Dubai Science Park Company Setup 2026: DDA Licences, Labs, Pharma Approvals, Costs and Visas

Dubai Science Park company setup is the process of registering a free zone limited liability company (FZ-LLC) or a branch with the Dubai Development Authority to work in TECOM Group’s science district in Al Barsha South, Dubai, which serves pharmaceutical, medical device, diagnostics, fragrance, food, energy and environmental science businesses. DDA regulates the zone under Dubai Law No. 1 of 2000 as amended and Law No. 15 of 2014 on the Creative Clusters; the licence categories, fees and capital rules sit in DDA Decision No. 1 of 2021.

The park started life in 2005 as DuBiotech and took its current name in October 2015, when TECOM merged DuBiotech with the Energy and Environment Park (EnPark). Its own figures, published in February 2026, are “over 90 laboratories” and more than 6,500 professionals. That lab stock is the reason most founders look here rather than at a general free zone.

This guide explains who licenses a Dubai Science Park company, which segments fit which science businesses, the documents and fees, labs and warehouses, the Dubai Science Park visa rules, the regulators you meet after the licence, tax and mainland trading. It is part of our series on Dubai free zones and our wider guide to free zones in the UAE. If you want the whole file run for you, our free zone company setup support covers licence, lease, visas and approvals.

Dubai Science Park at a glance

Every row below is taken from an official page and dated. Where two official pages disagree, both appear.

Who licenses a Dubai Science Park company: DDA, TECOM and axs

Three names appear on every Dubai Science Park company file, and founders often mix them up.

The Dubai Development Authority is the regulator. It registers companies and branches, issues the licence and enforces the rules. DDA says it “was established pursuant to the Law No. 1 of 2000 and its amendments”; Law No. 15 of 2014 renamed its zone the Dubai Creative Clusters, and Law No. 10 of 2018 changed the authority’s name to DDA. The same authority licenses all of TECOM’s communities, so a Dubai Science Park licence and a Dubai Internet City licence share one rulebook, with different segments.

TECOM Group is the developer and landlord. It leases the offices, labs and units and runs the sales team; DDA’s cards tell applicants to approach the business community that matches their activity.

axs is the service platform. Applications, renewals and every Dubai Science Park visa transaction run through the axs portal, TECOM’s “servicing arm”.

The key rulebook is DDA Decision No. 1 of 2021 on licence categories. It lists ten business units, including “DSP”, and sets each one’s segments, annual fees, activity limits and capital minimums. Company law comes from the Dubai Creative Clusters Private Companies Regulations 2016 (the “PCR”); penalties from Decision No. 2 of 2017 and Schedule 4 of Decision No. 1 of 2021.

What the Dubai Science Park free zone is known for

The Dubai Science Park free zone is the only DDA community whose licence categories are written for science. Decision No. 1 of 2021 gives it two parts of its own: Part Eight covers life sciences (therapeutics, food, agriculture, environment, medical and scientific devices, specialty supplies, diagnostics, life science services, associations and conformity assessment), and Part Nine covers energy and environmental technology (renewable and conventional energy, energy efficiency, air, water, recycling, transport, green building and organic products).

The Dubai Science Park free zone names its own anchor tenants. Its home page and FAQ list Pfizer, Medtronic, Olympus, Mettler Toledo and First Solar; its February 2026 anniversary release adds AstraZeneca, Boston Scientific, Himalaya Wellness, ThermoFisher Scientific, Jotun’s R&D laboratory, DSM-Firmenich’s creation and development centre, IFF’s Scent Dubai creative centre and Clariant. A June 2026 release describes a leadership forum held with the Emirates Drug Establishment, the federal medicines regulator.

Three things set it apart from rival zones:

• Purpose-built labs. A LEED Silver laboratory complex with exhaust, “acid-resistant drainage, and a pH neutralization system”. Few free zones lease wet labs at all.
• A regulatory bridge for pharma offices. The FAQ says the park signed a memorandum with the Ministry of Health so tenants can seek “scientific office approval” for their premises; that function now sits with the Emirates Drug Establishment.
• A fragrance and flavour cluster of global creation centres.

What it is not: a place to treat patients. For clinics, compare our Dubai Healthcare City company setup guide.

Legal forms for a Dubai Science Park company

DDA offers three routes for a Dubai Science Park company, and the park’s FAQ lists a fourth with a caveat. The choice decides liability, capital and documents.

The PCR adds the officers. Every FZ-LLC must have at least one director, who must be at least 21 (Reg. 70), and a general manager who is a natural person named on the licence (Reg. 74). A secretary is optional and can be one of the directors (Reg. 75). The general manager is responsible for the registers of members and directors unless the articles say otherwise.

A note on freelancing. Decision No. 1 of 2021 creates freelancer segments only in Internet City, Media City, Knowledge Park and Design District; none is a science segment (see case 5).

Dubai Science Park licence segments and activities

DDA issues every Dubai Science Park licence by segment. You choose a segment, then pick activities from inside it up to the limit the decision sets. Adding activities from the same segment costs nothing more (Art. 10.4); adding a second segment costs AED 10,000 a year when that segment is a standard AED 15,000 one (Art. 10.1). The full list is DDA’s “permitted business activities” document, which is Decision No. 1 of 2021 itself.

Three rules in the decision catch science founders out:

• Manufacturing is approved separately. Adding a manufacturing activity (for example 23.1.4) needs DDA’s prior approval and the full fee (Art. 10.2).
• A regional HQ cannot trade. Segment 26.5 “may not carry out any trading activity from the Zone”.
• Customs is chosen at licensing. Art. 3.6 offers a free zone customs code, a local code (duty paid on arrival) or none, in which case you “may not import any goods”.

Cosmetics, beauty products and fragrances production (Activity 25.2.12) is a Dubai Design District activity that “also applies to Dubai Science Park”, which is why fragrance houses with labs choose the Dubai Science Park free zone over d3.

Approvals beyond the DDA licence: EDE, DHA, Dubai Municipality and Customs

A Dubai Science Park licence lets you exist and lease space. It does not let you make, store, import or sell a regulated product. Decision No. 1 of 2021 says so directly: the licence “does not exempt the Licensee from having to obtain any other permit, licence or approval” (Art. 2.15). For a science business this second track is usually the longer one.

MOHAP’s transfer notice lists what moved to the Emirates Drug Establishment: licensing of pharmaceutical factories, warehouses, medical stores and marketing offices, product registration, and research entities such as biobanks. The DSP FAQ still links the old MOHAP page; use ede.gov.ae for current requirements and fees.

Dubai Science Park company setup, step by step

This is the order that works for a Dubai Science Park company. DDA publishes time frames for its own steps; where none is published we say so.

1. Confirm the segment and activities. Match your business to a DSP segment in Decision No. 1 of 2021, check the activity limit, and flag any external approval. No fee. No official time.
2. Choose space and get an offer. DDA licences are “subject to leasing a facility” in the zone, so the TECOM sales team issues an offer for an office, co-working desk, lab, light industrial unit or warehouse. Size decides your visa allocation (one per 80 sq ft). Rent is not published.
3. Apply on axs. Select “Set up your business”, upload the documents listed below and pay the invoice. DDA’s service card sets 10 working days for Stage 1 (provisional approval).
4. Obtain external NOCs where Art. 8 applies and sign the lease. The DDA card lists “NOC from external authorities” as a required document for corporate and branch applications where applicable.
5. Stage 2: registration. DDA’s card sets 2 working days. You receive the certificate of incorporation, commercial licence, register of directors and the articles of association (FZ-LLC only). Registration fee AED 3,500 plus the segment’s licence fee plus AED 10 Knowledge Dirham and AED 10 Innovation Dirham.
6. Immigration establishment card through axs, lodged with GDRFA Dubai. GDRFA publishes a 48-hour completion time for its card; axs processing time is not published.
7. Each Dubai Science Park visa: entry permit or change of status, medical test, Emirates ID and residence, all on axs.
8. Corporate bank account. Banks usually want the licence, lease and establishment card first.
9. Tax and beneficial owner filings: corporate tax registration within three months of incorporation (FTA Decision No. 3 of 2024), VAT if you cross the threshold, and beneficial owner data kept at the registered office and supplied to DDA on demand (Decision No. 1 of 2021, Art. 2.11; Cabinet Decision No. 109 of 2023).
10. Product and facility approvals (EDE, DHA, Dubai Municipality) and your customs code, in parallel with steps 6 to 9.

The park’s FAQ gives a shorter clock for steps 3 to 5: “it usually takes 7 working days” (4 for initial approval, 3 for the licence). We plan on DDA’s 12 working days, the regulator’s own number, and treat 7 as the best case.

Documents required for Dubai Science Park company setup

These lists come from DDA’s service cards for a Dubai Science Park company or branch. The park may ask for more, such as a business plan for lab tenants.

Individual shareholders, directors and general manager

• DDA application form.
• Valid passport copies of each shareholder, director and the general manager, with the UAE residence visa page if any.
• Resolution for the incorporation of an FZ-LLC (DDA template).
• Declaration of appointment as general manager, if the manager already holds a valid UAE visa.
• Power of attorney for a legal representative, “notarized and attested up to the level of the UAE Embassy”, if someone else applies for you.

Corporate shareholders and branches

• Certificate of incorporation of each corporate shareholder or parent.
• Certificate of continuity, existence or good standing.
• Memorandum and articles of association of the parent.
• Resolution to incorporate the FZ-LLC or register the branch; DDA’s note says it must be “Notarized by Notary Public & Attested by UAE Embassy”.
• For a branch of a UAE company: the parent’s valid DED/DET trade licence.
• NOC from the external authority where Art. 8 of the decision applies.

A foreign branch may also be asked for two years’ audited accounts and a power of attorney for its representative (PCR Reg. 91.1), and must file its home-country annual return each year (Reg. 93.1.3).

Documents issued abroad follow the legalisation chain: notary, foreign ministry, UAE embassy, then the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with an Arabic translation if asked. Our document attestation service handles the UAE end. For the beneficial owner, keep a register showing every individual who ultimately owns or controls the company; DDA can demand it and fines AED 5,000 if you cannot produce it (Schedule 4). Our UBO register guide explains who counts.

Dubai Science Park licence cost: the official fee lines

The Dubai Science Park free zone, like every TECOM community, does not publish a package price. Its FAQ says only that pricing is “competitive and in alignment with prevailing market rates”. What DDA does publish are the regulator’s own fees. The table lists them with their source; we checked each on 26 September 2026.

So the regulator’s first-year floor is AED 18,520 (3,500 + 15,000 + 20) for a non-manufacturing FZ-LLC and AED 28,520 for a manufacturing segment, before rent, fit-out, visas, approvals and attestation. The PCR table dates from 2017 and is still published; your axs invoice is final.

Not published anywhere we could read: rents, service charges, axs fees and deposits on each Dubai Science Park visa, and EDE, DHA or municipality approval costs. Any single Dubai Science Park company setup price has assumed all of these; ask to see them line by line.

Offices, labs, light industrial units and warehouses in Dubai Science Park

Space is a licensing condition, not an extra: every Dubai Science Park licence needs a registered office stated on it (Decision No. 1 of 2021, Art. 2.6), and TECOM’s FAQs say DDA licences “are subject to leasing a facility”.

The visa arithmetic is ours (area divided by 80, rounded down) and shows a ceiling: axs approves each Dubai Science Park visa, and industrial space may be assessed differently. The minimum lease is one year (the DSP answer names Dubai Internet City, a sign that TECOM’s FAQs share a template).

Lab units are delivered shell and core; budget time for fit-out approvals from DDA, the planning authority, before the product regulator inspects.

Dubai Science Park company setup: how MIRDXB PRO helps

We are an independent business setup and PRO consultancy in Al Barsha 1, near the park, and an Amer and Tasheel partner. We are not the Dubai Development Authority, TECOM Group or a listed partner of the Dubai Science Park free zone; we work for you. Our job is to make the licence, lease, visas and product approvals line up, so you do not pay rent on a lab you cannot yet use.

Still comparing options? See our overview of business setup in Dubai.

What we do for a Dubai Science Park company setup

• Segment and approvals check. We map your products and services to the right DSP segment and activities, and list the EDE, DHA, Dubai Municipality and customs steps that follow.
• Document pack. Resolutions on DDA’s templates, attestation of foreign corporate documents, powers of attorney and translations.
• The axs application through Stage 1 and Stage 2, the establishment card and each Dubai Science Park visa.
• After the licence: corporate tax registration, beneficial owner register, bank account file, and a renewal and compliance calendar.

How it works

1. Message us on WhatsApp with your activity, products, shareholders and headcount.
2. We reply in writing with the route, the documents, the published fees and our own fee.
3. You approve, sign the power of attorney if you are abroad, and we start.
4. We report at each step and hand over every official receipt.

What it costs

DDA, GDRFA and other government fees are passed on at cost, on the official receipt. TECOM’s rent is between you and TECOM. Our fee depends on the form, the number of shareholders and visas, and whether a product regulator is involved, and is always quoted in writing before we start; see our fees page for how we price.

Why founders use us

• We publish our sources and say when official pages disagree.
• We tell you when a Dubai Science Park licence is the wrong tool, for example when a mainland distributor would do.
• We cover the whole chain, licence to visas to tax.
• Our office in Al Barsha 1 is open Monday to Thursday and Saturday 09:00 to 18:00, and Friday 09:00 to 12:00. For the wider service, see our business setup service.

Dubai Science Park visa and residency

A Dubai Science Park visa is sponsored by the company but processed by the free zone. The park’s FAQ says visas are one of the services its “Government Services Department” issues, and DDA-licensed companies “avail visa service from the axs portal”. GDRFA Dubai, the emirate’s immigration authority, issues the residence itself; the file number on a Dubai visa starts with 2. The employee is not registered with MOHRE, because the free zone, not the ministry, holds the employment file; Federal Decree-Law No. 33 of 2021 still governs the employment relationship, and DDA lists it among the laws that apply.

How many Dubai Science Park visa slots you get

The quota follows the lease: “a company can sponsor one employee per 80 sq. ft. of the leased space” (DSP FAQ). A 400 sq ft office supports up to five visas; a 6,400 sq ft warehouse up to eighty. In5 start-ups get “preferential” visa entitlement under their own policy (Schedule 1).

The sequence for each Dubai Science Park visa

1. Establishment (immigration) card for the company, through axs.
2. Entry permit, or change of status for someone already in the UAE.
3. Medical fitness test in Dubai.
4. Emirates ID application and biometrics.
5. Residence visa, now issued electronically and linked to the Emirates ID.

Neither DDA nor the park publishes per-visa fees or times for axs. The in5 schedule’s “reduced visa cost of AED 1,500” and “zero deposit” imply the standard charge is higher and a deposit normally applies.

Shareholders, families and Golden Visas

• Shareholders and the general manager can be sponsored by the company on the same quota. There is no separate “investor visa” price in DDA’s published documents.
• Family: the FAQ answers “Can I sponsor my family and/or domestic help?” with “Yes”, through axs. The sponsor’s own salary and housing conditions follow GDRFA rules.
• Golden Visa: shareholders with company capital (or a share) of at least AED 2 million can apply as investors; scientists can apply with a nomination. See our Golden investor visa service.

If you are weighing a Dubai Science Park visa against a mainland one, our free zone vs mainland visa guide sets out the differences, and our free zone visa service runs the files.

Opening a bank account for a Dubai Science Park company

UAE banks treat a Dubai Science Park company like any free zone company, but look hard at regulated products. Expect to provide the licence, certificate of incorporation, articles, register of directors and shareholders, lease, establishment card, passports and visas of signatories, a beneficial owner chart, the source of the capital, and a description of your suppliers and customers. For pharma, device and food businesses, banks often ask whether the EDE or municipality approval is in place, because it tells them the product flow is legitimate. A lab or warehouse lease helps show substance.

Capital matters here: the PCR requires the share capital to be fully paid and, unless the Registrar agrees otherwise, subscribed in cash, and the Registrar may ask for a bank reference to verify its source (Reg. 25.4 and 25.5). Our corporate bank account guide covers documents and timelines in detail.

Corporate tax, VAT and customs for a Dubai Science Park company

Law No. 15 of 2014 still says zone establishments are exempt from “all taxes, including income tax” for 50 years (Art. 17). That promise does not override federal law. The UAE Corporate Tax Law applies to free zone companies, which register with the Federal Tax Authority like any other company.

• Rate: 0% on taxable income up to AED 375,000 and 9% above, unless the company is a Qualifying Free Zone Person.
• Qualifying Free Zone Person (0% on qualifying income): adequate substance in the zone, audited accounts, arm’s-length pricing, no election into the standard regime, and qualifying income from qualifying activities, with non-qualifying revenue within the de minimis limit of 5% of total revenue or AED 5 million, whichever is lower (Cabinet Decision No. 100 of 2023). The activity list is now in Ministerial Decision No. 229 of 2025, which replaced Ministerial Decision No. 265 of 2023 with effect from 1 June 2023.
• What this means for a Dubai Science Park company: “manufacturing of goods or materials” and “processing of goods or materials” are qualifying activities, so a DSP manufacturer selling to distributors can qualify. Sales to natural persons are excluded activities, R&D or consultancy services to third parties are not on the qualifying list, and “distribution in designated zones” does not help because DSP is not a designated zone.
• Registration: within three months of incorporation (FTA Decision No. 3 of 2024); late penalty AED 10,000. Small Business Relief is not available to Qualifying Free Zone Persons.
• VAT: DSP is not on the FTA’s designated zone list, so supplies are taxed as if on the mainland; registration is mandatory above AED 375,000 of taxable supplies a year and voluntary from AED 187,500.
• Customs: goods produced in the zone and exported outside the State are duty-free (Law No. 15 of 2014, Art. 16); goods sold into the UAE market pay duty on entry.

Our corporate tax registration guide walks through EmaraTax; for QFZP planning, use a registered tax agent.

Selling into the Dubai mainland from Dubai Science Park

The park’s FAQ answers “Can I operate outside the free zone using my Dubai Science Park licence?” with one word: “No”. The DOC FAQ, on the same DDA rules, adds that you “may however sell products to other Emirates through distributors”. For a pharma or device company this is usually how the market works anyway: EDE-registered products reach pharmacies and hospitals through licensed mainland distributors.

If you need to work on the mainland yourself, Dubai Executive Council Resolution No. 11 of 2025 regulates free zone establishments’ activities in the emirate. It allows a Dubai branch licensed by the Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) and, since October 2025, a Free Zone Mainland Operating Permit, which the Dubai Media Office announced at AED 5,000 for six months. Each needs the free zone authority’s approval first; DDA runs an e-service to “Apply for NOC to Department of Economy and Tourism”. For the mainland side, see our mainland company formation guide.

Dubai Science Park licence renewal and ongoing compliance

• Dubai Science Park licence renewal: yearly, online on axs, “Immediate” once paid (DDA renewal card), at the segment fee plus AED 20. Renewal documents include any external NOC your activity needs. Late renewal penalties run from AED 2,500 to AED 10,000, and DDA may refuse immigration services until you pay.
• Lease: renew before the licence, because the licence depends on it. Minimum term one year.
• Audited accounts: every licensee must “prepare and retain Audited Accounts” and supply them on demand (Decision No. 1 of 2021, Art. 2.8); the PCR requires an auditor appointed at each annual general meeting (Reg. 67) and records kept for eight years (Reg. 63.4).
• Beneficial owners: keep full details at the registered office and update within 15 days of a change (Cabinet Decision No. 109 of 2023); AED 5,000 DDA fine for failing to produce them on demand.
• Changes: address changes must be notified within 14 days of the board resolution (PCR Reg. 51.3); a change of general manager must be notified to the Registrar.
• Product licences: EDE, DHA and Dubai Municipality approvals have their own renewal cycles; a lapsed product licence can block the DDA renewal where the activity requires an NOC.
• Each Dubai Science Park visa and the establishment card: renew with the licence; cancel visas before closing.
• Penalties: AED 10,000 for working outside your licensed activity; AED 5,000 for misleading information; PCR fines double on repeat within a year (Decision No. 2 of 2017).

Dubai Science Park free zone: pros and cons

Who a Dubai Science Park company suits, and who should look elsewhere

It suits life sciences companies that need a lab, a regulated warehouse or a regional scientific office; device makers that want a service and distribution hub; fragrance, flavour and cosmetics houses that formulate locally; food science and agritech R&D; and energy, water and environmental technology firms that want a science address rather than a generic one.

Look elsewhere if:

• You will treat patients: Dubai Healthcare City licenses clinicians and facilities under its own health regulator.
• You need an airport-linked, VAT designated zone: compare DAFZA.
• You need heavy manufacturing, a large plot or port access: JAFZA is built for that.
• You are a solo consultant with no lab: a lighter licence such as IFZA may cost less.

Dubai Science Park company setup in practice: five cases

These cases are built from the situations we see most often. Names and identifying details are left out, and the figures are the published ones.

1. A European medical device maker opening a regional service hub

The parent wanted to import devices, hold spares, repair units and support Gulf distributors. Segment 23.5 allows five activities for AED 15,000, including “Service Centre”, so one Dubai Science Park licence covered it. It chose an FZ-LLC over a branch to ring-fence liability, took a light industrial unit, and checked with EDE which device classes needed registration before any UAE sale. DDA’s first-year fees were AED 18,520; rent and registrations were several times that.

2. A pharma company’s scientific office

A manufacturer selling through a mainland distributor registered a branch under Segment 23.1 (non-manufacturing) with the marketing activity, after attesting its resolution, incorporation certificate, good standing and articles. It then applied to EDE for the marketing office licence MOHAP used to issue. Twelve staff meant at least 960 sq ft, at one Dubai Science Park visa per 80 sq ft. Its promotion fees are not qualifying income, so it did not plan on 0% tax.

3. A fragrance creation lab

A fragrance house wanted a perfumers’ studio with small-batch production. Activity 25.2.12 “also applies to Dubai Science Park”, and the lab’s exhaust and drainage suited the work; production needed DDA’s prior approval. Retail sales would be sales to natural persons, excluded for QFZP purposes, so it sells only to distributors.

4. A food-tech start-up with a prototype

Two founders began with Segment 23.2 (food, non-manufacturing) and AED 10,000 paid-up capital, and applied to in5 for the AED 1,000 licence (admission is discretionary). Moving to production meant the manufacturing segment (AED 25,000, one activity) and Dubai Municipality food control approvals.

5. A solo environmental consultant

An engineer wanted a freelance permit for water consultancy with a Dubai Science Park address. There is no DSP freelancer segment, so she formed a small FZ-LLC under Segment 24.5 (consultancy) with space axs accepts for one visa; her utility clients preferred contracting with a company anyway.

What circulates online about Dubai Science Park that is not true

How to verify every figure in this guide

What we will and will not do

• We will tell you which DSP segment fits, which regulators you need after DDA, and what we know and do not know about the costs.
• We will show every government fee on its official receipt and quote our own fee in writing first.
• We will not claim to be a DDA or TECOM partner, promise approval dates that DDA, EDE or DHA control, or quote a “package” that hides rent and approvals.
• We will not advise on product dossiers, clinical data or tax structuring; we bring in licensed regulatory and tax specialists where you need them.

Related guides

• Dubai free zones: the full list
• Free zones in the UAE
• Dubai Healthcare City company setup
• DAFZA company setup
• JAFZA company setup
• Dubai Internet City company setup
• Free zone vs mainland visas
• Corporate tax registration in the UAE
• Corporate bank account in the UAE
• UBO register in the UAE

Running the establishment card, visa renewals and government paperwork for your DSP company after setup is what our PRO services in Dubai team handles.