How to Set Up an Industrial Company in Dubai?

Manufacturing in Dubai runs on a different rulebook from trading. An industrial activity needs a physical plant, a power allocation, fire and environmental approvals, and a federal industrial registration on top of the emirate-level license. What follows covers the scope of the license, which zone suits which type of producer, the real cost structure and the details that shorten the timeline.

Table of Contents

• What Is an Industrial License in Dubai and Who Needs One?
• Light, Medium and Heavy Industrial License: The Difference
• Steps to Set Up an Industrial Company in Dubai
• How Long Does It Take? Week-by-Week Setup Timeline
• Mainland or Free Zone? A Manufacturer's Comparison
• Best Industrial Zones for Manufacturing in Dubai
• Industrial Company Setup Cost in Dubai
• Warehouse and Production Space Rent in Dubai
• Documents Required for an Industrial License
• Corporate Tax, VAT and Customs: What a Manufacturer Pays
• ICV Certificate and UAE Industrial Incentives
• Employee Visa Quota and Emiratisation
• Advantages of Setting Up an Industrial Company in Dubai
• Mistakes That Stretch the Timeline
• Sources

What Is an Industrial License in Dubai and Who Needs One?

An industrial license covers the processing of raw materials, the manufacture of finished goods, assembly, packaging, segregation and collection. The Dubai government defines it as covering all kinds of manufacturing and production, including food, textiles, paper, petroleum products, equipment and appliances. A trade license lets you buy and sell goods; it does not let you produce them on your own premises, or even repackage them.

The requirement is federal as well as local. Federal Decree-Law No. 25 of 2022 on the Regulation and Development of Industry took effect on 2 January 2023 and made the industrial license a statutory obligation. Article 10 provides for imprisonment and a fine of up to AED 1,000,000 for the owner of an industrial establishment operating without one. The same law establishes an Industrial Registry at the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology (MoIAT), and licensed establishments must update their registry information every year.

In practice two layers run in parallel: the industrial license issued by the emirate's licensing authority (the Department of Economy and Tourism in Dubai) and MoIAT industrial production licensing plus registry entry. That second layer, which most guides skip, becomes decisive for export documentation, customs duty exemption and public tenders.

Light, Medium and Heavy Industrial License: The Difference

The class your plant falls into drives the approvals you need, your fire-load category and the minimum plot size. Classification follows installed power, the hazard class of the raw materials and production volume.

Steps to Set Up an Industrial Company in Dubai

Handled in the right order the process is predictable. Most steps depend on the one before; a Civil Defence file cannot be opened, for instance, until the premises are fixed.

1. Define the activity code and legal structure. The activity code determines the license class, the additional approvals required and the visa quota you can later obtain.
2. Reserve the trade name and obtain initial approval. Keeping the brand name and the registered name separate avoids naming-rule problems.
3. Prepare the Memorandum of Association (MOA) and, where your activity requires it, obtain a NOC from the relevant ministry.
4. Fix the production space or plot. Clear height, floor loading capacity, power allocation and truck manoeuvring space should all be verified at this stage.
5. Register the tenancy contract with Ejari. This Dubai Land Department registration is a mandatory annex to the license file.
6. Obtain Dubai Municipality planning approval and approval of the facility layout.
7. Secure Civil Defence approval of the fire detection, firefighting and evacuation system drawings; a site inspection follows installation.
8. Apply for Environmental Clearance with Dubai Municipality's Environmental Sustainability Department. Depending on whether the project is Category A, B or C, a full EIA report, an EIA summary or an environmental assessment checklist is required.
9. Complete sector-specific approvals. Municipal food control approval for food production, safety clearances for chemicals, Dubai Police approval for jewellery manufacturing. Our municipal and ministry permits page lists what applies to which activity.
10. Submit the license file to the competent authority, pay the fees and, after the facility inspection, collect your certificate of incorporation and industrial license.
11. Complete MoIAT industrial registry entry. Customs duty exemption and ICV applications both depend on it.

How Long Does It Take? Week-by-Week Setup Timeline

The map below reflects a light-industrial investor leasing a ready-built warehouse. On heavy-industrial and land-lease projects, environmental approval alone can take several months.

Mainland or Free Zone? A Manufacturer's Comparison

Producers make this choice on different logic from traders. The deciding question is not office cost but who buys the product. Selling directly into the UAE domestic market points to mainland; export and re-export led operations point to a free zone.

For a fuller side-by-side, see our mainland versus free zone comparison.

Best Industrial Zones for Manufacturing in Dubai

Zone choice comes down to power allocation, clear height, distance to port and labour accommodation. Office-oriented free zones are not suitable for production.

Our Dubai free zones guide covers how the zones are structured in general.

Industrial Company Setup Cost in Dubai

Dubai publishes no single consolidated tariff for industrial licensing; fees are quoted at application based on activity code, legal form and premises. The table separates figures with an official published source from items that sit at market level.

The item most often left out of a budget is machinery. Licensing and approval costs are a small share of total investment; the weight sits in equipment, electrical infrastructure and working capital.

Warehouse and Production Space Rent in Dubai

Supply in Dubai industrial real estate is tight and rents have been climbing for several years. Knight Frank's Q4 2025 data shows a threefold spread between submarkets.

The same report expects roughly 6.6 million sq ft of new supply to enter Dubai during 2026. It is worth weighing the effect of that supply wave before signing a long lease.

Documents Required for an Industrial License

• Shareholder passport copies, current visa and entry record
• Approved trade name reservation certificate and initial approval letter
• Notarised Memorandum of Association (MOA)
• Tenancy contract and Ejari registration certificate
• Facility layout, process flow diagram and machinery list
• Material safety data sheets (MSDS) where chemicals are used
• HACCP plan and product label details for food production
• Capital structure evidence and business plan
• Activity-specific NOC documents

Food packaging must carry the ingredient list, producer name, expiry date, barcode, storage and handling instructions and net weight. Inspectors separately check that ceilings, floors and walls are built from materials meeting the relevant hygiene standard, that lighting and ventilation are adequate, that plumbing and waste lines are in working order and that equipment is cleaned on schedule.

Corporate Tax, VAT and Customs: What a Manufacturer Pays

UAE corporate tax was introduced by Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022 and applies to financial years beginning on or after 1 June 2023. Taxable income up to AED 375,000 is taxed at 0% and the excess at 9%.

Companies with annual revenue not exceeding AED 3,000,000 can elect Small Business Relief. On 7 August 2026 the Ministry of Finance announced that the relief has been extended to tax periods ending on or before 31 December 2029. Details are in our Small Business Relief article.

The QFZP Regime for Free Zone Manufacturers

Qualifying Free Zone Person status delivers 0% corporate tax on Qualifying Income. Ministerial Decision No. 229 of 2025 lists manufacturing of goods or materials and processing of goods or materials as Qualifying Activities, with manufacturing defined to include the production, improvement or assembly of products from raw materials or components. Keeping the status requires adequate substance in the zone and complete transfer pricing documentation.

The critical point: sales to mainland customers are generally not Qualifying Income. If non-qualifying revenue exceeds 5% of total revenue or AED 5,000,000, whichever is lower, QFZP status is lost and all profit becomes taxable at 9%. “Free zone means zero tax” is therefore misleading. Our QFZP article sets out every condition.

VAT and Customs Duty

UAE VAT is 5%. Registration is mandatory once taxable supplies and imports exceed AED 375,000 and voluntary above AED 187,500. Exports of goods outside the GCC are zero-rated, which means an export-led producer can recover input VAT.

Standard import duty is 5% of the CIF value. Free zone licensees may bring goods and equipment into the zone without paying duty; the charge arises only when goods enter the UAE mainland. For mainland producers, MoIAT operates a separate service for registering industrial inputs for customs duty exemption. Our articles on importing into the UAE and customs clearance walk through the mechanics.

ICV Certificate and UAE Industrial Incentives

The most overlooked opportunity on the production side is the National In-Country Value (ICV) Programme. Run by MoIAT, it scores a supplier's contribution to the local economy, and certified suppliers gain an advantage in tender and contract awards based on their ICV score. For many manufacturers the reason to build in the UAE is not tax at all – it is the public and semi-public procurement door that this score opens.

The policy backdrop is substantial. Operation 300bn, launched in May 2021, aims to raise the industrial sector's GDP contribution from AED 133 billion to AED 300 billion by 2031, with Emirates Development Bank allocating AED 30 billion of financing over five years. At the “Make it in the Emirates” edition that closed on 8 May 2026, MoIAT reported 1,245 exhibitors, more than 146,000 visitors and over 200 agreements signed, alongside AED 180 billion of offtake commitments spread over the coming decade and a AED 1 billion National Industrial Resilience Fund.

Employee Visa Quota and Emiratisation

Unlike office companies, a factory's visa quota is calculated from facility area and activity type. On the mainland the quota is opened through MoHRE; in a free zone it follows the zone authority's allocation rules. If you employ blue-collar staff, labour accommodation and transport form part of the file. Our Dubai work and residence visa page explains how the process runs.

Emiratisation obligations apply to MoHRE-registered employers. Companies with 50 or more employees must raise Emirati employment in skilled roles by 2% a year, applied as 1% every six months with 30 June and 31 December checkpoints. In designated sectors, companies with 20–49 employees had to hire one UAE national by the end of 2024 and a second by the end of 2025; missing the target triggers an annual contribution of AED 108,000 from 2026. Our Emiratisation article covers the full framework.

Advantages of Setting Up an Industrial Company in Dubai

• Market reach: Short supply lines into Africa, South Asia and Eastern Europe through Jebel Ali Port and Al Maktoum International.
• Tax structure: No personal income tax; 0% corporate tax up to AED 375,000 and the possibility of 0% on free zone manufacturing income under QFZP conditions.
• Customs advantage: No duty on machinery and raw materials entering a free zone, zero-rated VAT on exports.
• Ownership: 100% foreign ownership for industrial activities; the list of activities of strategic impact does not include manufacturing.
• Ready infrastructure: Turnkey industrial units, high-capacity power allocation, labour accommodation and open storage yards.
• Public demand: Entry into government and semi-government supply chains through the ICV score.
• Investor residency: A 10-year Golden Visa option for qualifying investments. See our Dubai Golden Visa page for the thresholds.

Mistakes That Stretch the Timeline

• Leasing the warehouse before the approvals. If clear height, power allocation or fire classification does not match your activity, you are left holding the lease.
• Choosing the activity code too narrowly. A product added to the line later means a new activity code and a new approval chain.
• Discovering the Environmental Clearance category late. A project that falls into Category A needs a full EIA report, adding months to the schedule.
• Assuming QFZP is automatic. Once mainland sales cross the threshold, a free zone company is taxed at 9% as well.
• Skipping MoIAT registry entry. Customs duty exemption and ICV applications are not processed without it.
• Leaving banking to the end. Corporate account opening asks for the facility lease and the license together, so the process should start early. See our guide to opening a commercial bank account.

Sources

• Federal Decree-Law No. 25 of 2022 on the Regulation and Development of Industry – uaelegislation.gov.ae
• Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology, Industrial Registry – moiat.gov.ae
• MoIAT, National In-Country Value Programme – moiat.gov.ae/programs/icv
• Government of Dubai, business licence types – dubai.ae
• UAE Ministry of Finance, corporate tax legislation – mof.gov.ae
• Ministerial Decision No. 131 of 2026, extension of Small Business Relief – mof.gov.ae
• Federal Tax Authority, VAT registration thresholds – tax.gov.ae
• UAE official portal, customs duty and free zone exemption – u.ae
• Dubai Land Department, Ejari registration fees – dubailand.gov.ae
• JAFZA, industrial licence fee schedule – jafza.ae
• Dubai Industrial City, facilities and infrastructure – dubaiindustrialcity.ae
• MoHRE, Emiratisation targets – mohre.gov.ae
• Knight Frank, UAE Industrial and Logistics Report H2 2025 (published 9 February 2026) – knightfrank.ae

Figures and legislative references were compiled from official sources as at the publication date. Fees, rent levels and tax treatment can change, so current conditions should be confirmed before an investment decision.