We prepare the application to the standard UAE banks expect and introduce you to banks that accept your profile — including a bank account for free zone company UAE setups, which some banks treat differently. Whether you open a business bank account UAE-side yourself or through us — and plenty of people search exactly that, how to open business bank account UAE — no consultant can guarantee a bank’s decision, and you should be wary of any who claims otherwise. What we can tell you honestly, on the first call, is whether your activity is one banks are currently comfortable with.

Corporate tax applies to UAE businesses on taxable profit above the relevant threshold, and VAT registration is currently required once taxable supplies and imports exceed a set threshold, or are expected to. Both are set by the Federal Tax Authority and can change. They sit with CZTA inside the same group, so registration and the accounting behind it are handled by the same people who set the company up. Your Australian tax position is a separate question and one for an Australian adviser.

Typically two to five working days for the license itself once documentation is complete and no external approval is outstanding. What extends it is everything around it — premises and tenancy registration if you are going mainland, and any external approvals your activity requires, where the regulator sets the timeline rather than us. Residence visas generally add a week or two after the license is issued, and need you in the UAE for part of it.

Yes — payment plans are available, so the cost can be spread rather than paid up front. Your advisor will set out the options alongside the itemised proposal, so you can see what the staged cost actually looks like rather than only the total.