Myth
A free zone company can sell to UAE customers.
Reality
Not directly. A free zone company needs a local distributor to sell into the UAE. Only mainland has direct market access.
Dubai Mainland Specialists
Dubai Mainland Company Setup
Set up a DET-licensed company and trade anywhere in the UAE, with 100% ownership, no local sponsor and one fixed quote.
- Licensed by DETOperate across all 7 emirates
- 100% foreign ownershipOn most activities, no local sponsor
- Physical office with EjariRequired, and it sets your visa quota
15+YEARS
SINCE 2009
SINCE 2009
10,000+CLIENT
ENGAGEMENTS
ENGAGEMENTS
50+NATIONALITIES
SERVED
SERVED
4.8GOOGLE
RATING
RATING
ISOCERTIFIED
PRACTICE
PRACTICE
Trusted by 100+ major brands across the UAE and globally
Mainland Setup
What is a Dubai mainland company?
A business licensed by the Department of Economy and Tourism, formerly the Department of Economic Development (DED). It trades anywhere in the UAE, sells straight to the local market, and bids for government contracts. No distributor sits in the middle.
A free zone company cannot sell into the UAE market without an agent. A mainland company can.
One licence lets you open a shop, sign a public sector contract, and run branches across all seven emirates.
DETLicensing authority
100%Foreign ownership, most activities
7Emirates, trade anywhere
The fit check
Is mainland the right setup for your business?
Mainland is a popular choice as it comes with a lot of benefits, but it is not right for everyone. People usually choose mainland if their needs match one or more of the following.
Recommended
A strong fit6 signs
Mainland is right if
- Sell directly to UAE customers or businessesTrade with the local market, no distributor between.
- Plan to bid for government tenders or contractsOnly mainland companies are eligible for public sector work.
- Need a shop, restaurant or clinic open to allPremises serving walk-in customers need mainland.
- Are hiring a team of three or more in the UAEYour visa quota grows with your office, not a cap.
- Want the strongest credibility with UAE banksA mainland licence improves your odds in compliance review.
- Plan to open branches in more than one emirateRun branches across all seven emirates from one licence.
Maybe not6 signs
It may not be, if
- Serve only clients based outside the UAENo UAE market access needed, so the reach is wasted.
- Run a fully remote or digital-only businessA flexi-desk in a free zone covers this at lower cost.
- Are testing an idea with no UAE sales yetValidate first, then move to mainland when you sell locally.
- Need one or two visas and little elseA fixed free zone package is usually cheaper at this size.
- Are working to a tight first-year budgetFree zone costs less up front, with no office rule.
- Are happy to sell through a distributorA local partner can reach the UAE market on your behalf.
Alternatively, consider a free zone if you serve only overseas clients, run a fully remote or digital business, are testing an idea with no UAE sales yet, need one or two visas and little else, or are working to a tight first-year budget. Read the full breakdown on mainland vs free zone.
Misconceptions
What people get wrong about mainland
Six claims that still circulate in Dubai setup advice, corrected against what DET and the federal law actually say.
Myth
Mainland means giving up 51% to an Emirati partner.
Reality
Not since 2021. Ownership is 100% on mainland, free zone and offshore alike. What separates them is market access, not shares.
Myth
Mainland companies pay no corporate tax.
Reality
It pays 9% on profit above AED 375,000, and 0% below it. Registration with the Federal Tax Authority is mandatory even at nil income.
Myth
A virtual address is enough to hold the licence.
Reality
It is not. A physical office with a registered Ejari contract comes before the licence, and that office sets your visa allocation.
Myth
Paperwork can wait until the licence is moving.
Reality
Documents from outside the UAE take about 3 to 6 weeks to attest. A missing attestation is the commonest reason a setup stalls.
Myth
Offshore is just a cheaper free zone.
Reality
It is a different instrument. An offshore company is a holding vehicle with no UAE trading rights, so it cannot invoice locally.
Company structures
Which mainland structure should you register?
Most mainland businesses register as an LLC. Before DET issues your licence you confirm the legal form of the company, and it sets your ownership, your liability, and how many visas you can sponsor, so it pays to choose it right at the start. Four structures cover almost every mainland business.
If you are1 to 50 shareholders, 100% foreign ownership on most activities, liability limited to the company, no local partner neededRecommendedLLC, the default for trading and commercial businessesIf you areOne owner with full control and profit. A Local Service Agent applies to professional activities, holds no equity, and takes only a fixed annual feeRecommendedSole EstablishmentIf you areTwo or more professional partners in fields such as law, medicine and engineering. A Local Service Agent applies in most casesRecommendedCivil CompanyIf you areAn extension of a parent company doing the same activity, registered through the Ministry of EconomyRecommendedBranch of a Foreign CompanyIf you areManaging assets and ownership across entitiesRecommendedHolding Company
License types
What activities can you register, and which need extra approvals?
DET lists more than 2,100 activities across commercial, professional and industrial licences. You can group several on one licence, though the fee depends on the activity group, not a flat rate per activity.
Your license
Commercial License
Buying, selling, importing and distributing. General trading sits here.
Apply for this licenseAt a glance
Typical activitiesRetail, import/export, e-commerce, general trading
Local agentNot required
ApprovalsStandard DET issuance
Most activities are cleared by DET alone, but some need a second authority first: healthcare needs Dubai Health Authority (DHA) approval, education goes through KHDA, food and beverage needs Dubai Municipality food safety approval, financial services need the Central Bank or the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA), legal services register with the Ministry of Justice, and real estate brokerage needs RERA registration on top of the trade licence. Miss one and your launch slips by weeks. We confirm the exact DET codes and any second approval before anything is submitted.
How much does a Dubai mainland company cost in 2026?
Indicative 2026 ranges, before office rent, itemised before you commit.
Year one, standard setupAED 15,000 to 35,000Indicative market figures for 2026, not a fixed price. Government fees, office rent and visa costs repeat each year, so budget for the renewal and not only the setup.
Solo professionalAED 15,000 to 24,000A professional licence, a serviced desk and one investor visa
Standard commercialAED 20,000 to 30,000A commercial licence, a small office and one or two visas
Regulated or largerAED 35,000 and upExtra approvals, a bigger office and more visas
Inside the range
- Trade name reservation, around AED 620
- Initial approval, roughly AED 150 to 250
- DET trade licence, about AED 10,000 to 15,000 by activity group
- MOA notarisation, about AED 1,500 to 3,500 for LLCs by shareholder count
- Ejari registration, around AED 220
On top of it
- Market fee at 5% of annual office rent, added to the licence each year
- Establishment card, about AED 1,200 to 2,000
- Investor visa, roughly AED 3,500 to 6,000 per person
- A non-Arabic trade name, roughly AED 2,000 more
Bank opening
Opening a UAE business bank account
A mainland licence improves your odds with UAE banks, but it does not guarantee approval. Banks assess your business model, your shareholders and your source of funds on their own terms. A resident applicant usually clears in 2 to 4 weeks, a non-resident in 6 to 12.
01
Match the bank to your business
We match your profile to the bank most likely to say yes, rather than applying everywhere at once.
02
Prepare the full file
Shareholder documents, business plan and source-of-funds evidence, ready before you apply.
03
Submit and manage to approval
The bank runs its KYC checks and we manage the application through to account activation. A clean file moves faster.
Banks DMCS has a track record opening accounts with
You don't apply and hope. You apply with a structure built to clear review.
The process
How to set up a mainland company in Dubai
Most setups finish in about 10 to 20 working days, while regulated activities run 2 to 8 weeks. Here are the steps to start a mainland company in Dubai.
- Critical stage
Activity and structure
Your activity sets your licence type, visa quota and approvals. We confirm the DET codes and the right structure first.
Trade name reservation
Three name choices go to DET. No religious, political or offensive words, and nothing already taken. Approval usually lands within about a day.
- Critical stage
Initial DET approval
DET gives the green light to proceed. Do not sign an office lease before this.
MOA and Ejari
The Memorandum of Association is drafted, signed and notarised. Your tenancy is signed and registered on Ejari at the same time.
Licence issuance
Documents go to DET and your digital trade licence is issued. Regulated activities run their sector approvals in parallel.
Card, visas and bank
The establishment card comes first, then investor and staff visas through GDRFA, and we prepare your bank application alongside.
Helping founders around the world
Why DMCS
Mainland is all we do, and that is why the file clears
Most firms sell every jurisdiction and know none of them deeply. We file mainland applications through DET every week, so we know which activity codes stall, which office types cap your visa quota, and which combinations a bank questions later. That is repetition, not a pitch.
What generalists miss most
Mainland only
We do not sell free zones, offshore, or whatever pays best this month. Mainland is the whole desk, so the DET rules that decide your file are the rules we work in daily.
01
Itemized quote, not a teaser
Every fee shown before you commit, including Ejari and the DET market fee competitors often add back later. What we quote is what you pay.
02
Structured for the bank before filing
We do not promise a guaranteed account, no honest firm can. We build the file to what banks actually check in compliance review, before submission, not after a rejection.
03
One desk, full lifecycle
15+ years of direct DED and DET filings. Renewals, amendments, visas, and compliance stay with the same contact from setup to year five.
Core Capabilities
What We Handle on the Mainland
Direct routes to our money pages and core specialist structures.
Mainland Company Formation
LLC, sole establishment, branch, civil company, holding, subsidiary. The right legal structure for your activity, licensed correctly the first time, with 100% ownership where it applies.
The full desk02
Trade Licenses
Commercial, professional, and industrial DET trade licenses, including activity-specific setup. License fees commonly run AED 7,500 to 15,000 before approvals.
03
Corporate Bank Account
A trade license does not get you a bank account. We build the application around what Emirates NBD, ADCB, FAB, and others actually approve, and tell you the odds upfront.
04
Mainland Visas
Investor, partner, employee, and dependent visas via GDRFA and ICP, typically AED 3,000 to 6,000 each, with realistic quota and timeline guidance.
05
PRO and Government Liaison
Document clearing and approvals across DET, MOHRE, GDRFA, ICP, the FTA, and MOFA attestation.
06
Accounting, VAT and Corporate Tax
Bookkeeping, 5% VAT filing, UBO registration, and corporate tax filing under the post-2023 9% regime.
Not sure which you need?
Tell us the activity and we will map it to the licence, the office and the visa count.
See every mainland serviceIndustries
Every activity carries its own DET code and its own banking risk
A general trading license does not clear the same bank review as a consultancy license. We match your activity to the exact DET code and structure the file for how that sector's compliance review actually runs, before we submit, not after a rejection.
View all 2,000+ activities2,000+DET-approvedactivities we can file under, each mapped to its own approval path
Other Emirates
Mainland Setup Beyond Dubai
Our focus is Dubai mainland, but the same desk can advise on mainland formation across the other emirates, each with its own DED equivalent and rules.
Real results from our clients
What our clients say about working with us
Real Google reviews from founders we have set up and kept compliant on the Dubai mainland.
A
Abdul Sami3 months ago
Thank you to the team for supporting us with our company setup. Our case was not straightforward, especially the bank account opening, but they stayed committed and got it done.
P
Paolo Chua8 months ago
I had a great experience opening a corporate bank account. The process was smooth and efficient. The staff were friendly, professional, and explained everything clearly.
A
Amy Elliott Dunne4 months ago
The accounting and bookkeeping service has been exceptional. Attention to detail is impressive, and communication is always clear. Tasks are handled promptly.
R
Rashed Al Falasi5 months ago
They confirmed our activity grouping before filing and flagged an issue the bank would have raised. Licensed in under two weeks with no surprises on the invoice.
M
Marwa Khalil2 months ago
We came for a mainland LLC and stayed for renewals and PRO work. The same team answers the phone after the license is issued, which is rare here.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Ready to set up your Dubai mainland company?
Tell us your activity and we map your licence, cost and timeline in one free call. No obligation, just a clear plan and a fixed quote.
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