Documents Required to Set Up a UAE Company: Free Zone and Mainland Checklist (2026)

The documents required to set up a UAE company are four sets of papers: identity documents for every shareholder and manager; the trade name and, on the mainland, the initial approval; constitutional documents such as the Memorandum of Association, with proof of your business premises; and any approval your activity needs from a sector regulator. Once the trade licence is issued, three more follow: the establishment card, the beneficial owner register and Corporate Tax registration with the Federal Tax Authority (FTA). As of September 2026, each free zone authority and emirate economic department sets its own final list, so use the checklist below as the typical set and confirm the exact one with your authority before you file.

Your route decides most of the file, so settle three things before you collect anything: whether you are setting up in a free zone or mainland, which activity you will license, and who the shareholders are. This page covers the paperwork only. For the full company setup process, from choosing a structure to getting your residence visa, see our step-by-step guide.

UAE Business Setup Checklist: Documents Required, in Order

A UAE business setup checklist runs in the order the authorities ask for each document: the people first, then the company's name and constitution, then premises and approvals, then the documents that follow the licence. Items marked Mainland apply to that route only.

The Master Checklist

1. Passport copy and digital passport photo for every individual shareholder, plus identification for the directors and authorised signatories who will run the company.

2. Copies of the UAE residence visa and Emirates ID for any shareholder who already lives in the UAE.

3. Proof of residential address, such as a recent utility bill or tenancy contract, where the free zone asks for it.

4. The licensing authority's application form, completed with the ultimate beneficial owner (UBO) details.

5. For a corporate shareholder: its certificate of incorporation, Memorandum and Articles of Association, trade licence and a board resolution, translated and attested where needed.

6. A trade name that ends with the legal form, such as LLC, FZE or DMCC.

7. Mainland, foreign investors: approval from the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners' Affairs (GDRFA) before initial approval.

8. Mainland: initial approval from the emirate's economic department.

9. Mainland: a signed and attested Memorandum of Association, or a local service agent agreement where the legal form needs one.

10. Mainland: a rental agreement for the premises, attested where the emirate requires it and registered with Ejari in Dubai.

11. Any sector regulator approval your activity needs.

12. After the licence: the establishment card, the beneficial owner register, Corporate Tax registration and the bank account documents.

Where to Start

Start with items 1 to 5, the documents about the people and shareholders behind the company. A corporate document issued abroad has to be notarised in its home country and attested by the UAE mission there before it can be filed in the UAE, so begin that one first. Then follow the free zone or mainland section below for the rest.

Documents Required From Every Shareholder and Manager

The documents required from every individual shareholder are a passport copy, a digital passport photo and the authority's application form carrying the ultimate beneficial owner (UBO) information. Shareholders who already live in the UAE add copies of their UAE residence visa and Emirates ID (Source: IFZA document requirements).

Individual Shareholders

1. A clear passport copy.

2. A digital passport photo.

3. The authority's application form, completed with the UBO information.

4. UAE residents only: copies of the UAE residence visa and Emirates ID.

5. Where the free zone asks for it: proof of residential address, such as a recent utility bill or tenancy contract.

IFZA, DMCC and Meydan Free Zone each publish their own list, and the lists overlap closely. DMCC and Meydan Free Zone, for example, ask for proof of residential address (Source: DMCC company setup). Regulated or specialised activities can add documents, so confirm the exact list with the free zone you choose before you upload anything.

Directors, Managers and Authorised Signatories

Free zones usually want identification for the people who will run and sign for the company, not only for its owners. DMCC's list, for example, covers the passport, visa and proof of address of shareholders, directors and authorised signatories alike.

Decide early who will be an authorised signatory. After the licence, the establishment card needs a valid Emirates ID or a Unified Number for one of them, and Corporate Tax registration asks for the Emirates ID and passport of each signatory.

Free Zone Company Registration Documents and Requirements

Free zone company registration is handled by the free zone authority itself. You apply online through its website, give basic company information and upload your documents, and after review and approval the licence is issued within 14 working days (Source: u.ae, starting a business in a free zone).

Free Zone Setup Steps, in Order

1. Choose your sector, then the free zone that serves it.

2. Choose the legal entity: Free Zone LLC, Free Zone Company (FZ Co.), Free Zone Establishment (FZE), a public company, or a branch of a local or international company.

3. Choose a trade name followed by the legal form, for example LLC, FZE or DMCC, that is not already registered.

4. Apply online through the free zone authority's website and upload your documents.

5. After review and approval, receive the licence within 14 working days.

Not every free zone registers every entity type, so check with the individual free zone authority before you settle on one. The trade name is also checked by the free zone authority, not by the mainland economic department.

What Goes Into the Free Zone Upload

The upload is the shareholder set above plus, where a shareholder is a company, the corporate documents described further down. DMCC also lists company ownership documents: the shareholding structure, the Memorandum and Articles of Association, and any parent or group company documents.

All DMCC companies must provide and maintain UBO information, and DMCC may ask for more documents or approvals depending on the activity or structure. IFZA makes the same point: not every business activity needs the same documents.

Mainland Company Setup Documents, Step by Step

A mainland company is licensed by the economic department of the emirate where it will operate, and its documents are produced in a set order: activity, legal form, trade name, initial approval, the Memorandum of Association, premises, extra approvals, then the licence itself (Source: u.ae, steps to start a business on the mainland). Investors can also start online through the federal Basher platform.

The Mainland Sequence

1. Choose the business activity. There are more than 2,000 to choose from, one business can hold more than one, and your activity and licence type decide which extra approvals apply.

2. Choose the legal form: general partnership, limited partnership, limited liability company (LLC), public joint stock company (PJSC) or private joint stock company (PrJSC). It must match the activity.

3. Register the trade name with the emirate's economic department.

4. If you are a foreign investor, obtain GDRFA approval before you apply for initial approval.

5. Obtain initial approval, the UAE Government's no-objection to the business. It lets you move to the next steps but does not let you trade.

6. Sign the Memorandum of Association, which limited partnerships, LLCs, PJSCs and PrJSCs need and which a UAE law firm, court or notary public prepares and attests, or sign a local service agent agreement where your legal form needs one.

7. Secure premises that meet the economic department's and the municipality's rules and provide the office or warehouse rental agreement. Some emirates require it attested, and in Dubai it must be registered with Ejari.

8. Obtain any additional approvals from the government entities that regulate your activity.

9. Submit the licence collection documents and pay the licence fee within 30 days of receiving the payment voucher.

This page lists no fees, because they vary by emirate, activity and legal form. For the numbers, see our breakdown of UAE company registration costs.

Trade Name Requirements

The economic department checks five rules before it registers a mainland trade name.

1. It ends with the legal-form acronym, such as LLC, EST, PJSC or PrJSC.

2. It does not violate public morals or public order.

3. It suits the activity and the company's legal status.

4. It contains no name of a religion or governing authority, and no names or logos of external bodies.

5. It is not already registered.

The economic department registers the trade name. A trademark is a separate registration, made with the Ministry of Economy and Tourism.

Documents for Collecting the Mainland Licence

To collect the licence, u.ae lists the following documents for all legal forms.

1. The initial approval receipt and every document submitted earlier.

2. A copy of the lease contract, which in Dubai must be attested by the Real Estate Regulatory Agency (RERA).

3. The duly attested Memorandum of Association.

4. Approvals from other government entities, where required.

5. A duly attested service agent contract, for civil establishments and companies 100% owned by non-GCC nationals.

Pay the licence fee within 30 days of receiving the payment voucher. If it is not paid in that window, the application is cancelled.

Ownership and the Local Service Agent

Since early 2021, foreign investors can own up to 100% of most mainland companies, instead of the previous 49% cap. Federal Decree-Law No. 26 of 2020, later consolidated in Federal Decree-Law No. 32 of 2021 on Commercial Companies, removed the requirement for a 51% Emirati shareholder or a local agent for most activities, and branches of foreign companies no longer need a UAE national service agent (Source: u.ae, full foreign ownership of commercial companies). Activities of strategic impact, such as security and defence, telecommunications, banking, exchange, financing and insurance, can still carry ownership restrictions and approvals.

Whether your company still needs a local service agent depends on its legal form and activity. The u.ae licence list above still names an attested service agent contract for civil establishments and companies wholly owned by non-GCC nationals, so confirm the position with the emirate's economic department before you draft the Memorandum of Association.

Activities That Need Extra Approval Documents

Some business activities need a sector regulator's approval on top of the standard file. For activities related to legal affairs, security affairs, and financial securities and commodities, that approval must be in place before you can apply for mainland initial approval.

Sector Regulators and the Activities They Approve

1. Central Bank of the UAE: banks, money exchange, financing and insurance.

2. Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA): financial consultation, share broking and investment advisory.

3. Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA): telecommunications.

4. Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE): manpower supply and recruitment.

5. General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA): air cargo and travel agencies with ticketing.

6. Ministry of Climate Change and Environment: agriculture, veterinary and environmental consultancy.

7. The media regulator: publishing, printing and advertising.

When to Ask for the Approval

Ask for the regulator's approval as soon as your activity is fixed. On the mainland, the legal, security, and financial securities and commodities activities need it before initial approval, and for the others it belongs in the file the economic department checks before it issues the licence. In a free zone, regulated or specialised activities also add requirements, so ask the free zone which approvals your activity carries.

Documents Needed When a Company Is the Shareholder

When the shareholder is a company, for example a foreign parent setting up a UAE subsidiary, the free zone asks for the parent's constitutional documents as well as the identity documents of the people behind it. When the parent is incorporated abroad, those documents also need attesting before they are filed, plus a certified translation if they are not in English or Arabic.

The Corporate Shareholder Document Set

1. Certificate of incorporation or formation, or its equivalent.

2. Memorandum and Articles of Association, or their equivalent.

3. A valid trade licence, or its equivalent.

4. A board resolution approving the new UAE company.

5. Passport copies and digital passport photos of every shareholder and of the general manager of the corporate shareholder.

6. The application form with UBO information, plus Emirates ID and visa copies for any of those shareholders who live in the UAE.

That list is IFZA's, and it is typical of what free zones ask for (Source: IFZA document requirements). Meydan Free Zone likewise requires notarised and attested certificates of incorporation and Memorandum and Articles of Association for corporate shareholders. If the UAE company will itself hold other companies, our guide to UAE holding company structures covers where those entities are usually set up.

Translation and Attestation Requirements

Documents must be in English or Arabic, and anything else needs a certified translation. Attestation is the step that certifies the signatures and seals on a document are genuine, and a document issued outside the UAE is attested through the UAE mission, the embassy or consulate, in the country that issued it (Source: UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs attestation).

For a corporate document issued abroad, such as a board resolution from a parent incorporated outside the UAE, the usual chain runs in three steps.

1. Notarise the document in the country where it was issued.

2. Attest it through the UAE embassy or consulate there, online where that mission offers the service and in person where it does not.

3. File it with the free zone authority or economic department, with a certified translation if it is not in English or Arabic.

The exact chain is set by the authority you file with, so confirm it before you send anything abroad for signing.

Documents Required After the Trade Licence Is Issued

The trade licence is not the last document. A new company then obtains an establishment card, sets up its beneficial owner register and registers for Corporate Tax with the FTA, and it opens its bank account once the licence is in hand.

The Establishment Card

The establishment card opens the company's immigration file, and it records the trade name, licence number, partners and activity. The Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP), the federal authority that publishes the service, lists these documents for a private-sector company.

1. A valid trade licence, which for an LLC is a copy showing the stakeholders.

2. A valid Emirates ID, or a Unified Number for someone not yet issued one, for one of the authorised signatories.

3. An official letter to ICP requesting the file opening, signed by the chairman or an authorised representative.

4. A signature authorisation letter.

5. The Memorandum of Association, where the company is a partnership.

6. Any requirements of the local emirate authorities.

Free zone companies apply through their free zone authority. Which authority handles the card depends on the emirate where the company is registered and, for a free zone company, on its free zone, so confirm the right channel before you apply. ICP states a service completion time of 2 days (Source: ICP establishment card service).

The Beneficial Owner Register

Under Cabinet Decision No. 109 of 2023, every mainland company and every company in a non-financial free zone keeps a beneficial owner register. A beneficial owner is anyone who owns or controls 25% or more of the capital or voting rights, directly or indirectly, or who otherwise exercises ultimate control.

1. Create the register within 60 days of the company coming into existence.

2. Record any change within 15 days.

3. Submit the beneficial owner and shareholder register data to the registrar within 60 days of licensing and registration.

4. Provide any additional data the registrar requests within 14 days.

For each owner, the register records the full name, nationality, date and place of birth, address, and passport or ID number with the issuing country and dates. The company must also name a natural person resident in the UAE who is authorised to disclose the data, and it supplies the data again whenever it applies for licensing, registration or an amendment (Source: Cabinet Decision No. 109 of 2023, Ministry of Economy and Tourism).

Corporate Tax Registration on EmaraTax

Every juridical person subject to Corporate Tax, including a newly formed company, must register with the FTA through EmaraTax and obtain a Corporate Tax Registration Number. Registration is free of charge, and the FTA states it completes an application within 20 business days of receiving a complete one. The FTA asks for these documents.

1. Certificate of incorporation, Memorandum of Association or partnership agreement, if available.

2. Commercial registration certificate, or another official document from the licensing authority.

3. The valid trade licence, including any branch licences.

4. Emirates ID and passport of any owner holding more than 25%, and of the authorised signatories.

5. Proof of the signatory's authorisation.

Late registration carries an administrative penalty of AED 10,000. The FTA's waiver initiative lifts it if the first tax return, or annual declaration, is filed within 7 months of the end of the first tax period (Source: Federal Tax Authority, Corporate Tax registration).

The Company Bank Account

A company bank account is opened after the licence is issued. Each bank sets its own document list, and business applicants may be asked for the trade licence and company documents (Source: u.ae, banking in the UAE). Our guide to free zone company bank account documents covers what banks typically ask a free zone company for.

Document Mistakes That Delay a UAE Company Setup

Each gap below stops, delays or cancels a step described above, and each one can be caught before you file.

Seven Gaps to Check Before You File

1. A document in another language filed without a certified translation.

2. Foreign corporate documents that were not notarised at home and attested by the UAE mission.

3. A foreign investor applying for mainland initial approval without GDRFA approval first.

4. A Dubai lease that is not registered with Ejari.

5. A licence fee not paid within 30 days of the payment voucher, which cancels the application.

6. A beneficial owner register not created within 60 days of the company coming into existence.

7. Corporate Tax registration left undone, which exposes the company to the AED 10,000 late-registration penalty.

Once you know your route, the next step is the exact document list for your free zone or emirate. Create your Zola account to get that list for your setup and have Zola prepare, check and file your documents.