KEZAD Company Setup 2026: Free Zone vs Domestic Zone, Costs, Land, Visas and Who It Suits

KEZAD company setup is the process of forming and licensing a company in the economic zones run by Khalifa Economic Zones Abu Dhabi (KEZAD Group), the industrial and logistics arm of AD Ports Group, either inside its free zone or in its Domestic Economic Zone on the Abu Dhabi mainland. The KEZAD free zone’s company, licensing and employment regulations are issued by Abu Dhabi Ports Company “in fulfilment of its obligations under Article 4 of Emiri Decree No 6 of 2006”. KEZAD’s main cluster, KEZAD Al Ma’mourah, lies beside Khalifa Port, between Abu Dhabi city and Dubai; the group also runs KEZAD Musaffah (the former Industrial City of Abu Dhabi, ICAD 1), KEZAD Al Ain and KEZAD Al Dhafra. It is known for metals, polymers, food processing, automotive, chemicals and logistics, and for serviced industrial land at a scale no other UAE operator offers.

This guide is written for manufacturers, distributors, logistics firms and founders comparing the KEZAD free zone with the Domestic Economic Zone and with rival zones in Dubai and the northern emirates. It covers the legal forms and licences, the documents KEZAD asks for, every fee on KEZAD’s published tariff and package table (with the date we read them), land, KEZAD warehouse and office options, visas through ICP, tax, access to the mainland and ongoing compliance. If you are still deciding between a free zone and the mainland for business setup in Dubai or Abu Dhabi, our free zone vs mainland guide sets out that choice first, our guide to Abu Dhabi free zones compares KEZAD with ADGM, Masdar City, twofour54 and the airport free zone, and our UAE free zones guide covers the whole country.

Every figure below comes from KEZAD Group’s own pages and regulations, ADDED, the Federal Tax Authority’s designated zones list and the federal tax rules, read on 26 September 2026. Where KEZAD’s pages disagree with each other or are silent, we say so.

KEZAD free zone at a glance

Two points shape nearly every KEZAD file. KEZAD is property-led: a KEZAD licence is never issued without a lease or other “Tenure Document”, so the facility comes first. And KEZAD sells two different legal environments on the same map, sometimes in the same logistics park, so you must ask “free zone or domestic?” about every unit you are shown.

What KEZAD is known for: its speciality and ecosystem

KEZAD describes itself as the UAE’s largest provider of integrated economic zones and industrial real estate. On its “About” page it reports more than 2,300 clients, more than 400 of them free zone clients, 12 economic zones, over 540,000 sq m of warehouses, more than 40 staff accommodation cities and, for the 2025 financial year, AED 2.87 billion of revenue and 73.6 sq km of leased land (its figures, read 26 September 2026). The KEZAD free zone client count matters: most KEZAD companies are domestic, not free zone.

The port-and-zone model

The anchor is Khalifa Port, AD Ports Group’s deep-water port between Abu Dhabi and Dubai. KEZAD Al Ma’mourah sits behind it, with dedicated corridors such as a “Hot Metal Road” that carries molten aluminium to downstream plants, and an eight-lane “Modular Path” for moving large plant sections from the quay. The model is simple: ship raw materials in through Khalifa Port, process or store them next door, and ship or truck out.

Sector clusters KEZAD names

KEZAD groups tenants into clusters so that one plant can buy from its neighbour. Its named sectors are automotive (with the Rahayel Global Auto Hub), food processing (the Abu Dhabi Food Hub), life sciences, logistics, metals (Metal Park, launched in January 2026 as a “pay-as-you-grow” metals ecosystem), polymers (KEZAD Polymers Park) and speciality chemicals. Tenants named in KEZAD’s 2026 news include Abu Dhabi Refreshment Company, Galadari Brothers (a 50-year land lease) and ROX, which is building an AI manufacturing centre in KLP 1, KEZAD Musaffah.

What makes KEZAD different from rival zones

• Land at industrial scale and industrial prices. Few free zones publish land rates; KEZAD does for both its free zone and domestic zone, and its Al Ain rate is roughly half the Abu Dhabi rate.
• A mainland option on the same master plan. Some rivals, RAKEZ for example, also issue non-free zone licences, but KEZAD’s Domestic Economic Zone is the larger part of its business, not an add-on.
• Government industrial incentives. Abu Dhabi’s energy tariff, land rebate and local content programmes, which KEZAD helps investors reach, are aimed at mainland industrial businesses.

What KEZAD is not: a city address for consultants or agencies. Its start-up offices sit in an industrial district by the port.

KEZAD areas: Al Ma’mourah, Musaffah, Al Ain, Al Dhafra and ICAD

KEZAD’s 12 zones are grouped under four place names on its site. The table shows what each is for and, crucially, which jurisdiction you can expect there. KEZAD publishes the jurisdiction unit by unit, so treat this as a starting point and check the “Unit Status” line on every offer.

KEZAD free zone vs Domestic Economic Zone: which one you are setting up

KEZAD’s comparison pages, with the points they leave out added:

The rule of thumb: if most of your customers are outside the UAE, start with the KEZAD free zone; if most of your goods will be sold in the UAE or the GCC, or you want government incentives, start with the Domestic Economic Zone. A group can also hold one company in each.

KEZAD legal forms: Ltd company and branch

KEZAD’s “Company Legal Types” page offers two structures in the KEZAD free zone. Both are governed by the ADFZ Companies Registration Regulations, which also state that the federal Commercial Companies Law of 1984 “shall not apply in ADFZ”. (That law has since been replaced federally; the free zone carve-out works the same way today.)

Limited liability company (Ltd)

• Name: must end with “Ltd” (clause 4.3(a)). There is no separate FZE or FZCO label; one Ltd form covers single and multiple shareholders.
• Shareholders: at least one incorporator, individual or corporate. No maximum is stated.
• Liability: limited to the share capital.
• Directors and secretary: the regulations require “not less than two Directors” (clause 43.1) and say “every Company shall have a secretary” (clause 62). One person cannot fill every role, so a sole founder needs at least one more named officer.
• Registered office: a company “shall at all times have a registered office” in the zone (clause 42.1).

Branch of a foreign or UAE company

A company incorporated outside the free zone, abroad or elsewhere in the UAE, can register a branch. The branch has no separate legal personality: the parent is liable for its debts. KEZAD’s tariff lists “Conversion from branch to (LTD)” at AED 0, which makes it cheap to start as a branch and convert later.

Share capital: a conflict you should settle in writing

The ADFZ Companies Registration Regulations (clause 4.3(d)) say paid-up capital “shall never be less than AED 150,000 or any higher minimum amount as may be required by the Registrar from time to time”. KEZAD’s current land and free zone pages, by contrast, advertise “No minimum capital requirements”, and the tariff charges AED 0 for a change of share capital. The regulations date from December 2011 and the marketing pages from 2026. We read this as a waived or unenforced minimum, but the regulation has not been visibly amended. Ask KEZAD to confirm the capital figure for your application in writing and whether it must be paid in or only declared.

KEZAD licence types and permitted activities

KEZAD issues three licence types in the KEZAD free zone, and the KEZAD licence you choose sets your renewal fee. Its descriptions, which follow clause 4.1 of the ADFZ Business Licensing Regulations, are summarised below.

How many activities, and how to check the list

The tariff prices new industrial, trading and service licences for “up to 5 activity only”, and adding or deleting an activity “within group” costs AED 0. The category lists themselves are not published as a searchable page. KEZAD’s site has a “Free Zone Licence Search” for existing licences, and its sales team issues the activity list with the application form. When you compare quotes, check how many activities each licence includes and whether your goods fall into one group or several: crossing the 17-product or three-group line turns a trading licence into a general trading licence, and the renewal fee triples.

Activities that need another authority’s approval

KEZAD can issue a temporary licence while an outside approval is pending (clause 6.7 of the Licensing Regulations). Food, pharmaceutical, chemical, environmental and customs-related activities usually need a sector regulator’s approval as well. KEZAD does not publish an approvals matrix, so ask your account manager which approvals attach to each activity code before you lease.

KEZAD company setup process, step by step

KEZAD’s start-up page describes three steps: choose a package, submit documents and payment, receive the licence. For land, KEZAD warehouse and plant projects the path is longer, because the lease and building permits come first. The table sets out the order we follow, with the official time where one is published.

The federal government’s general statement on u.ae is that a free zone authority approves applications “within 14 working days”. KEZAD’s 24-hour claim is for its ready-made start-up packages, where the office and licence are bundled. A factory project runs to months, because design approvals, building permits and utility connections follow the land lease. Budget for the time the attestation of foreign corporate documents takes, which is often longer than every KEZAD step combined.

Documents required for KEZAD company setup

For KEZAD company setup, KEZAD publishes three checklists: Ltd with individual shareholders, Ltd with corporate shareholders, and branch. The core items are the same; the corporate papers differ.

Every application

• “Application form for Registration & License” and a business plan (KEZAD provides a template).
• For each shareholder, director, manager and secretary: passport copy, UAE visa and Emirates ID if any, a CV, a Registry Identification Form (Individual) and, if the person is employed in the UAE, a “NOC from current sponsor in Arabic”.
• A shareholders’ or board resolution to incorporate the company (or register the branch), “Notarized and Attested, as applicable”.
• A power of attorney for the manager if not in the resolution, notarised and attested, with the attorney’s passport.
• Ultimate beneficial owner pack: UBO declaration form, a structure chart down to the individual owners, and their passport copies.
• Compliance officer details if the business is subject to anti-money laundering rules (for example dealers in precious metals or company service providers).
• The package or registration fee.

Corporate shareholders and parent companies

Attestation, translation and sealing

• KEZAD “reserves the right to ask for attestation by the UAE Embassy or other Embassies”. In practice, foreign corporate documents follow the chain of notarisation, home-country legalisation, UAE embassy attestation and then the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Our attestation order guide explains each stage, and our document attestation service can run it.
• Documents must be in English or Arabic; anything else needs a certified translation.
• “All legal documents more than one page has to be sealed”.
• The resolution and power of attorney must show each manager’s full name, nationality and passport number exactly as in the passport.

KEZAD’s tariff notarises board resolutions and memoranda for AED 200 each and signature authentications for AED 0, so signatories who can come to KEZAD in person can avoid some notarisation abroad.

KEZAD licence cost: the official fee schedule

KEZAD publishes two price sources: a table of start-up packages, and a “KEZAD Land Lease and Free Zone Services Tariff”. We read both on 26 September 2026. KEZAD does not publish the footnotes behind the asterisks on either page, so treat every line as subject to the written quotation.

KEZAD free zone start-up packages (office or workstation, licence and visa allocation)

Source: KEZAD “Free Zone Business Setup Solutions” page; prices stated as “VAT Included”. The page lists the package features as a free zone business licence, “Shared Workstations or Dedicated Offices”, “Company Set-up in 24 Hours”, free internet, “No Security Deposits on Start-up Packages” and “No Deposits for Visa”. It does not say whether the visa processing fees (entry permit, medical, Emirates ID, residence) are inside the price or only the visa allocation. We read “visa provisions” as the allocation, and budget the visa processing separately until KEZAD’s quotation says otherwise.

The multi-year discount is real: three years with one visa is AED 22,575, against AED 28,350 for three single years at the one-year price, a saving of about 20%. Golden Visa holders get a further 25% off office packages under KEZAD’s agreement with the Abu Dhabi Residents Office.

KEZAD free zone services tariff: the lines that matter

Most amendments (company name, manager, director, location, auditor, activity within a group) are listed at AED 0, which is unusually generous. The tariff does not show federal ICP fees, Emirates ID fees, medical test fees or health insurance, so treat the permitting lines as KEZAD’s service charges only.

Land lease tariff

All land prices carry a Common Area Maintenance Levy of AED 3 per sq m a year (adjusted annually), annual escalation under the lease, and a “premium levy” on strategic allocations. A 10,000 sq m industrial plot in Al Ma’mourah therefore starts at about AED 350,000 to 410,000 a year including the levy, before escalation, construction or utilities. The same plot in KEZAD Al Ain starts at about AED 180,000 to 230,000. Industrial investors may qualify for Abu Dhabi’s Industrial Land Rebate, which KEZAD says gives “up to 80% rebate on land rent prices” to eligible new ventures in target sectors.

What the KEZAD figures leave out

• Federal visa charges (ICP entry permit and residence fees), Emirates ID, the medical fitness test and mandatory health insurance for staff.
• Security deposits on leases (waived only on start-up packages).
• Utilities, fit-out, building permits, Civil Defence and environmental approvals for plants and warehouses.
• Attestation and translation of foreign documents.
• Annual audit fees, corporate tax and VAT compliance.

KEZAD warehouse, land and office options

KEZAD sells five kinds of space. The choice decides your licence, your visa numbers and, often, your jurisdiction.

How the facility affects your KEZAD visa quota

The KEZAD visa count is published only for start-up packages. For warehouses, land and industrial units KEZAD publishes no ratio of visas to square metres, and the number is agreed with KEZAD’s immigration team based on the facility and the business plan. Put your hiring plan in the application and ask for the approved quota in writing before you sign a lease. Large employers usually house staff in KEZAD’s accommodation cities, run by its sister company Sdeira Group (formerly KEZAD Communities), which manages more than 40 communities.

The SME Hub, due by the end of 2026

On 11 June 2026 KEZAD announced an AED 112 million SME Hub in KEZAD Al Ma’mourah: 175 “Micro Industrial Units” from 100 sq m with office suites and a business centre, over 25,260 sq m, “scheduled for handover before the end of this year”. KEZAD has not yet published its jurisdiction or prices.

KEZAD warehouse and land lease terms to read before signing

KEZAD’s Standard Terms and Conditions for Lease (2026 edition) make rent payable quarterly in advance on 1 January, 1 April, 1 July and 1 October, forbid assigning or transferring the lease without consent, and let the landlord terminate and re-enter on an event of default. Because the KEZAD licence depends on the lease, a lease default puts the KEZAD licence and every KEZAD visa at risk.

KEZAD visa: residency for shareholders, staff and families

A KEZAD company does not deal with Dubai’s GDRFA. Residence visas for Abu Dhabi companies run through the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP), and KEZAD’s own permitting desk handles the KEZAD free zone side. Abu Dhabi residence files start with the digit 1.

Who sponsors whom

Under the ADFZ Employment Regulations, the licensee first signs a “Personnel Sponsorship Agreement” with the zone, and the zone procures entry permits and residence visas on the company’s behalf (clause 2.1). The company still pays salaries and all employee entitlements. An employee sponsored through the zone “shall only work in ADFZ but he may reside and move freely in the UAE” (clause 2.1(c)); KEZAD may allow outside work “in its absolute discretion” (clause 2.1(d)).

The KEZAD visa process, step by step

1. Establishment card. Opened once the licence is issued (AED 1,000 on the tariff).
2. Entry permit. For a person outside the UAE, or an in-country status change (AED 800 on the tariff) for someone already inside. An urgent entry permit is AED 300.
3. Medical fitness test at an approved Abu Dhabi centre. See our UAE visa medical test guide.
4. Emirates ID biometrics with ICP. Our biometrics guide explains the appointment.
5. Health insurance. Abu Dhabi requires employers to insure their employees; the policy is needed for the residence.
6. Residence permit issued electronically and linked to the Emirates ID (KEZAD lists “Employment Residence” at AED 1,500).

KEZAD does not publish processing times for these steps. ICP’s own service cards govern the federal side; our ICP smart services guide and ICP vs GDRFA guide explain how the Abu Dhabi route differs from Dubai’s.

Shareholders and investors

A shareholder who will live in the UAE takes one of the company’s visas, as an investor or partner, and uses one place in the quota. The start-up packages are sized with this in mind: a one-visa package is one founder’s residence and nothing else.

Families

The tariff lists dependant residence, renewal and newborn endorsement at AED 0 as KEZAD service charges, so family sponsorship is handled through the zone as well; federal ICP fees and the salary rules still apply. Our family visa service page explains the documents.

Golden Visa routes

Investors, entrepreneurs and specialised talents can apply for a ten-year Golden Visa through ICP and the Abu Dhabi Residents Office, independent of the KEZAD quota. Holding a Golden Visa also unlocks KEZAD’s discounts: 25% off free zone office packages and 10% off land and KEZAD warehouse leases. See our Golden Visa service and the eligibility guide.

Domestic Economic Zone visas

A company in the Domestic Economic Zone is a mainland employer, so the KEZAD visa rules above do not apply to it. Its staff hold MOHRE work permits under the federal Labour Law, with residence through ICP, and it must follow mainland rules such as Emiratisation targets where they apply.

Banking after KEZAD company setup

Banks treat KEZAD companies like any industrial company: the stronger the substance, the smoother the account. Expect to show the licence and certificate of incorporation, the lease, the memorandum, the register of shareholders and directors, an incumbency letter if the bank asks (KEZAD charges AED 2,500), UBO documents, the shareholders’ passports and visas, a business plan with expected turnover and counterparties, and proof of source of funds. Plant and KEZAD warehouse projects usually open accounts more easily than start-up desks, because the lease and equipment show real activity. Our corporate bank account guide covers what each bank asks for.

Tax after KEZAD company setup: corporate tax, VAT and customs

KEZAD’s free zone page promises “0% tax-free” and “No VAT”. Both need qualifying. Federal tax law applies in every free zone, and what you pay depends on your activity, your customers and where your goods physically move.

Corporate tax

Every KEZAD company, free zone or domestic, must register for corporate tax within the deadlines in FTA Decision 3/2024 (for a new company, within three months of incorporation) or face an AED 10,000 late registration penalty. Taxable income above AED 375,000 is taxed at 9%. A KEZAD free zone company that meets the conditions of Cabinet Decision 100 of 2023 becomes a Qualifying Free Zone Person and pays 0% on qualifying income. The conditions are adequate substance in the zone, qualifying income only (non-qualifying revenue within the de minimis limit of the lower of 5% of revenue or AED 5 million), audited financial statements, arm’s-length transfer pricing, and no election to be taxed at 9%.

Qualifying activities are listed in Ministerial Decision No. 229 of 2025, which replaced Ministerial Decision No. 265 of 2023 with effect from 1 June 2023. Several KEZAD staples are on it: manufacturing and processing of goods, trading of qualifying commodities, logistics services, and distribution of goods from a designated zone to customers who resell or process them. Retail sales to consumers in the UAE, and most services to mainland customers, are not qualifying income. Small Business Relief is not available to a Qualifying Free Zone Person, and a domestic zone company cannot be one at all. Our corporate tax registration guide walks through registration.

VAT and the designated zone

The FTA’s list of designated zones under Cabinet Decision 59 of 2017, as amended, names five Abu Dhabi zones, all effective from 1 January 2018 unless noted: “Free Trade Zone of Khalifa Port”, “Abu Dhabi Airport Free Zone”, “Khalifa Industrial Zone”, and, from 18 June 2018, the Al Ain and Al Butain international airport free zones. (The FTA’s web page blocks automated reading; we used its published PDF list as amended to 2021. Check the current list on tax.gov.ae.)

Designated zone status means certain supplies of goods within or between designated zones can be outside the scope of VAT, provided the zone meets the fencing and customs control conditions. It does not remove VAT on services, on goods consumed in the zone, or on goods released to the mainland, which are treated as imports. A KEZAD free zone company that sells services, or sells into the UAE, will usually need to register for VAT once its taxable supplies pass AED 375,000. KEZAD’s “No VAT” line is a simplification; KEZAD’s land page words it more precisely as “Designated Zone for VAT Exemption”. The Domestic Economic Zone is ordinary mainland for VAT.

Customs

KEZAD’s free zone page states that there is no customs duty on goods inside the KEZAD free zone, that standard customs procedures apply to goods in transit between the port and the zone, and that duty is due on sales into the local market and on first entry into the GCC. Domestic zone manufacturers can instead apply for duty exemptions on raw materials and machinery, and their goods can travel duty-free in the GCC once certified as UAE-made. Abu Dhabi Customs handles clearance for both.

Trading with the UAE mainland from the KEZAD free zone

The ADFZ Business Licensing Regulations are blunt: “No Person shall operate (or purport to operate) any business in the UAE outside ADFZ solely on the basis of a Licence issued by ADPC” (clause 14). A KEZAD free zone company has four ways to reach the UAE market.

1. Sell to UAE buyers who import. A mainland distributor or customer clears the goods through customs and pays duty and import VAT. The free zone company does not operate on the mainland.
2. Appoint a local agent or distributor for ongoing sales, service and after-sales.
3. Take an ADDED dual licence. KEZAD says its free zone companies “can obtain an additional licence from the Department of Economic Development, Abu Dhabi, which enables KEZAD-based Free Zone companies to carry out their economic activities outside of the Free Zone without the need for additional offices or business facilities”. ADDED’s own “Mainland and Free Zones” page lists “Dual licensing options” as a free zone feature. Neither page publishes the fee or the list of eligible activities; ADDED sets both at application.
4. Set up a Domestic Economic Zone or other mainland company alongside the KEZAD free zone one, often in the same park.

Two limits remain. First, a dual licence is an Abu Dhabi licence; operating in Dubai is a separate question for Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism, whose 2025 permit scheme under Executive Council Resolution 11/2025 was built for Dubai free zone companies. Second, staff sponsored through the KEZAD free zone are still bound by the “only work in ADFZ” rule unless KEZAD approves otherwise. Our mainland company formation guide covers the Dubai mainland route.

KEZAD licence renewal and ongoing compliance

Visa renewals are listed at AED 0 on KEZAD’s side, with ICP, Emirates ID, medical and insurance costs on top. Labour disputes in the KEZAD free zone must go to KEZAD first: under the Employment Regulations “no labour dispute may proceed direct” to the Ministry or the courts without being referred by the zone. Our UBO register guide explains the beneficial owner filing in detail.

KEZAD free zone: pros and cons

Who KEZAD company setup suits, and who should look elsewhere

• Suits: manufacturers and processors that need land or a plant near a deep-water port; food, metals, polymers, chemicals and automotive businesses that benefit from a cluster; regional distributors and third-party logistics firms that want a KEZAD warehouse inside the free zone; groups wanting a free zone company and a mainland company in one park; small industrial firms ready to step up from a workstation to a unit.
• Look elsewhere if: you are a financial services firm (see ADGM company setup); a media or gaming business (see twofour54 company setup); a clean-tech or research start-up wanting an urban campus (see Masdar City free zone company setup); an air cargo or aviation business (see the Abu Dhabi Airports Free Zone guide); or a trader whose customers are all in Dubai, where Jafza company setup or Dubai South may be closer to market. For low-cost industrial space in the northern emirates, compare SAIF Zone and RAKEZ.

KEZAD 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.

Case 1: a one-founder trading company

A founder importing packaging for customers in Oman and Saudi Arabia wanted a UAE base and one visa. A one-visa start-up package (AED 9,450 for a year, AED 22,575 for three) gave a trading licence, a workstation and the visa allocation. With customers outside the UAE, the KEZAD free zone suited; ICP, medical, Emirates ID and insurance were budgeted on top.

Case 2: a food manufacturer choosing jurisdiction

A food producer planned to sell mainly to UAE supermarkets. The free zone would have meant clearing every shipment into the local market. We compared it with a Domestic Economic Zone licence on a light industrial unit: direct sales, “Made in UAE” certification, GCC duty-free trade and access to Abu Dhabi’s energy tariff incentive. The domestic route won, with food safety approval from the Abu Dhabi food safety authority built into the timeline.

Case 3: a regional distributor needing a KEZAD warehouse

An electronics distributor re-exporting to Africa needed 2,000 sq m of bonded storage. A unit in a free zone phase of KEZAD Logistics Park kept goods under customs control inside a VAT designated zone. The visa quota was not published, so we put the hiring plan (eight staff) in the application and asked KEZAD to confirm the number before the lease was signed.

Case 4: an industrial project in Al Ain

A metal fabricator compared a 10,000 sq m plot in KEZAD Al Ma’mourah (about AED 350,000 to 410,000 a year with the service levy) with KEZAD Al Ain (about AED 180,000 to 230,000). With most customers in Al Ain and the eastern region, Al Ain was cheaper and closer, and the Industrial Land Rebate application went in with the lease.

Case 5: a foreign group opening a branch

A European chemicals group opened a KEZAD branch rather than a new Ltd company. Registration and a later conversion to an Ltd are both AED 0 on the tariff; the attestation of the parent’s papers took longer than every KEZAD step combined, so we started it on day one.

KEZAD company setup myths: what circulates online that is not true

How to verify every KEZAD figure in this guide

KEZAD company setup: how MIRDXB PRO helps

MIRDXB PRO is an independent PRO and business-setup consultancy in Al Barsha 1, Dubai. We are not KEZAD Group, AD Ports Group or an official KEZAD partner, and KEZAD does not list us. What we offer is a second pair of eyes on the decisions that are expensive to reverse, such as the jurisdiction and the lease, and the government work that follows the licence.

What we do

• Test your plan against both KEZAD jurisdictions and tell you in writing whether the free zone, the Domestic Economic Zone, or a zone elsewhere fits better.
• Match your goods or services to the right KEZAD licence (industrial, trading, general trading or service) and activity count, so you do not cross into a general trading renewal by accident.
• Compare KEZAD warehouse, land and office options against your hiring plan and ask KEZAD for the KEZAD visa quota in writing before you sign.
• Prepare the application file: forms, business plan, Registry Identification Forms, UBO declaration, resolutions and powers of attorney.
• Coordinate notarisation, legalisation and attestation of foreign corporate documents, and legal translation.
• After the licence: establishment card, entry permits, medicals, Emirates ID, residence and family visas, and renewals, through our free zone company setup support and PRO team.
• Prepare the company for corporate tax registration and, where needed, VAT registration and customs codes, working with your tax agent.

How it works

1. Message us on WhatsApp with your activity, goods, customers, space needs and hiring plan.
2. We send a written plan: jurisdiction, legal form, licence, facility, visa count, the KEZAD fees from its published tariff and packages, a timeline and our fee.
3. You confirm; we prepare and check the file before submission and follow it through KEZAD’s sales and registration teams.
4. Once the KEZAD licence is issued, we run the immigration file and the first visas, then hand over a compliance calendar with renewal, UBO, audit and tax dates.

What it costs

KEZAD’s fees, rent and all government charges are passed on at cost, on the authority’s receipt. Our own fee is quoted in writing before we start and depends on the work involved; see our fees page. We never mark up a government or free zone fee.

Why founders use us

• We work from KEZAD’s published tariff, packages and regulations, and name the source of every figure.
• We tell you when KEZAD is not the right zone, and when you can do a step yourself.
• We cover the chain after the licence: ICP immigration, Emirates ID, family visas, attestation and tax registration.
• Our Al Barsha 1 office is open Monday to Thursday and Saturday 09:00 to 18:00 and Friday 09:00 to 12:00; owners abroad can instruct us under a power of attorney.

If you want the whole project handled, from zone choice to first visa, see our business setup service.

What we will and will not do

• We will show each published KEZAD fee and its source; we will not quote a package that hides visa processing, insurance or deposits.
• We will tell you when the Domestic Economic Zone, another Abu Dhabi zone or the mainland fits better; we will not push a larger facility than your visas need.
• We will prepare, check and submit your files; we do not guarantee approvals or claim to speed up KEZAD, ICP or any other authority.
• We will explain the tax framework; your qualifying income test needs a registered tax agent or adviser.
• We will not handle environmental, food safety or building permit engineering; we coordinate with your consultants.

Related guides

• Abu Dhabi free zones compared
• Free zones in the UAE: the complete guide
• ADGM company setup
• Masdar City free zone company setup
• Abu Dhabi Airports Free Zone
• twofour54 company setup
• Jafza company setup
• Free zone vs mainland: visas and trading
• Corporate tax registration in the UAE
• Corporate bank account in the UAE
• UBO register in the UAE
• Establishment card explained

Handling the establishment card, visas, Emirates ID and renewals after your licence is what our PRO services in Dubai team does every day, for Dubai and Abu Dhabi companies alike.