Do I need a local Emirati partner?

No. Free zone companies have always allowed 100% foreign ownership, and since the 2021 reforms most mainland activities do too. A local service agent is still required for a small number of strategic activities.

Will I get a UAE bank account?

Bank onboarding is a separate compliance process run by the bank, not the free zone. Approval depends on the activity, the shareholder profile, and source of funds. We prepare the file and introduce it, but no adviser can guarantee a bank's decision.

All programs

Middle East · business

Dubai Free Zone Company & Investor Visa

100% foreign-owned Dubai company with 2-year renewable investor residency

Establish a free zone or mainland company in Dubai with full foreign ownership, then sponsor yourself and your family on a renewable investor visa. The fastest legitimate route to a UAE base, a corporate bank account, and 9% headline corporate tax with a 0% band on the first AED 375,000.

Program facts and figures reviewed 2026-08-27 by the Savory & Partners advisory desk. Government requirements can change without notice.

United Arab Emirates at a glance

Timeline

10–25 days

Visa-free access

Residency, no passport

Residence required

One entry every 6 months

Family included

Spouse, children, and parents (subject to salary and space criteria)

Programme open to new filingsCurrent processing: 10–25 daysCosts and rules verified 2026-08-27

Investment routes

Ways to qualify

Free zone company (flexi-desk)

$15k

Licence, flexi-desk lease, establishment card, and one investor visa allocation in a mainstream free zone such as IFZA, Meydan, DMCC, or RAKEZ.

Non-refundable

Mainland LLC

$28k

DED mainland licence with full foreign ownership for most activities, physical office lease, and multiple visa allocations.

Non-refundable

DIFC / ADGM regulated entity

$65k

Common-law financial free zone entity for funds, family offices, holding structures, and regulated advisory businesses.

Non-refundable

Fee terms

How we charge, on every file

Fixed and agreed in writing

Your professional fee is quoted in the engagement letter and payable in full on signature. It is fixed for the life of the file.

Government costs are never marked up

Contributions, due diligence, processing and passport fees are paid directly to the authority or its licensed agent at the published rate.

What is at risk

Due diligence charges are non-refundable once submitted. Contributions on most citizenship programs fall due only after approval in principle. Escrowed or asset-backed investment is recoverable subject to the program hold period.

When an extra fee applies

Only if you add a dependant after filing, switch programs, or a re-application is needed because of information that was not disclosed to us. Each is quoted before any work starts.

How you pay

Bank transfer in USD or AED to our corporate account. No cash, and government fees are never routed through personal accounts.

What the fee includes

A named senior adviser and a named case manager for the life of the file, reachable directly.
Eligibility and risk screening before a single document is collected, so nothing is filed that should not be.
The source of funds narrative drafted to the standard the authority expects, not a checklist handed back to you.
Collection, certification, apostille, legalisation and certified translation of every document, managed by us.
Filing directly with the authority as an authorized agent, with no third-party introducer in the chain.
Interview preparation and attendance where the program requires it.
Post-approval handling: contribution settlement, oath, passport collection and secure courier to your address.
A written status update every fortnight, and a same-day response on working days.

Fixed fee, never revised mid-file

Your professional fee is agreed in writing before any work begins and is fixed for the life of the file. No success fees, no hourly billing, no invoice you did not expect.

Government costs at cost, with receipts

Every contribution, due diligence, processing and passport charge is paid at the authority's published rate and evidenced with the receipt. We never mark up a government fee.

Pre-submission eligibility guarantee

If our screening concludes before submission that you are not fileable, the professional fee is refunded less work already performed, and that amount is stated as a number in your engagement letter.

Refusal cover

If a file we submitted is refused on grounds we assessed and cleared at engagement, we prepare and file an application on an alternative approved program at no further professional fee.

One adviser, start to passport

You are not passed between departments. The adviser who quotes your file is the adviser who signs off the passport delivery.

What we will never guarantee

Approval itself is a sovereign decision and no adviser can promise it. Any firm that guarantees approval is telling you something the authority has not agreed to.

Why it works

Program highlights

100% foreign ownership in every major Dubai free zone
2-year renewable investor/partner visa with Emirates ID
Corporate and personal UAE bank accounts
Qualifying free zone persons may retain a 0% corporate tax rate on qualifying income
Upgradeable to the 10-year Golden Visa as the business grows