Setting up a mainland company in the UAE — a Limited Liability Company (LLC) or a sole establishment — is the foundation of operating in the UAE's broader domestic market, tendering for government contracts, and accessing the widest range of business activities. The process involves multiple government departments across Dubai, Abu Dhabi, or the relevant emirate, and the sequencing matters: errors or omissions at early stages create delays that cascade through the entire setup timeline. This guide walks through the full mainland company setup process as it stands in 2026, covering every stage from trade name reservation to the issuance of the trade licence.
Step 1: Choose Your Business Activity and Legal Structure
Before submitting any applications, the business owner must determine the exact activity or activities the company will conduct and the appropriate legal structure. UAE mainland companies can be LLCs (the most common structure for foreign investors, requiring 51% UAE national shareholder or a corporate sponsor arrangement under recent FDI reforms), branches of foreign companies, professional companies (for sole practitioners in licensed professions), and sole establishments. Since the UAE's Foreign Direct Investment Law and DED's 2021 reforms, 100% foreign ownership is permitted for a significantly expanded range of activities — but some restricted activities still require a UAE national partner or a local service agent.
Activity selection drives everything downstream: the licensing authority (DED for most Dubai commercial activities, KHDA for education-related activities, DHA for healthcare, and so on), the minimum capital requirements (some activities carry specific paid-up capital requirements), and the premises requirements (some activities require physical office space of a defined minimum size). Getting this right at the outset avoids expensive corrections later.
Steps 2–3: Trade Name Reservation and Initial Approval
Trade name reservation is submitted to the DED (Dubai) or the relevant authority in other emirates via their online portal or smart app. The name must comply with UAE naming regulations — no offensive content, no names that imply government affiliation, no famous brand names. Once the trade name is reserved (typically within one to three working days), the initial approval application is submitted — a formal confirmation that the authority approves the proposed activity and structure in principle. Initial approval is typically issued within one to three working days.
For activities requiring additional regulatory approval — healthcare, education, financial services, food production — the initial approval process includes submitting to the relevant regulatory authority (DHA, KHDA, FSRA, UAE Food Safety) for their no-objection certificate (NOC) before the trade licence can be issued. These NOCs can take two to six weeks and are a common source of delay for businesses that have not factored them into their timeline.
Steps 4–5: Memorandum of Association and Notarisation
The Memorandum of Association (MoA) and Articles of Association define the company's shareholders, their respective share percentages, the authorised capital, and the rules of the company. For UAE LLCs with a local partner or investor, the MoA must be carefully drafted to reflect the agreed shareholding and any side agreements between shareholders. The MoA is drafted, reviewed by all parties, and then notarised at a UAE notary public — or can be submitted electronically through the DED's digital systems in some cases.
For 100% foreign-owned companies in permitted sectors, the MoA reflects the full foreign shareholding. All shareholders must be present (or represented by a properly executed Power of Attorney) for notarisation. If any shareholder is outside the UAE, an apostilled or attested PoA from their country of residence is required before notarisation can proceed.
Steps 6–8: Premises, External Approvals, and Trade Licence Issuance
The company must have a registered physical address before the trade licence is issued. This is confirmed by submitting a tenancy contract (Ejari-registered in Dubai, Tawtheeq in Abu Dhabi) or a confirmation of a flexi-desk or business centre arrangement for activities that permit virtual office registration. The premises requirements vary significantly by activity type — commercial and general trading activities typically require at least a small physical office; manufacturing and industrial activities require factory or warehouse space of defined minimum dimensions.
Once all documents are submitted — trade name reservation, initial approval, notarised MoA, premises contract, external NOCs (if required), and shareholder identity documents — the DED or relevant authority processes the trade licence application. Processing times range from one to five working days for straightforward applications. The trade licence is issued in digital and physical form. Subsequent steps — Emirates ID registration for company managers, corporate bank account opening, VAT registration, and visa applications — flow from the issued licence.