Mainland company
Dubai mainland company setup through DET
A Dubai mainland company is licensed by the Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) and registered on Dubai's commercial register. It can trade with customers across the UAE, rent premises anywhere in the city and sponsor visas. It suits businesses that sell locally or need a Dubai address. Caliph files the application and manages each approval for you.
At a glance Fact sheet
- Licensing authority
- Department of Economy and Tourism (DET), Government of Dubai
- Online platform
- Invest in Dubai, the government's digital platform for starting a business
- Where you can trade
- Across the UAE mainland and abroad. A site in another emirate needs a branch licence there
- Ownership
- Full foreign ownership is available for most commercial and industrial activities
- Office
- Premises in Dubai with a registered Ejari, unless the licence type allows otherwise
- Tenancy registration
- Ejari, run by Dubai Land Department
Overview
Dubai issues every mainland licence through one department. The Department of Economy and Tourism, known as DET, approves the trade name, the activities and the partners, and issues the trade licence. Applications run through Invest in Dubai, the government platform that brings licensing and the related approvals into a single online file.
A DET licence is the usual choice when your customers are in the city. Retail, restaurants, contracting, real estate brokerage, clinics, salons, transport and trading with local buyers all sit here. Many of these need a second approval beside the licence, for example from Dubai Municipality for food, from the Real Estate Regulatory Agency for brokers or from the Dubai Health Authority for clinics.
Caliph works from Port Saeed in Deira and has formed more than 3,000 companies since 2020. Your consultant prepares the application, arranges the signatures, registers the Ejari and collects the licence, then moves straight on to the establishment card and the visas.
What a Dubai mainland licence gives you
Direct access to Dubai customers
You can sign contracts with consumers, companies and government entities in Dubai without an agent or distributor.
Any commercial address in the city
You are not tied to one zone. You can rent a shop, office, warehouse or kitchen wherever the activity is permitted.
A wide activity list
DET's activity list covers trading, services, industry, tourism and professional work, and one licence can carry several related activities.
Room to add visas and branches
As the company rents more space it can apply for more staff visas, and it can open further branches under the same owner.
One consultant from name to visas
Caliph handles the DET file, the Ejari, the external approvals and the immigration steps, so you deal with one person.
What to have ready
- Passport copies of every owner and the manager
- UAE residence visa and Emirates ID copies, if you already live here
- Three or more trade name options in order of preference
- A short description of what the business will sell or do
- The tenancy contract for the premises, once the initial approval is issued
- For a corporate shareholder, its licence, constitutional documents and a board resolution, attested for use in the UAE
- Any professional qualification the activity requires
Regulated activities need extra papers from the authority that approves them. Your consultant gives you the exact list for your activity.
How Dubai mainland setup works
Activity and legal form
We match your business to DET's activities, confirm the ownership rules and choose the legal form, usually a limited liability company.
Trade name reservation
The name is submitted through Invest in Dubai and reserved once it meets DET's naming rules.
Initial approval
DET confirms it has no objection to the business. With this approval you can sign a lease and apply to other authorities.
Memorandum of Association
The Memorandum of Association is prepared and signed by the partners in the form DET accepts.
Premises and Ejari
You sign the tenancy contract and we register it in Ejari with Dubai Land Department.
External approvals
If the activity is regulated, the file goes to the relevant authority, such as Dubai Municipality or the Dubai Health Authority.
Licence and visa file
DET issues the trade licence. We then open the establishment card and start the residence visas.
Good to know
- Free zone companies in Dubai are licensed by their zone, not by DET. If you are unsure which you need, ask before you sign a lease.
- The trade licence is renewed every year, and the Ejari must be valid on the renewal date.
- Some activities can start with a virtual or shared office. Whether yours qualifies depends on DET's rules for that activity.
Questions people ask
Who issues a mainland trade licence in Dubai?
The Department of Economy and Tourism, known as DET and previously as Dubai Economy. It reserves the trade name, approves the activities and the partners and issues the licence. Applications are filed through the Invest in Dubai platform or through DET's service channels.
Can I own 100% of a Dubai mainland company as a foreigner?
For most commercial and industrial activities, yes. Dubai publishes the activities open to full foreign ownership. Activities with strategic impact are treated separately, and some legal forms have their own ownership rules. Your Caliph consultant checks your exact activity against the current list before the name is reserved.
What is the difference between a Dubai mainland and a Dubai free zone company?
A mainland company is licensed by DET and can trade directly anywhere in the UAE. A free zone company is licensed by its zone authority and operates inside the zone and internationally. Mainland suits local sales and street premises. Free zones suit export, online and international service businesses.
Do I need an office before I get the licence?
You need the initial approval first, then a tenancy contract registered in Ejari, and then the licence is issued. So the lease comes in the middle of the process, not before it. Do not sign a lease until your consultant has confirmed that the premises suit the activity.
Which activities need extra approvals in Dubai?
Any activity regulated by another body. Common examples are food businesses with Dubai Municipality, real estate brokerage with the Real Estate Regulatory Agency, clinics with the Dubai Health Authority, schools and training centres with KHDA and transport activities with the Roads and Transport Authority.
Can a Dubai mainland company sponsor residence visas?
Yes. Once the licence is issued the company gets an establishment card and registers with the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation. It can then apply for visas for owners and employees. The number it can apply for is usually linked to the office on its Ejari.
Reviewed by Caliph Business Solutions on . Rules differ by activity and by authority. Your Caliph consultant confirms what applies to you.
Ready to establish your company in the UAE?
Book a free consultation. Tell us what you want to open and we come back with the route, the documents and the cost.
- VisitHapag-Lloyd Building, Port Saeed, Deira, Dubai. P.O. Box 8070
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