Local Service Agent Dubai 2026: Who Needs One, What the Agent Can and Cannot Do, Fees and the LSA Agreement

A local service agent in Dubai (LSA) is a UAE national, or a company whose partners are all UAE nationals, whom a non-UAE owner of a professional sole establishment or civil company must appoint under Dubai Law No. 13 of 2011 to represent the business with government bodies. The agent holds no shares, takes no profit and has no say in how the business is run. The relationship is a notarised agency agreement on the Department of Economy and Tourism’s (DET) template, and the agent is paid an agreed fee, usually yearly.

This guide covers the role itself: the law behind it, exactly when Dubai still requires an agent and when it does not, what the agent can and cannot do, the DET fee and how the agent’s own fee is agreed, the terms to insist on in the service agent agreement, notarisation, the risks, and how to replace or remove an agent. It also explains what the 2021 ownership reforms changed, and where the official pages do not say the same thing.

It is part of our mainland series. For the full set-up route, start with our mainland company formation guide. For the ownership rules in general, see our 100% foreign ownership in Dubai guide. If you would rather hand the licence file to someone, our company formation support team runs it end to end.

Local service agent Dubai at a glance: who needs one

The table gives the short answer for the structures founders ask us about. Each row is explained further down, with its source.

Local service agent Dubai: how MIRDXB PRO helps

Most people who ask us about a local service agent in Dubai have been told they “need a sponsor” and want to know whether that is true, what the agent will actually do, and what they are signing. We answer those three questions in writing first. We are an Amer and Tasheel partner in Al Barsha 1, Dubai, and professional licences with an agent are a routine part of our mainland work.

What we do

• Confirm whether you need an agent at all. We match your business to DET’s activity name and licence type, then check the legal form and the owners’ nationalities against Law 13/2011 and the ownership rules. If an LLC or a branch fits better and needs no agent, we say so.
• Compare the routes in writing. Sole establishment with an agent against a one-person LLC without one: liability, founding documents, audit, cost lines and what each means for visas and tax.
• Review the service agent agreement before you sign. We check it against the checklist in this guide: fee, term, cooperation duties, exit, replacement and power of attorney. We flag anything missing and tell you when a point needs a lawyer.
• Run the DET file. Trade name, initial approval, the service agent contract on DET’s system or before a notary, premises and Ejari, and the licence, with the agent recorded correctly.
• Replace a local service agent when a relationship ends: the new agreement, the DET amendment, and the knock-on updates to your records.

How it works

1. Message us on WhatsApp with the activity in plain words, the owners and their nationalities, whether you are in the UAE, and any agent or quote you already have.
2. We reply in writing with whether an agent is required and why, the recommended structure, the documents, the government fees and our fee.
3. You choose your local service agent, and we review the LSA agreement before anyone signs.
4. We complete the file: DET approvals, signing, licence, then the establishment cards and visas if you need them.

What it costs

Government fees are passed on at cost, on the authority’s own receipt: DET’s voucher (including the AED 700 service agent line), notary or signing fees, Ejari and Dubai Chambers. The agent’s own fee is paid by you to the local service agent under your LSA agreement; we do not add to it or collect it. Our fee depends on the structure and the work involved, and it is always quoted in writing before we start. See our fees page, and for every government line of a mainland set-up with worked totals, our mainland business setup cost guide.

Why founders use us

• We publish our sources. Every rule here links to the law, the resolution or the official page it came from, and where official pages disagree we show both.
• We are not your agent. We do not act as local service agent for anyone, so our review of the service agent agreement is on your side of the table.
• We tell you when you do not need us. If your file is simple and you are comfortable on DET’s platform, we will say so.
• We are easy to reach. Our office is in Al Barsha 1, Dubai (Monday to Thursday and Saturday 09:00 to 18:00, Friday 09:00 to 12:00), and we can act under power of attorney for owners who are abroad where the step allows it.

The legal basis: what Dubai law says about the local service agent

The local service agent in Dubai is a creature of Dubai law, not of the federal Commercial Companies Law. The rules sit in Law No. 13 of 2011 Regulating the Conduct of Economic Activities in the Emirate of Dubai, issued on 24 August 2011 and published on the Dubai Legislation Portal. Four parts of it matter.

The legal forms (Article 14)

Article 14 says economic activities in Dubai “must be conducted through a Business having one of the following legal forms: a. sole proprietorship; b. civil works company; c. commercial company; or d. branch of a national or foreign company or of a company operating in a free zone.” Commercial companies (LLCs, joint stock companies, partnerships) are governed by the federal Companies Law. The first two forms, the sole proprietorship and the civil works company, are Dubai forms, and they are where the local service agent comes in.

Professional activities and the agent (Article 15)

Article 15 is the source of the requirement. It has two clauses:

• Article 15(a): “UAE natural persons and other natural persons may enter into partnerships to personally conduct Occupational or Artisan Activities in the Emirate by establishing a partnership (‘Business Partnership’) … A legal person may become a shareholder in a Business Partnership provided that the nature of his activity is similar to the nature of the activity conducted by such Business Partnership.” This is the civil company.
• Article 15(b): “Non-UAE nationals will be authorised to conduct Occupational or Artisan Activities provided that they have an agent (‘Local Service Agent’) who may be a natural person holding the UAE nationality or a legal person whose partners are all holders of the UAE nationality.”

Article 2 defines an “Occupational or Artisan Activity” as “an activity conducted by one or more natural persons who rely on their physical or intellectual efforts or use certain tools and equipment to perform such activity with a limited capital”. In DET’s licence types, that is broadly the professional licence: consultancy, design, IT services, training, many trades and personal services.

The agent’s responsibility (Article 16)

Article 16 is short, and every word counts:

“A Local Service Agent will be responsible to the Business and to third parties for exercising due diligence to enable the Business to conduct its Occupational and Artisan Activities in the Emirate, and will bear no civil or financial liabilities in relation to the work or activity of the Business. The relationship between the Business and the Local Service Agent must be governed by a notarised agency agreement based on the template prescribed by the DED.”

Three rules come out of it. The agent’s job is to help the business operate, which in practice means dealing with government departments. The agent is not liable for the business’s debts or work. And the relationship must be a notarised agency agreement following DET’s template (the law still says DED, DET’s former name).

Changes and penalties (Articles 10, 19, 29 to 34)

Article 10(a) says an owner may not “modify the Licence details … without first obtaining the approval of the DED”. Article 19(3) requires a business to “notify the DED of any change in the information and documents based on which the Licence has been granted, within ten (10) working days from the date of such change”. A change of local service agent is such a change.

Breaches of the law are punished by a fine of AED 100 to AED 100,000 (Art. 29), with closure or licence revocation possible for serious violations or a licence “issued based on false information or documents” (Art. 30). Settlement is possible within two months on payment of at least 50% of the fine (Art. 31). A grievance against a DET decision can be filed with the Director General within 30 days (Art. 33).

Where federal law fits: companies, branches and the 2021 reforms

Most “you need a sponsor” advice online mixes up three different federal and local rules. Separating them explains why a foreign consultant may still need an agent while a foreign-owned trading LLC never does.

Companies: no agent under Article 10 of the Companies Law

Federal Decree-Law No. 32 of 2021 on Commercial Companies governs LLCs, one-person LLCs, joint stock companies and partnerships. Its Article 10 no longer requires a national shareholder; the Cabinet lists activities with a strategic impact instead. u.ae summarises the effect: the law “annuls the requirement for commercial companies to have a major Emirati shareholder or agent”, and elsewhere that the reform “removed the requirement for 51 per cent Emirati ownership or a local agent for most business activities”. The ownership side is covered in our foreign ownership guide.

Sole establishments: still under local law

The Ministry of Economy and Tourism (MOET) explains why the agent survived for one-owner businesses. Its FAQ asks: “Is the requirement for a national agent cancelled when incorporating single-shareholder companies?” The answer: “Single-shareholder companies are not subject to the provisions of Federal Decree Law No 26 of 2020 … The requirement for a national agent still exists when incorporating single-shareholder companies subject to the legislation of local authorities.”

We read “single-shareholder companies” here as sole establishments (sole proprietorships), which have no legal personality separate from the owner under Law 13/2011, Art. 2. A one-person LLC is a company under the federal law (Art. 71) and needs no agent. In Dubai the “legislation of local authorities” is Law 13/2011, Article 15(b).

Branches of foreign companies: agent requirement repealed

Until 2021, Article 329 of the old Companies Law (Federal Law No. 2 of 2015) required a foreign company’s branch to appoint a UAE national agent. Federal Decree-Law No. 26 of 2020 repealed that article. MOET’s FAQ is now direct: “No, a UAE national agent is not required to be appointed by foreign companies wishing to conduct their activities within the UAE.” Dubai Economy’s clarifications of 3 June 2021 said the same: “Branches of foreign companies do not require an Emirati agent.”

A branch still needs the parent’s documents legalised, attested and translated, and it remains the parent’s liability. Those points are in our branch of a foreign company guide. If you hold an older branch licence that still names an agent, ask DET whether removing the agent is an amendment it will process for your file.

Local service agent, Emirati partner, commercial agent: three different things

When a local service agent in Dubai is required, and when it is not

Putting the Dubai and federal rules together, the local service agent requirement depends on two things only: the legal form and the owner’s nationality. The activity matters only because it decides which legal forms are open to you.

Professional sole establishment owned by a foreign national: local service agent required

A non-UAE national can hold a Dubai sole establishment for professional (occupational or artisan) activities, with a local service agent. The owner holds 100% and is personally liable, because an establishment’s “financial liability is associated with such owner, being the person responsible for all its financial obligations towards third parties” (Law 13/2011, Art. 2). Trading activities are not open to a foreign national’s sole establishment in Dubai practice; those go through an LLC. Our professional licence guide covers eligible activities, approvals and visas.

Civil company with foreign partners: local service agent required

A civil company is a partnership of two or more people practising a profession together, such as engineers, accountants or consultants. Invest in Dubai describes it as “a company owned by two or more partners practising a professional activity such as tailors, beauty salons, consultancy or training”. Article 15(b) applies to the non-UAE partners, so the business appoints a local service agent. DET’s schedule charges the service agent line “for a licence” (item 9), which points to one agent per licence rather than one per partner; confirm on your voucher.

UAE nationals: not required

Article 15(b) is limited to “non-UAE nationals”. A UAE national who holds a professional sole establishment has no agent.

GCC nationals: usually not, but check

The law’s text says “non-UAE nationals”, which on a strict reading would include Saudi, Kuwaiti, Omani, Bahraini and Qatari nationals. Official practice has used a different line: DED’s 2021 cancellation card refers to cancelling the “sole proprietorship of non-GCC citizens”, and earlier versions of u.ae’s mainland steps page, quoted on our sibling guides, said “Businesses owned completely by non-GCC residents require a local service agent from the UAE”. GCC nationals are generally treated like UAE nationals in Dubai licensing. Confirm the position for your activity at initial approval.

LLCs and one-person LLCs: not required

No agent is needed for an LLC or one-person LLC of any nationality, for any activity outside the restricted lists. Many professional activities can also be licensed as a one-person LLC, which removes the agent altogether; whether DET allows your exact activity in that form is decided at initial approval. The trade-off is set out later in this guide.

Branches: not required

Branches of foreign companies have not needed an agent since the 2020 amendment took effect. For branches of UAE or free zone companies we found no agent requirement in Law 13/2011 or in DET’s requirement lists, which ask for the parent’s letter, memorandum and licence, or its commercial register.

Invest in Dubai, DET’s platform, puts it in one line in its licence checklist (copies archived 18 April and 13 May 2026): “Submit a service agent contract (if required for your business type).”

What a local service agent can and cannot do

Because the local service agent holds no shares, their powers come only from the law and from the LSA agreement you sign. That is good news: you control the scope.

What the local service agent does

• Stands on the licence as your agent, which is what allows a non-UAE national to hold the professional licence at all (Art. 15(b)).
• Exercises “due diligence to enable the Business to conduct its … Activities” (Art. 16). In practice: signing the service agent contract, and cooperating with DET and other departments when a file needs the agent’s signature or presence.
• Cooperates with renewals and amendments where DET’s process asks for it, within whatever time the agreement sets.
• Helps with government dealings if the service agent agreement says so. Many agents do very little beyond signing; others offer a wider service. Neither is wrong, as long as the LSA agreement says which it is.

What the local service agent does not do

• Own any part of the business. The owner keeps 100%. Nothing in Articles 15 or 16 gives the agent a share or a vote.
• Take a share of profit or turnover. The agent is paid a fee for a service. A percentage-of-profit clause blurs the line between agent and partner and is a reason to walk away.
• Manage the business or give instructions to your staff, clients or bank.
• Bear your liabilities. The agent “will bear no civil or financial liabilities in relation to the work or activity of the Business” (Art. 16). Creditors, clients and landlords look to the owner.
• Sponsor your visa. Residence visas for the owner and staff run through the establishment’s own immigration file, not through the agent.
• Sign contracts or operate bank accounts for you, unless you separately give a power of attorney, which you should not do beyond what a specific government step needs.

Local service agent fees: what DET charges and what the agent charges

There are two kinds of cost, and only one of them is published. The government side is set by Dubai resolutions and appears on DET’s or the notary’s voucher. The agent’s own fee is a private price between you and the agent.

Government fees linked to the agent

Two caveats. First, Resolution 13/2011 describes item 9 as a fee for “appointing” an agent; it does not say it recurs every year, and we could not read a current DET renewal card that says either way. Your renewal voucher will show whether it appears. Second, DET’s current service pages load by script and did not display to us, so the signing lines come from DED’s archived 2021 cards and the resolutions themselves. The voucher is always final. All the other licence lines are in our mainland business setup cost guide.

The local service agent fee: how it is agreed

No law, resolution or DET page sets the local service agent fee in Dubai. It is a market price, and it varies with who the agent is and what they do. We do not publish a range, because any number we printed would be a guess. What we can tell you is how the fee is usually structured, so you can compare offers on the same basis.

• A fixed annual fee is the common model, usually payable each licence year, often before or at renewal.
• Multi-year or up-front payments are sometimes offered at a discount. They increase your loss if the agent becomes unavailable, so tie any prepayment to a refund clause.
• Individual or corporate agent. A company owned by UAE nationals may offer continuity if one person is unavailable; an individual may be more flexible. Either is lawful.
• Scope. Some fees cover signature only; others include attending DET, handling renewals or dealing with other departments. A lower fee with every signature billed extra can cost more over time.
• Extras. Ask in writing what is charged for amendments, extra signatures, urgent requests, attendance in person and exit.
• Percentage of turnover or profit. Avoid it. The law makes the agent a service provider with no financial stake, and a profit share invites disputes about your accounts.

Get at least two written local service agent offers, compare what each includes, and check whether the fee is fixed for the term or can be raised. The service agent agreement, not the sales conversation, is what binds.

The LSA agreement: terms to insist on

Article 16 requires “a notarised agency agreement based on the template prescribed by the DED”. The template covers the legal core. Everything commercial in the LSA agreement, such as the fee, response times and exit, is usually agreed in the same document or in a signed side letter between you and the agent. DET’s template itself is not published on a page we could read, so ask the agent or DET for the current form and read it in full before signing.

Checklist: what a Dubai local service agent agreement should say

1. The parties exactly as on the licence: your name and passport or Emirates ID, the business’s trade name and licence number, and the agent’s name, Emirates ID or, for a company, its licence and partners.
2. No ownership, no profit, no management. A plain statement that the agent holds no share in the business, is not entitled to its profits or assets, and has no management role. This mirrors Article 16 and removes any doubt later.
3. Scope of service. What the agent will do (sign, attend, liaise) and what they will not.
4. The fee. Amount, currency, due date, what it covers, and that it is fixed for the term or can rise only by a stated amount with notice.
5. Term aligned with the licence. One licence year, renewing with the licence, rather than an open-ended or unusually long fixed term.
6. A duty to cooperate on time. The agent signs renewals, amendments and other filings within a set number of working days of your request, and attends in person if DET requires it.
7. No withholding as leverage. The agent may not refuse or delay a signature to renegotiate the fee or for any reason unrelated to the request’s lawfulness.
8. Exit and replacement. Either side may end the LSA agreement on stated notice, and the outgoing agent must sign whatever DET needs to record the new agent, without extra charge beyond a stated fee.
9. Death, incapacity or dissolution. What happens if the individual agent dies or loses capacity, or a corporate agent is dissolved or gains a non-Emirati partner (it would then stop qualifying under Art. 15(b)).
10. Refund of prepaid fees for any period after the agreement ends early.
11. Power of attorney limits. No general power of attorney. Any power you give is specific to a named government step and ends when it is done.
12. Documents. The agent keeps your documents confidential and returns them on exit.
13. Governing law and forum. UAE law and the Dubai Courts, which is where any dispute about a Dubai agency would be heard.
14. Language. Arabic is the official language. If you sign a bilingual document, make sure you have an accurate translation of the Arabic, because the Arabic text usually prevails.

Red flags in an agent’s offer

Notarisation: how the service agent agreement is signed

Article 16 says the local service agent agreement must be notarised. In Dubai that happens in one of two ways.

Through DET’s own system

DED’s 2021 “Request to Issue Trade Licence” card said that “during this service, the customer can issue a memorandum of association or a service agent contract according to the legal form that is previously specified in the initial approval”. The parties are registered on the platform and sign electronically, with the signature fees shown in the fee table above. Invest in Dubai’s 2026 checklist separately lists “Submit a service agent contract (if required for your business type)” alongside the attested memorandum, which it says is “issued by DET for LLCs, one-person companies and civil companies” and “issued by a notary for all other legal forms”.

Before a notary public

The contract can also be signed before a government or private notary public in Dubai, whose fees are fixed by Executive Council Resolution No. 4 of 2014 for both. An agreement with no stated value is charged AED 200 per party, plus AED 100 per signature for electronic data entry. Which route your file uses depends on how DET’s system presents your legal form; follow what the initial approval asks for.

If you are outside the UAE

You can sign through an attorney under a power of attorney, notarised in Dubai at AED 100 per party, or notarised abroad and then legalised by the UAE embassy and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and legally translated into Arabic. Our document attestation service and legal translation service handle both steps. Keep the power specific to the licence file.

Step by step: appointing a local service agent in Dubai for a new licence

The agent is one step inside the professional licence process. The order below follows DET’s licence path; each step links to the guide that covers it in depth.

1. Choose the activity and legal form. Confirm that the activity is professional and that a sole establishment or civil company is the right form, or whether a one-person LLC would avoid the agent. See our Dubai mainland licence types guide and types of companies guide.
2. Reserve the trade name. Professional firms often use the founder’s name; the agent’s name is not part of it. See our trade name registration guide.
3. Apply for initial approval. DET records the owners, their nationalities and the legal form; for a non-UAE owner of a professional sole establishment, the agent is part of the file. DET’s fee for initial approval is AED 100 (Resolution 13/2011, item 4). See our initial approval guide.
4. Select the local service agent and agree terms. Get the offer and the draft LSA agreement in writing and check them against the checklist above.
5. Check the agent’s eligibility. UAE national’s Emirates ID, or a corporate agent’s licence showing all partners are UAE nationals.
6. Arrange premises and Ejari. A professional licence needs premises suitable for the activity (Law 13/2011, Art. 17). See our office space guide.
7. Sign the service agent contract through DET’s system or before a notary, and obtain any external approvals the activity needs.
8. Pay the licence voucher, including the AED 700 service agent line, and receive the licence. Dubai Chambers membership follows.
9. Open the immigration and labour files if you need visas: see our establishment card guide. Diarise renewal and the agent’s fee date together.

Risks of a local service agent arrangement in Dubai, and how to manage them

The legal risk to your ownership is low: the agent has no share to claim. The practical risks come from depending on one outside person for signatures, and from the owner’s own unlimited liability, which the agent does nothing to reduce.

Two further points are often missed. A bank opening an account for a sole establishment may ask about the agent as part of its checks, so keep a copy of the service agent agreement and the agent’s ID to hand; see our corporate bank account guide. And the agent is not a beneficial owner: under Cabinet Decision No. 109 of 2023 beneficial ownership follows ownership, voting or control, none of which the agent has. Our UBO register guide explains the filing rules and who they apply to.

Replacing or removing a local service agent in Dubai

You are not tied to an agent for life. The agency is a contract, and the licence can be amended to show a new agent. The mechanics follow from Law 13/2011 and DET’s amendment service.

The rules that apply

• DET approval first. An owner may not “modify the Licence details … without first obtaining the approval of the DED” (Art. 10(a)).
• Notify within ten working days. Changes to the information behind the licence must be notified “within ten (10) working days from the date of such change” (Art. 19(3)).
• A new notarised agreement with the new agent, on DET’s template (Art. 16).
• Amendment fees. DED’s amendment card listed “Amendment of partners (parties)” among the amendment types, with AED 500 for the amendment request plus AED 10 each for the Knowledge and Innovation Dirham, and AED 200 per signature for amendments other than share sales or capital changes (archived 18 September 2021). Resolution 13/2011 charges AED 500 per variation (item 2). Whether DET also charges the AED 700 appointment line for the incoming agent is shown on your voucher.

Step by step

1. Read your current LSA agreement for the notice period, exit fee and cooperation clause.
2. Line up the new agent and agree terms in writing before you give notice, so there is no gap.
3. Give written notice to the outgoing agent, asking for the signature or no-objection DET needs to remove them.
4. Apply for the licence amendment through DET’s platform or a service centre, replacing the agent.
5. Sign the new service agent contract through DET or before a notary.
6. Pay the voucher and receive the amended licence.
7. Update your records: keep the new agreement with the licence, tell your bank if it holds agent details, and check that Dubai Chambers and any external approval body show the current licence.

If the outgoing agent will not cooperate

Start with the service agent agreement: a clear exit clause is your strongest tool. If the agent still refuses, the relationship is a civil agency governed by UAE law, and disputes go to the Dubai Courts. Ask DET whether it will process the change on your application with proof of notice, because the law does not say what DET does when an agent refuses to sign. At that point take legal advice; we coordinate the DET side once the path is clear.

Removing the agent altogether

The only ways to have no agent are to change who owns the business or how it is structured. The practical route for a foreign professional is to move the business into a one-person LLC, which needs no agent. Changing the legal form requires DET’s approval under Article 10(a), and DET may treat it as a new licence rather than an amendment; confirm for your activity before you start. Dubai Economy noted in 2021 that an LLC cannot be converted into a sole proprietorship under a foreign name; it said nothing about the reverse. Moving also changes your trade name suffix, founding documents, audit duty and tax position. Our trade licence amendment guide covers the amendment process.

If you are closing the business

Cancelling the licence ends the agent’s role. DED’s 2021 cancellation card required, for a sole proprietorship of non-GCC citizens, cancellation of the owner’s residence or proof that the residence is not linked to the licence, and for a civil company a notarised partnership dissolution contract. Settle the local service agent fee to the cancellation date under your LSA agreement. Our company liquidation and visa cancellation service handles the government side.

What the 2021 ownership reforms changed for local service agents

Before 2021, a foreign founder had a choice between two kinds of outside Emirati involvement: a local service agent for a professional licence, or an Emirati partner holding 51% of a company. The reforms removed the second almost entirely. They left the first untouched, because it rests on Dubai law, not on the federal Companies Law.

The practical effect for a foreign professional is a real choice that did not exist in the same way before: keep the sole establishment with an agent, or use a one-person LLC with none. The table compares the two.

Neither is better in every case. A consultant with modest contracts and no staff may prefer the lighter sole establishment and accept the agent. A founder signing large client contracts often prefers the liability shield of the LLC. The tax and registration points are in our corporate tax registration guide; take tax advice on your figures.

What circulates online that is not true

How to verify every figure in this guide

Where official sources are silent or disagree

Local service agent in Dubai 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 foreign management consultant starting alone

Situation: A non-GCC resident wants a professional licence for management consultancy, working alone from a business centre desk, with modest contracts.

Assessment: Management consultancy is a professional activity. As a sole establishment she needs a local service agent under Article 15(b) and carries unlimited personal liability; as a one-person LLC, where DET allows the activity in that form, she needs no agent but takes on a memorandum and an auditor. Route: both compared in writing; she chose the sole establishment, got two agent offers, fixed the fee for the licence year, and added a five-working-day signing clause and a stated exit fee before signing. DET’s voucher showed the AED 700 service agent line.

2. Three engineers forming a civil company

Situation: Two foreign engineers and one Emirati engineer want to practise together as a consultancy partnership.

Assessment: A civil company fits (Law 13/2011, Art. 15(a)). The foreign partners bring in the agent requirement under Art. 15(b). The Emirati partner is a partner, not an agent; the two roles carry different rights and should not be merged informally. Route: a notarised partnership contract covering profit shares, signing authority, exit and professional liability; a separate agent agreement on DET’s template; the partners asked DET at initial approval how it records the agent for their file.

3. An agent who will not sign the amendment

Situation: A design studio on a professional licence wants to add an activity. Its agent says the annual fee must rise before signing.

Assessment: The agent owns nothing and cannot block the business legally, but the file needs the agent’s cooperation. The LSA agreement had no fixed-fee or cooperation clause. Route: the owner lined up a new agent, gave written notice under the agreement, applied to DET to replace the agent and add the activity, signed the new contract, and paid the amendment voucher (AED 500 per variation under Resolution 13/2011, item 2, plus the lines DET showed). The new agreement fixed the fee for the term.

4. A corporate agent that stopped qualifying

Situation: A training provider’s agent is a company that has taken on a non-Emirati partner.

Assessment: Article 15(b) allows only “a legal person whose partners are all holders of the UAE nationality”. The agent no longer qualifies, and the change must be notified to DET within ten working days (Art. 19(3)). Route: new eligible agent appointed by licence amendment, new notarised agreement, prepaid fees recovered under the refund clause the owner had insisted on at the start.

5. A foreign company’s branch told it “needs a sponsor”

Situation: A European engineering firm planning a Dubai branch received a quote that included an annual local sponsor fee.

Assessment: The branch agent requirement was in Article 329 of the 2015 Companies Law, repealed by Decree-Law 26/2020. MOET confirms that “a UAE national agent is not required” for branches of foreign companies. Route: no agent; the work went into legalising and translating the parent’s documents instead. See our branch of a foreign company guide.

What we will and will not do

We will tell you whether your licence needs a local service agent and why; compare a sole establishment with an agent against a one-person LLC; review the agent agreement against the checklist in this guide; run the DET file, signing and licence; replace an agent by amendment; and tell you when a question belongs with a lawyer or tax adviser.

We will not act as anyone’s local service agent or nominee shareholder; draft side agreements that hide the real owner; describe your activity in a way that does not match your business to fit a cheaper form; promise that DET will approve a form or an amendment; or represent you in a dispute with an agent.

Related guides

• Mainland company formation Dubai: the complete step-by-step guide
• Professional licence in Dubai
• 100% foreign ownership in Dubai
• Types of companies in Dubai mainland
• Branch of a foreign company in Dubai
• Trade licence amendment in Dubai
• Memorandum of association in Dubai
• Mainland business setup cost in Dubai
• Home business licence in Dubai
• How to renew a trade licence in Dubai
• Expired trade licence in Dubai: fines and what to do
• Free zone vs mainland Dubai

Setting up professional licences, checking LSA agreements and keeping licences, establishment cards and visas in step is what our PRO services in Dubai team handles every day. For ongoing company filings, see our corporate PRO services and trade licence renewal service.