Awarded the ‘Global Free Zone of the Year’ by the Financial Times fDi magazine for the past 5 years, Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) is the largest and fastest growing free economic zone in the UAE.  It was created by the Government of Dubai in 2002 to provide a business hub for commodity related businesses. 

There are 16,000 global and local businesses registered with DMCC ranging from startups to multinational corporations.  Located in the vibrant community of JLT, it has easy access to both airports, Jebel Ali Port, Expo 2020 site as well as two Metro Stations.Setting up a business in DMCC comes with a multitude of benefits:

• 100% foreign ownership
• Sole shareholders are permissible
• No personal income or corporate tax
• No limits on capital repatriation
• No duty or tax on import and export
• Robust infrastructure, state-of-the-art facilities and world-class services
• Excellent location
• Fastest growing Free Zone in the UAE
• Awarded the number one Free Zone in the world by the Financial Times’ fDi magazine for the past five years
• Flexible Office Solutions – from flexi desks and serviced offices to multi story office for lease or sale
• Efficient online system for using government services
• Various trading platforms such as the Dubai Gold & Commodities Exchange (DGCX), Dubai Diamond Exchange, DMCC Tea Centre, DMCC Pearl Exchange and DMCC Trade flow

Company formation costs depend on whether you need a commercial / trade license, service license or general trade license and whether you register a new company or branch of an existing company. A commercial or trading license lets you import, export, consolidate, distribute and store the products specified in the license.  On the other hand, a general trading license allows you to import, export, consolidate, distribute and store all types of products except for a few.  Lastly a service license allows you to provide services or carry out consulting activities as specified in the license.

Overall trade license costs and service license cost for a new company at DMCC start from around AED 32,000 including company registration fees and general trade license costs start from around AED 82,000. Branch company registration costs slightly less, however, foreign branch may incur additional costs for legalizing parent company documents overseas. It is a requirement to rent either a Flexi-desk or a physical office in DMCC/JLT area to register a company and to receive a trade or service license in DMCC.  Flexi-desk rent is approximately AED 18,000 per year.

Required minimum paid up share capital is AED 50,000 for a new company, which is not applicable for a branch. These are also various additional costs, which vary based on office type and whether you will hire employees for the company.