Almost every advertised setup price covers the licence and nothing else. The number that matters is the first-year total: everything you must pay before the company can trade, employ and bank.

These are the line items. The amounts vary by zone, activity and headcount, which is why we quote them as one figure per client rather than as a package.

Formation costs

Paid once, at the start.

  • Trade name reservation and initial approval
  • Trade licence issue fee, priced by activity and by authority
  • Establishment card and immigration file opening
  • MOA drafting and notarisation, plus attestation for foreign corporate shareholders
  • Share certificates and, where used, nominee or corporate service fees

Premises

For a free zone company this is the flexi-desk or office package, and it is bundled into most zone pricing. For a mainland company it is a real lease plus Ejari registration, municipality fees and a deposit, and it is normally the largest single line in year one.

The visa quota is attached to this line, so it should be sized against headcount rather than against the minimum you can get away with.

Visas

Each residence visa carries an entry permit, status change, medical fitness test, Emirates ID and the stamping fee, plus a refundable deposit in some categories. Investor and employee visas are priced slightly differently.

Budget per person, not per company, and remember dependants are a separate cost with their own requirements.

Banking and compliance

Corporate accounts carry a minimum balance requirement, and falling below it triggers a monthly charge. Add corporate tax registration, VAT registration where the threshold is met, and bookkeeping for the year.

None of this is optional, and all of it is cheaper arranged upfront than retrofitted before a filing deadline.

Renewals, which arrive sooner than expected

Licence renewal, Ejari renewal, establishment card renewal and immigration file renewal all fall due at the twelve-month mark, and late renewal penalties in the UAE accrue automatically.

Plan year two before the end of month nine, so the renewal is a payment rather than an emergency.

How we quote it

We give one first-year figure covering licence, premises, visas, banking support and compliance, with the assumptions written down beside it. If your headcount or activity changes, the assumptions change and so does the number, visibly.

That is deliberate. A cheap licence with four undisclosed line items behind it is not a saving.