Dubai South Free Zone Authorities, commonly known as DWC have announced in January that a freelance permit was now available for registration. However, the applicant must either be in possession of a recognized professional qualification or be in possession of a university degree from a recognized university. The cost of AED 7,000.00* is aligned with Tecom Go Freelance permit (AED 7,500.00). Like any other trade license, it must be renewed every year. Both permits exempt the applicant from renting premises and filing financial audit reports yearly. Tecom Go Freelance permit requires a bank reference letter in the application process while DWC free zone doesn’t. The Go Freelance (Tecom) is limited to 3 sectors: -  Education; under Knowledge Village Free [...]

In May 2018, news came from Bloomberg that the UAE were going to ease the rules on foreign ownership (https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-05-20/abu-dhabi-mulls-change-to-expat-residency-to-spur-investments) Normally, foreigners have full ownership of their companies in free zones only. Outside of the free zones, companies must find local partners who will hold 51% of the shares. Where do we stand now? How is this new law being implemented? First of all, although in force since the beginning of the year, the law is still a work in progress. However, the authorities have identified sectors that are excluded from this program. Oil, Banking, Financial and Insurance are out of scope; hence excluded from this program. Otherwise, the process is straight forward. Along with the application form, one [...]

The Go Freelance permit was launched before the summer by Tekom Group under the umbrella of DCCA (Dubai Creative Clusters Authority). Like the regular Freelance license, it is a sole practitioner structure and the permit is issued under the legal name of the applicant. Under both packages, you can apply for a residence visa. However, the Go Freelance package costs AED 7,500.00* (approx.. USD 2,042.00) to which you must add AED 1,870.00* (approx.USD 509.00) for the establishment card. The total annual cost is AED 9,370.00*( approx.USD 2,551.00). This includes 24h access to the business centre. There are no additional costs incurred by a mandatory lease package and its security deposit! As result, more people can have access to this [...]