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- 3PLthird-party logistics: outsourced warehousing and distribution…
A
- AOAArticles of Association: the internal rules of a company, used alongside the MOA…
- Attestationthe process of legalising a document through the home country, UAE embassy and M…
- AMLAnti-Money Laundering: the compliance regime that regulated businesses and banks…
- ADGMAbu Dhabi Global Market: Abu Dhabi's common-law financial free zone…
- Ajman Free Zonethe low-cost free zone next to Ajman Port, established in 1988…
- Ajman Media CityAjman's media and digital free zone…
- ANCAjman New Venture Centre: Ajman's start-up and freelancer licensing centre…
- Auditan annual review of financial statements required by some free zones and for lar…
- Authorised signatorythe person empowered to sign documents and transactions for the company…
- Amer centreDubai's one-stop centres for visa and immigration services…
- Absconding reporta labour complaint filed when an employee leaves without notice…
- Activity groupa category of related activities that can share one licence…
B
- Bank reference lettera letter from your existing bank confirming your relationship, often requested b…
- Business activitythe specific commercial, professional or industrial activity listed on a licence…
- Board resolutiona formal decision of a company's board, required for branches and corporate shar…
- Bank guaranteea bank's promise to pay a beneficiary, required for travel agencies and recruitm…
- Business setup consultanta licensed firm such as GoldenKey that handles company formation and PRO work…
C
- Corporate taxthe 9% federal tax on business profits above AED 375,000 introduced in June 2023…
- Customs codethe importer/exporter registration with customs that allows clearance of goods…
- CEPAComprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement: the UAE's bilateral trade deals wi…
- Commercial licencea licence for trading and commercial activities…
- Civil defence approvalthe fire-safety clearance required for offices, shops and factories…
- Certificate of incorporationthe document confirming a company's legal existence…
- Certificate of good standinga registrar's confirmation that a company is active and compliant…
- Company stampthe physical stamp used on UAE contracts and bank documents…
- Cold chaintemperature-controlled storage and transport for food and pharmaceuticals…
- Certificate of origina Chamber document confirming where goods were produced…
- Company formationthe end-to-end process of licensing and registering a new business…
- Commercial registrationthe registry entry for a company with the economic department…
- Chamber certificatea Chamber of Commerce membership certificate…
D
- DEDDepartment of Economic Development: the mainland licensing authority in each emi…
- DETDubai Department of Economy and Tourism: Dubai's mainland licensing authority…
- Designated zonea free zone treated as outside the UAE for VAT purposes on goods…
- DNFBPDesignated Non-Financial Business or Profession: sectors such as real estate and…
- DHADubai Health Authority: licenses healthcare facilities and practitioners in Duba…
- DOHDepartment of Health Abu Dhabi: the health regulator for Abu Dhabi…
- DIFCDubai International Financial Centre: a common-law financial free zone…
- DMCCDubai Multi Commodities Centre: the free zone in JLT focused on commodities and …
- Dual licencea free zone company's permission to also operate on the mainland through a DET o…
- Double taxation agreementa treaty between two countries that prevents the same income being taxed twice…
- DLDDubai Land Department: registers property and issues title deeds…
- Dubai Tradethe online portal for customs, port and free zone services…
- Dubai Chamberthe Dubai Chamber of Commerce, membership of which is required for mainland comp…
- Dependant visaa residence visa for a family member sponsored by a resident…
- Dubai Culturethe authority that approves creative professionals for the Golden Visa…
E
- EjariDubai's tenancy registration system, required to prove an office address for a m…
- Establishment cardthe immigration file that lets a company sponsor residence visas…
- Emirates IDthe mandatory identity card for all UAE residents, issued by ICP…
- Entry permitthe initial permit that allows a visa applicant to enter or change status before…
- Economic substancerules requiring companies carrying out certain activities to show real presence …
- EmaraTaxthe FTA's online portal for tax registration, filing and payment…
- Excise taxa tax on tobacco, energy drinks and sweetened beverages…
- Ejari certificatethe proof of registered tenancy in Dubai…
- Esaada privilege card offering discounts to Golden Visa holders and others…
- Emirati partnera UAE national shareholder, no longer required for most mainland activities sinc…
- Escrow accounta controlled account used in Dubai off-plan property sales…
- ESMAEmirates Authority for Standardisation and Metrology, now part of MOIAT, for pro…
- Expatriatea foreign national living and working in the UAE…
- Emirates Scientists Councilthe body that nominates researchers for the Golden Visa…
- External approvala permit from a regulator outside the licensing authority, such as DHA or RERA…
- Establishmenta UAE business entity in the general sense used by the authorities…
F
- Free zonea designated economic area with its own licensing authority, 100% foreign owners…
- FZEFree Zone Establishment: a free zone company with a single shareholder…
- FZCOFree Zone Company: a free zone company with two or more shareholders…
- Flexi-deska shared desk arrangement offered by free zones that satisfies the office requir…
- FTAFederal Tax Authority: administers VAT, excise and corporate tax…
- Freelance permita licence that lets an individual work independently in media, tech or education…
- Foreign direct investment lawthe 2021 reform that allowed 100% foreign ownership of most mainland companies…
- Freehold areaa zone in which foreigners may own property outright…
- FIRSDubai's Food Import and Re-export System for food product registration…
G
- GDRFAGeneral Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs: Dubai's immigration aut…
- Golden Visaa 10-year renewable residence visa for investors, entrepreneurs, talented indivi…
- Green Visaa 5-year self-sponsored residence visa for skilled workers, freelancers and inve…
- GoAMLthe UAE's reporting platform for suspicious transactions used by designated busi…
- General trading licencea commercial licence covering a wide range of unrelated goods…
- Gratuitythe end-of-service benefit payable to employees under UAE labour law…
- GCC nationala citizen of a Gulf Cooperation Council state with enhanced business rights in t…
- Grace periodthe time allowed after visa cancellation or expiry to exit or change status…
H
- HS codeHarmonised System code: the international classification used to declare goods a…
- Holiday home permitDubai's DET permit for short-term rental properties…
- Health cardthe occupational health permit for food-handling and salon staff…
- Halal certificationconfirmation that food or products meet Islamic requirements…
I
- Initial approvalthe authority's preliminary consent to proceed with a licence application before…
- ICPFederal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security: the fede…
- Investor visaa residence visa issued to a shareholder of a UAE company…
- IFZAInternational Free Zone Authority: a Dubai free zone in Dubai Silicon Oasis…
- ICVIn-Country Value: Abu Dhabi's programme scoring suppliers on local spending and …
- Instant Licencea Dubai DET licence issued in minutes without an office for the first year…
- Industrial licencea licence for manufacturing and production activities…
- IBANInternational Bank Account Number used for UAE and international transfers…
- Immigration bana restriction on re-entering the UAE imposed for certain violations…
- Incubatoran accredited programme that can nominate start-ups for the Entrepreneur Golden …
J
- JAFZAJebel Ali Free Zone Authority: the port-based free zone in Dubai…
K
L
- LLCLimited Liability Company: the standard mainland structure with liability limite…
- Labour cardthe MOHRE registration that allows a mainland company to employ staff…
- Local service agentan Emirati agent appointed by foreign-owned professional sole establishments on …
- Liquidationthe formal closure of a company, including licence cancellation and visa cancell…
- Licence renewalthe annual process of renewing the trade licence with the authority…
- Licence amendmentchanging the name, activity, shareholders or address of an existing licence…
- Labour accommodationapproved housing required for companies employing many workers…
- Lease agreementthe contract for leasing office, warehouse or retail premises…
- Letter of credita bank undertaking to pay a supplier used in international trade…
- Licence numberthe unique identifier printed on a trade licence…
M
- Mainland companya company licensed by an emirate's economic department that can trade anywhere i…
- MOAMemorandum of Association: the constitutional document that sets out shareholder…
- MOHREMinistry of Human Resources and Emiratisation: regulates mainland employment and…
- Medical fitness testthe mandatory blood test and chest X-ray required for every residence visa…
- MOFAMinistry of Foreign Affairs: attests foreign documents for use in the UAE…
- MOHAPMinistry of Health and Prevention: the federal health regulator for the northern…
- Meydan Free Zonea Dubai free zone at the Meydan racecourse popular with service businesses…
- Municipality approvalthe local authority's clearance for signage, fit-out and premises…
- Murabahaan Islamic finance sale-and-markup structure used for trade finance…
- MontajiDubai Municipality's registration system for cosmetics and consumer products…
- Multi-activity licencea single licence listing several related business activities…
N
- NOCNo Objection Certificate: a letter from a sponsor or authority consenting to an …
- Nominee directoran appointed director who fulfils residency requirements, common in Singapore co…
- NeoBizMashreq's digital SME account…
- Name reservation certificatethe document confirming an approved trade name…
O
- Offshore companya non-resident UAE company that cannot trade inside the UAE but can hold assets …
- OqoodDubai's registration system for off-plan property purchases…
- Overstay finethe daily penalty for remaining in the UAE after a visa expires…
- One-stop shopa single service centre handling multiple government transactions…
P
- Power of attorneya notarised document that authorises an agent such as GoldenKey to act on your b…
- Professional licencea licence for service, consultancy and skill-based activities…
- Payment gatewaya service that lets a website accept card payments, such as Telr, PayTabs or Str…
- PROPublic Relations Officer: the person or firm that liaises with government depart…
- Pre-approvalinitial consent from an external regulator before licence issuance…
Q
- Qualifying free zone persona free zone company that meets substance and income conditions to benefit from t…
R
- Re-exportimporting goods into a free zone or the UAE and exporting them again, often duty…
- RERAReal Estate Regulatory Agency: regulates Dubai property brokers and developers…
- RAKEZRas Al Khaimah Economic Zone: RAK's combined free zone authority…
- Registered agentthe licensed agent that an offshore company must appoint to handle its filings…
- RAKstarterRAKBANK's starter account for new businesses…
S
- Status changeconverting a visit or cancelled visa into a new residence visa without leaving t…
- Small Business Reliefa corporate tax relief treating businesses with revenue under AED 3 million as h…
- SAIF ZoneSharjah Airport International Free Zone: Sharjah's airport-side industrial free …
- ShamsSharjah Media City: Sharjah's media and creative free zone…
- Share capitalthe amount of capital stated in the MOA; many free zones require no paid-up capi…
- SWIFTthe international messaging network used for cross-border bank transfers…
- Signboard permitthe municipality permit for a shop or office sign…
- Share certificatethe document evidencing ownership of shares in a company…
- Specimen signaturethe signature sample filed with the authority or bank for an authorised signator…
- Sharia-compliantfinancial products structured in accordance with Islamic law…
- Sponsorthe company or individual responsible for a resident's visa…
- Smart licencea licence issued without a physical office under an emirate's digital scheme…
T
- Trade licencethe official permit issued by a UAE economic department or free zone authority t…
- Trade name reservationthe step that secures your company name with the licensing authority before inco…
- TRNTax Registration Number: the identifier issued by the FTA to VAT and corporate t…
- Tajer Abu Dhabian Abu Dhabi licence that allows business without a physical office for the firs…
- Tourism licencea licence for travel agencies and tour operators approved by the tourism authori…
- Tax residency certificatea FTA document confirming UAE tax residency for treaty purposes…
- Tenancy contractthe lease agreement for office or commercial premises…
- Title deedthe Land Department document proving property ownership…
- Tadbeerthe centres that process domestic worker visas…
- Typing centrean approved office that prepares government applications…
- Tasheelthe MOHRE service centres for labour transactions…
- Turnkey setupa complete package that delivers licence, visa, office and bank introduction…
U
- Ultimate beneficial ownerthe natural person who ultimately owns or controls a company, declared to the au…
- Unemployment insurancethe mandatory ILOE insurance scheme for UAE employees…
V
- Virtual officea licensed address without a dedicated desk, available in some free zones for lo…
- Visa quotathe number of residence visas a company may sponsor, usually linked to office si…
- VATValue Added Tax: the 5% consumption tax applied to most goods and services in th…
- VARAVirtual Assets Regulatory Authority: Dubai's crypto regulator…
- Visa cancellationthe formal ending of a residence visa by the sponsor…
W
- Wioa UAE digital business bank launched in 2022…
- WPSWage Protection System: the mandatory electronic salary payment system for mainl…
- Warehouse licencea free zone facility licence for storing goods…
