Trade license Dubai and the UAE, types and how to apply

Key Takeaways

Dubai's official guide names five licence types: industrial, commercial, professional, e-trader and dual (dubai.ae, October 2026).
A licence is not permission to operate: Executive Council Resolution 5 of 2024 issues it instantly and puts permits, inspection and staff checks after it.
Each emirate licenses its own mainland, and free zone companies are licensed by their zone authority instead.
Registering the tenancy in Ejari costs AED 177.75 through the Dubai REST app, as of October 2026; the DET licence fee depends on the activity.
Three early errors recur: treating the instant licence as permission, choosing the wrong category and stacking unrelated activities.

Founders searching for a trade license in Dubai usually want three answers: which type to apply for, which authority issues it, and what else must be in hand before they sell. The answer most guides skip is that a licence is not yet permission to trade. Existing owners will find the renewal and change rules near the end.

What a trade licence is and what it is not

A trade licence is the authorisation an emirate's licensing authority gives a company to carry on the activities named on it. It is not the company itself, which is the legal form, and it is not permission to operate. Regulated activities need permits from a regulator in addition to the licence.

In Dubai the licence sits beside a Dubai Unified Licence (DUL), launched on 11 December 2023 as a single identifier for businesses in Dubai with a QR code. The code lets customers, suppliers and government entities retrieve company information (Dubai Media Office, December 2023), which gives you a first look at a supplier or landlord that claims a Dubai licence.

The licence types in Dubai and how they differ

Dubai's official guide names five licence types: industrial, commercial, professional, e-trader and dual (dubai.ae, October 2026). In everyday use, industrial means manufacturing and processing, commercial means trading and professional means services and consultancy. The activity you pick in the application decides which type you are offered.

E-trader licences work differently. They are home-based, open to a sole proprietorship only, and meant for people selling through social media or online platforms. All e-trade licences need a no-objection from the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA), and sellers may offer only goods and services legally approved for trade in the UAE (Federal Decree-Law 14 of 2023). As of October 2026, ask DET whether your nationality is eligible for the e-trader licence and what it charges.

Dual licences are the route a free zone company uses to work on the Dubai mainland (see the guide to Dubai free zone companies). Since 2025 their terms come from Executive Council Resolution 11 of 2025. It fixes AED 10,000 a year for the branch operating out of the free zone and AED 5,000 for a six-month permit, as of October 2026.

Category errors come first, for example an e-trader licence for a business that needs a commercial or professional one. The e-trader is a sole proprietorship with unlimited personal liability, and it is home-based. The second error is stacking many unrelated activities on one licence. DET may ask you to justify the mix, and banks can read it as a risk flag.

Licence versus permit under Resolution 5 of 2024

Under Executive Council Resolution 5 of 2024, DET issues the licence instantly and the permits come afterwards. The exception is a list of activities set by Chairman's resolution, where a permit must come first. You sign an acknowledgement and undertaking that you know the requirements and will obtain every permit before starting.

After the licence, the regulator verifies staff qualifications and any bank guarantee, and an on-site inspection is carried out within a maximum of 3 working days of a complete application. The resolution also says an academic qualification or professional licence is not needed to issue the licence unless legislation requires one. That does not remove the regulator's own conditions before you practise.

The Resolution names no sectors, so ask DET whether your activity is on the Chairman's list. As your own check, a regulated activity such as health or education usually needs its regulator's approval. The Commercial Companies Law adds the general rule that a company obtains all approvals before it begins an activity (Article 11, as in the 2021 text; check the current wording after Federal Decree-Law 20 of 2025).

The usual failure is reading an instant licence as permission to start. A sale before the permit breaches the undertaking you signed, while the rent runs. A licensed adviser can map the permits to your activity code before you pay for the licence. Ask for that list in writing, with the regulator named for each permit.

Who issues the licence in each emirate

Dubai mainland licences come from the Department of Economy and Tourism (DET, formerly DED) through Invest in Dubai. Abu Dhabi uses the Department of Economic Development, ADDED, and its TAMM portal, where it lists Abu Dhabi Trader, Dual, Freelancer, Mobdea, Small Producers, Standard and Virtual licences as of October 2026. Sharjah licenses through the Sharjah Economic Development Department, and Ajman and Ras Al Khaimah through their own departments of economic development.

Free zones issue their own licences, with their own type names. Umm Al Quwain and Fujairah have their own licensing authorities, which this page does not cover. The federal Ministry of Economy and Tourism keeps the Commercial Register that all of them feed. Each emirate applies its own activity list and premises rules, so confirm them where you will trade. The mainland company setup guide covers the department of each emirate in more detail.

Documents and the order of steps

The official guide fixes the order in Dubai: choose the licence type and legal form, check ownership and extra approvals, then register in three stages (dubai.ae, October 2026).

Request initial approval, a no-objection in principle that does not allow you to operate.
Reserve the trade name, which must end with the legal form and not repeat a registered name.
Prepare the articles of association, which dubai.ae lists as not applicable for a one-person LLC, and register the tenancy.
Pay the fees and collect the licence, which carries the DUL QR code.
Obtain the permits the activity needs, then start.

Documents are the licensee's passport or Emirates ID, a residence visa copy where relevant, and the articles of association where they apply. A corporate shareholder adds documents attested through the home country, the UAE embassy, the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, an Arabic legal translation and the Ministry of Justice.

With an individual shareholder and a standard activity, a founder can often file this alone, and the step-by-step guide to opening a company in Dubai sets out each stage with its checkpoint.

Renewal, changes and what blocks them

Changes to the name, address, capital, number of shareholders or legal form must be notified within 15 working days (Commercial Companies Law, Article 15). The register of partners goes to the authority every January (Article 74). An amendment after issue costs a fee, and the bank usually needs to be told too.

Several things can block a renewal or a change. A commercial tenancy must be registered in Ejari in the licensed company's name, and the Dubai Land Department guide says departments will not act on an unregistered lease. A third breach of the beneficial owner rules lets the registrar suspend the commercial licence until the fine is paid and the breach is corrected (Cabinet Resolution 132 of 2023). Real estate agents, precious metals dealers and corporate service providers must also register on the goAML system. In August 2023 the Ministry of Economy suspended 50 designated non-financial businesses and professions (DNFBPs) for three months for failing to register on goAML.

DET sets the licence fee by activity. Ask whether the renewal fee differs from the issue fee, and get the renewal figure in the first quote, not at the first renewal.

Costs that are published and costs that are not

Official sources publish the small items. Ejari costs AED 177.75 through the Dubai REST app or the Dubai Land Department website and AED 220 through a trustee centre, as of October 2026. Knowledge and innovation fees of AED 10 each sit inside the Ejari price (Dubai Land Department). The licence fee itself depends on the activity and is set by DET; ask for the fee sheet for your activity code.

For premises-based licences, the Invest in Dubai cost calculator, as described by Gulf News in September 2026, adds about 5% of annual rent. Dubai Chamber membership is a separate fee that depends on legal form and activity. Read the current fees for the initial approval and trade name stages on the Invest in Dubai portal before you budget.

Vendor-quoted licence fees differ widely by activity and rent, so no single price is printed here. If the activity is regulated, add the regulator's own fee. Where a case needs a regulator permit and a lease at the same time, a lawyer or adviser can sequence the two so the lease follows the approval.

AdvisoryHub may receive a fee when you request an introduction; it does not affect the information on this page.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What are the types of trade licence in Dubai?

Dubai's official guide names five: industrial, commercial, professional, e-trader and dual (dubai.ae, October 2026). The activity you choose in the application decides which type you are offered, and a free zone company holds a licence from its zone authority instead.

Is a trade licence the same as permission to trade?

No. The licence is instant, but permits, staff checks and inspection follow it, and you sign an undertaking to obtain every permit before starting (Executive Council Resolution 5 of 2024). Ask DET whether your activity is on the Chairman's list, where the permit comes before the licence. A regulated activity such as health or education usually needs its regulator's approval.

How do I get a trade licence in Dubai?

Choose the licence type and legal form, then register in three stages on the Invest in Dubai platform: initial approval, trade name, licence (dubai.ae, October 2026). Register the tenancy in Ejari and obtain any permits before you start trading.

Does a Dubai licence work in other emirates?

Ask the other emirate's department. Each emirate licenses its own mainland with its own activity list and premises rules. A Dubai free zone permit under Resolution 11 of 2025 covers Dubai only, and operating in another emirate needs that emirate's licences (Article 3(c)).

How much does a trade licence cost in Dubai?

The fee depends on the activity and the premises, and DET sets it, so no single price applies. Ejari is AED 177.75 through the Dubai REST app, as of October 2026. Ask DET for the fee sheet for your activity code and request an itemised quote.