UAE Free Zone & Mainland Company Incorporation

Free zones (FZE/FZCO) give you 100% foreign ownership, 0% corporate tax on qualifying income, and setup in 3–7 days, but they can't trade directly on the mainland without a local distributor. Mainland LLCs under a DED licence trade everywhere and bid on government tenders, and since 2021 they allow 100% foreign ownership across most activities. For holding and export structures, take a free zone; for work inside the UAE, the mainland.

Yes, in both formats. Free zone companies have always been 100% foreign-owned; on the mainland, Federal Law No. 26 of 2020 removed the mandatory 51% UAE-national stake for over 1,000 activities. The RAK ICC offshore also allows 100% ownership with no UAE residency requirement. Exceptions remain for certain strategic sectors.

A free zone trade licence takes 3–7 business days; DMCC states the whole process takes 2–3 weeks, and mainland DED licensing runs 7–15 days. The steps that follow — visa (5–10 days), Emirates ID (7–14 days), bank account (2–6 weeks) — stretch the total to 4–8 weeks. INNOVA runs the stages in parallel, not one after another.

DMCC (Dubai Multi Commodities Centre) is a UAE federal free zone in the Jumeirah Lakes Towers district of Dubai, with more than 26,000 member companies according to DMCC. In 2023 the Financial Times' fDi Magazine named it Global Free Zone of the Year for a ninth consecutive year, as DMCC announced. The zone offers 100+ activity categories, flexi-desk and full offices, and direct access to Dubai's financial and commodities markets. Annual licence renewal starts at AED 10,000.

Free zone setup: from AED 8,000–15,000 for a basic RAKEZ or IFZA licence up to AED 20,000–50,000 for DMCC or ADGM, office rent aside; mainland DED licences usually run AED 10,000–25,000. Government fees, notarisation, and visas add AED 3,000–8,000 per person. INNOVA gives a fixed quote covering all government charges and a registered office.