The things founders ask us before they commit

Choose your business activity and structure (mainland, free zone or offshore), select a trade name, prepare legal documents such as the MOA, secure office space, submit your application, and collect your licence. ADOR handles every stage end to end.

Over 20 years of experience, 25+ registered free zone partnerships, and 10,000+ companies formed. We offer direct government access, transparent pricing and end-to-end support. More than 75% of our clients come through referrals.

A free zone company gives 100% foreign ownership with tax benefits inside a designated zone. A mainland company can trade anywhere in the UAE and with government entities. An offshore company suits international business and asset protection, with no UAE physical presence required.

Yes. The UAE allows 100% foreign ownership for most business activities in both free zones and many mainland sectors. We identify eligible activities and register you under the right jurisdiction.

On average a free zone or mainland company can be registered within 3 to 10 working days once documents are ready. We speed this up by managing documentation, approvals and coordination with government departments.

Passport copies of shareholders and managers, visa or entry stamp copies, residence visa and Emirates ID if you are a UAE resident, proof of address, and trade name options. We prepare and submit everything on your behalf.

Yes. We provide complete visa services including investor, partner and employee visas - entry permits, medical testing, Emirates ID registration and visa stamping.

Yes. We work with leading UAE banks to assist with corporate account opening, including documentation, bank interviews and compliance requirements.

If your annual taxable turnover exceeds AED 375,000, VAT registration with the Federal Tax Authority is mandatory. We provide guidance on registration, compliance and bookkeeping from day one.

UAE corporate tax applies at 9% on taxable profit above AED 375,000. Qualifying free zone entities may access a 0% rate on qualifying income where they meet the substance and other conditions. We assess your position before you incorporate.

Most free zone companies are registered within three to seven business days once documents are submitted. Some premium fast-track options complete in one to two days.

Free zone companies trade internationally and within their designated zone. To sell into the UAE mainland you generally need a local distributor, a commercial agent or a mainland branch.

Many free zones have no minimum capital requirement. Certain licences and regulated activities require a minimum share capital, which varies by zone and activity.

Most free zones offer virtual office or flexi-desk packages where dedicated physical space is not required, which reduces both setup and running costs. Your visa quota is linked to the package you take.

It depends on your activity list, your visa count, whether you need warehousing, and who your customers are. IFZA and SHAMS suit trading and e-commerce, DMCC suits commodities, DIC and DSO suit technology, and JAFZA suits logistics.

No. Under the updated UAE Commercial Companies Law most activities allow 100% foreign ownership without a local sponsor. A small number of strategic activities still carry local participation requirements.

Yes. Mainland companies trade freely within free zones and anywhere in the UAE, which gives them broader market access than a free zone entity.

It depends on the activity, the visa count and the office requirement. We quote licence, office, visas and first-year compliance as a single figure before you commit, so there is no drip of extra fees.

Yes. Mainland companies need physical office space registered with Ejari. The minimum size depends on your activity and the number of visas you need.

The quota is driven by office size, roughly one visa per nine square metres of Ejari-registered space, subject to activity and Ministry of Human Resources approval.

Offshore companies cannot trade inside the UAE and need no physical presence or residency. Free zone companies operate within their zone, can sponsor visas and may have office requirements. Offshore suits holdings and asset protection.

No. Offshore formation can be completed remotely. All documents are processed through our team without you travelling, subject to notarised and attested KYC.

Yes, though the process is more stringent than for an onshore entity. We work with partner banks and prepare the file, including evidence of the underlying business activity.

Yes. UAE offshore companies are legally registered entities recognised internationally and widely used for international trade, holding structures and asset protection. They are subject to UBO disclosure and AML rules.

No. An offshore company does not carry a visa quota. If you need UAE residency, a free zone or mainland structure is the right route, and the two can be combined.

A corporate service provider handles the administrative and regulatory obligations that sit on a company once it exists: acting as registered agent, keeping statutory registers, filing beneficial ownership information, renewing the licence, and meeting tax and anti-money-laundering requirements. Incorporation is the start of that relationship rather than the whole of it.

Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions include real estate agents, dealers in precious metals and stones, auditors, and company service providers. If your activity falls inside that list you carry anti-money-laundering obligations of your own - a documented risk assessment, a written policy, goAML registration and trained staff. We assess your activity list and tell you which side of the line you sit on.

UAE companies must identify their ultimate beneficial owners, maintain a register, and notify the licensing authority of changes within the period that authority sets - commonly 15 days. The obligation is ongoing, not a one-off at incorporation, and it is the change filings that are most often missed.

They apply only if you carry on a relevant activity, such as distribution and service centre work, headquarters, holding company or intellectual property business. Where they apply, a notification and often a report are due each financial year. We assess first, because many companies file unnecessarily and some fail to file at all.

Penalties begin accruing immediately and escalate, the establishment card and visas tied to the licence are affected, and banks may restrict the account while the entity is not in good standing. Reinstating a lapsed licence costs considerably more than renewing one on time.

Yes. We start with the health check, identify anything outstanding, and manage the transfer of the agent of record where the authority requires it. Switching provider is routine and does not disturb the licence itself.

They do different jobs. The memorandum is the constitutional document filed with the authority and is deliberately brief. A shareholder agreement is the private contract between owners covering the things that cause disputes - how decisions are made, what happens when someone wants out, how a deadlock is broken, and what a departing shareholder may and may not do next.

It depends which regime your entity sits under. Onshore UAE labour law, DIFC and ADGM each have their own employment rules, and a contract written for one can be unenforceable in another. The clauses that usually fail are notice, probation, end-of-service and post-employment restrictions.

Both are financial free zones with their own common-law systems and English-language courts - DIFC in Dubai, ADGM in Abu Dhabi. ADGM applies English common law directly, while DIFC has enacted its own body of law modelled on it. In practice the choice usually comes down to the specific vehicle you need, the registrar's requirements for it, and where the rest of your business sits.

A special purpose vehicle holds one thing - a property, a shareholding, an aircraft, a financing arrangement - and does nothing else. Keeping each asset in its own vehicle contains risk and makes it far simpler to sell, pledge or transfer that asset later without disturbing anything around it.

A foundation is a legal person that owns assets in its own name and is run by a council under a charter. A trust is a relationship in which trustees hold assets for beneficiaries. Foundations are often preferred by families from civil-law countries, where the trust concept is unfamiliar, because the structure looks and behaves like a company.

Vehicles such as ADGM SPVs and DIFC prescribed companies must maintain a registered agent and a registered address rather than taking their own premises. We act in that role, receive what the registrar sends, and keep the entity's filings current.

These entities operate within their own jurisdiction and internationally. Selling into the mainland market generally requires a separate mainland presence, a branch or a distributor - which is why these structures suit holding, investment and professional activity rather than local trading.

No. The threshold that matters is complexity rather than size: several assets in different countries, more than one generation involved, or an operating business alongside private investments. Where those apply, formal governance usually saves more than it costs.