A Dubai mainland company is licensed through the Department of Economy and Tourism for approved activities. Kinzaad helps confirm the activity, legal form, ownership eligibility, approvals, premises and visa requirements before preparing the application.
Mainland company formation, in brief. Choose the activity and legal form, check foreign-ownership eligibility and external approvals, obtain initial approval, reserve the trade name, arrange acceptable premises where required and complete the licence application.
Use the official Invest in Dubai mainland guide and Dubai business registration steps to verify the current government process.
Mainland — sometimes called an "onshore" company — is licensed by the Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) in Dubai, or the equivalent authority in each emirate. It provides a route to local operations under the approved licence, with activity, premises and any external-regulator conditions still applying.
A mainland route may be relevant if you plan to:
Not sure yet? Compare a free-zone company as well. The correct route depends on the licensed activity, customer market, workspace, visas and authority rules—not the headline licence fee alone.
The agreed scope can cover the stages below. Your itemised proposal should confirm which services, authority charges and third-party costs are included:
Describe the actual work you will perform, rather than choosing an activity solely because its name sounds close. Confirm whether the intended shop, office or other premises are acceptable for that activity before committing to a tenancy. A regulated activity can also require approval outside DET.
Use the company formation document checklist to prepare the ownership file, then compare the licence, premises, visa and renewal components in your quote.
We confirm the activity, ownership, customer market, premises and visa needs, then compare the mainland and free-zone routes.
The proposal separates quoted authority fees, Kinzaad service fees and known recurring components for the selected route.
We prepare the name-reservation, initial-approval, legal-form and supporting documents required for submission to DET and any relevant external authority.
After licensing, we support the establishment-card and visa stages and help prepare the UAE corporate bank account application. Each authority and bank makes its own decision.
The honest short version — the full breakdown is in our comparison guide.
| Mainland | Free Zone | |
|---|---|---|
| Trade in the UAE market | Under the approved licence, premises and regulator conditions | Check the activity and required mainland licence, branch, permit or distribution route |
| Foreign ownership | Available for many activities; confirm eligibility | Subject to the zone and legal-form rules |
| Contract eligibility | Check the tender's licence and local-presence rules | Check the tender and zone rules |
| Cost basis | Activity, legal form, approvals, premises and visas | Zone, legal form, package, workspace and visas |
| Office requirement | Confirm acceptable premises and Ejari requirements for the activity | Confirm whether shared workspace or dedicated premises are required |
| Visa allocation | Depends on premises, activity and immigration requirements | Depends on facility, package and immigration requirements |
Free-zone access to mainland Dubai is not limited to a distributor in every case. DET's Free Zone Mainland Operating Permit announcement explains a route for eligible companies and activities. Confirm eligibility before relying on it.
Book a free consultation and we will confirm the activity, legal form, ownership, approvals, premises and visa requirements before preparing an itemised quote.