In recent years, the Middle East market has gradually become a popular choice for overseas expansion. For companies planning to expand into the Middle East, selecting target regions, exploring business opportunities, and controlling operating risks have become core issues of concern.

The Middle East’s top three business hotspots:

Abu Dhabi (King of the UAE); Dubai (a star city in the Middle East); Riyadh and Jeddah (key cities in Saudi Arabia) constitute the main commercial areas in the GCC countries。

Abu Dhabi Business Opportunities

1. Transshipment trade: the logistics hub of the Middle East and North Africa

Abu Dhabi's Khalifa Port is one of the most advanced ports in the Middle East and one of the largest ports in the Middle East and North Africa. Its container throughput has reached 4.91 million TEUs, accounting for 34% of Jebel Ali Port, and is showing a strong growth trend. Enterprises can take advantage of this advantage and use Abu Dhabi as a logistics hub to enter the Middle East and North Africa market.

2. Government orders

Abu Dhabi contributes 68.5% of the UAE's GDP and is the main source of federal government orders. For companies that want to cooperate with the UAE government, setting up a company in Abu Dhabi will be more conducive to winning related projects.

3. Industrial chain opportunities: the rise of a diversified economy

Abu Dhabi has many world-leading companies:

ADNOC (Abu Dhabi National Oil Company): one of the world's top ten oil companies;

Borouge: the world's largest integrated polyolefin production complex;

EGA (Emirates Global Aluminum): one of the top five aluminum companies in the world, and its products meet ESG standards.

In addition, Abu Dhabi has also formed a complete industrial chain in fields such as biomedicine. For companies that focus on supply chain layout, there are many opportunities here.

4. Financial services

Abu Dhabi has many top sovereign funds and family funds, and has established an international financial free zone - Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM). The annual "Abu Dhabi Financial Week" attracts top global investment institutions and fundraisers, making it an ideal place to conduct financial business.

If you plan to cooperate with the government or state-owned enterprises in Abu Dhabi, the company must register locally to comply with relevant regulations.

Abu Dhabi Company Registration Guide

1. List of Abu Dhabi Free Zones

Most of the emirates in the UAE have established free zones to promote economic development in the region, promote foreign investment and drive growth. The Free Zone Authority is a government agency that registers and issues business licenses to non-resident companies in the UAE free zones. There are 8 free zones in Abu Dhabi:

1. Abu Dhabi Airport Free Zone (ADAFZ)

2. Twofour54

3. Abu Dhabi Ports Company (ADPC) Free Zone

4. Abu Dhabi Global Market Free Zone (ADGM)

5. Abu Dhabi Industrial City

6. Specialized Economic Zones Advanced Company (ZonesCorp)

7. Masdar City Free Zone

8. Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (KIZAD)

2. Advantages of doing business in Abu Dhabi Free Zone

Free zones offer various incentives to investors to set up businesses. In any free zone, one can start a business with flexible facilities. Therefore, it is always cheaper to start a company in a free zone. Prices will vary from one free zone to another. Apart from this, there are many other advantages of starting a business in Abu Dhabi free zones:

1. 100% foreign ownership

2. Full repatriation of profits and capital

3. Exemption from taxes on personal or corporate income

4. Exemption from import and export duties on goods and services

5. Pre-built advanced infrastructure

6. Business cluster environment where companies belonging to similar industries share work parks. This encourages friendly interaction and effective cooperation

7. Business environment that simplifies the company registration process

8. Business-friendly legal framework and company law

9. Fast immigration process and quick access to skilled professionals

10. Single window operation for various government services such as visa formalities, transportation, residential permits and postal services.

3. Types of Entities Registered in Abu Dhabi Free Zones

A company or an individual entity can register its business in Abu Dhabi Free Zones through any of the following ways:

1. Free Zone Limited Liability Company

A Limited Liability Company (LLC) is a separate legal entity with individual shareholders, corporate shareholders or a combination of both. The minimum capital requirement depends on the type of business activity.

2. Branches of Foreign Companies

In addition to foreign companies that are permitted to operate in UAE Free Zones, foreign companies can carry out their principal activities or business or establish offices or branches in the UAE after issuing a license from the Ministry of Economy and Commerce.

3. Branches of UAE Companies

Companies established in the UAE can also open branches in free zones on the mainland or offshore.

4. Freelancer License

Freelancers are granted a freelance license which identifies a person as a sole practitioner and enables him/her to conduct business under one’s birth name, rather than a brand name.

Company establishment process and business license

The process of establishing a company in Abu Dhabi mainly includes:

Choose the place of establishment; choose the type of economic activity; choose the organizational form; register the business name; obtain a business license and register with the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ADCCI) to obtain a business license.

Economic licenses include standard business licenses, instant business licenses and dual licenses.

A standard business license is required for all economic activities, which should be applied to the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development. For specific economic activities, additional approval or no objection certificate from the relevant government departments may be required.

The instant business license is a fast-track license issued by the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development for certain specific circumstances. It does not require economic activities approved by other governments. It is currently only applicable to three types of legal forms: sole proprietors, sole proprietorships and limited liability companies.

Dual licenses are also issued by the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development. Licensed free zone companies can engage in onshore projects without obtaining additional licenses. Extended dual license holders can also participate in government projects in Abu Dhabi and the UAE.