Doing Business in Dubai: Limited Liability Company (LLC)

05 Dec Doing Business in Dubai: Limited Liability Company (LLC)

A limited liability company (LLC) is the most common form of commercial company formed in Dubai to undertake commercial activities.

A limited liability company can be formed by a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 50 persons whose liability is limited to the shares and the capital of the company.
The minimum holding of United Arab Emirates nationals is 51%. The profit or loss distribution can be rebalanced through shareholder agreements and the responsibility for the management of an LLC can be given to national partners as well as foreign partners or third parties.

The shares of such a company are not open for public subscription and tradable shares cannot be issued. The LLC may be granted licenses to engage in a wide range of commercial activities, except for the banking, insurance and financial sectors.

An LLC can be preferred for a joint venture between a foreign party and an Emirates party (UAE national partner) if both parties have a common business objective to be achieved in the UAE.

The procedure to open a LLC

• Obtain the initial approval for the name and business from the Department of Economic Development (DED)
• Obtain approval from the relevant Ministry/Department if the business is of a particular nature.
• Drafting the Memorandum of Association (MoA) of the company and notarisation. S Define the location of an office in a commercial building with an attestation by a qualified Real Estate Agency.
• Obtain the necessary approval from Dubai Municipality.
• Submit the application and initial approval together with a certified copy of the
• Memorandum of Association, the rental contract, etc, to the DED.
• Once the legal department reviews the documentation, the Company name will be registered in the Register of Companies.
• Memorandum of Association published in the Bulletin of the Ministry of Economy. S The Department of Economic Development (DED) must then issue the license.
• Registration of the Company with the Ministry of Labour and Immigration Department.
• Registration with the Customs Department and obtaining the Customs Code.