Founder advisory for your UAE company
Advice before and after setting up in the UAE: free zone or mainland, running costs, tax consequences and the duties that start the moment the licence is issued.
Most mistakes are not made at incorporation, they are made afterwards. We advise on structure, free zone and running costs before the decision, and after the licence we take over the duties that start immediately: tax registration, bookkeeping, deadlines. With no incentive to sell you a particular zone.
What gets overlooked most often at setup?
The running costs. Almost every offer quotes the first year, hardly any quotes the renewal, the audit requirement of the particular zone, the bookkeeping and the insurance obligations for staff. That is precisely where structures fail in year two.
The second blind spot is the set of duties that begin the moment the licence is issued. Incorporation starts the registration obligation with the tax authority, and the duty to keep books applies from day one, not from the first invoice.
Free zone or mainland?
There is no universal answer, only one that follows from your business: who your clients are, where they sit, whether you need local contracts, how many visas you require, and what tax treatment the structure has to support.
We earn nothing from any zone. That is the difference to a company formation agency, and it is why we will also tell you when setting up in the UAE does not pay off in your case.
What do we take over after incorporation?
The real value sits in the period after the licence, once the formation agency has moved on.
- Registration with the tax authority and deadline monitoring
- Building the bookkeeping from day one instead of catching up later
- Checking whether VAT registration is required or worthwhile
- Clarifying whether a GoAML registration is due
- Preparing for the annual statements and, where needed, the audit
Frequently asked questions
Do you incorporate the company for me?
Incorporation itself runs through the respective zone or a partner. Our role is the advice beforehand and the support afterwards, meaning structure, cost, tax consequences and all ongoing duties. We do not recommend any zone we earn from.
From what profit does a Dubai company pay off?
That depends on your running costs, your residence and your client base, not on the tax rate alone. We work it through honestly in the first call, including the cases where the move does not pay off.
Which duties do I have right after incorporation?
Registration with the tax authority, bookkeeping from day one and, depending on activity, further registrations. Revenue is not a precondition for any of them. Duties left aside in year one get paid for with a surcharge in year two.
What does a company cost in its second year?
Considerably more than most formation offers suggest, because renewal, bookkeeping, a possible audit and insurance obligations are added. We put those numbers on the table before the decision, not after it.
Keep reading: The founder guide to accounting in Dubai ·Company setup costs in Dubai ·Free zone vs mainland: accounting and tax ·DMCC vs IFZA vs SPC free zone comparison