Free zones have opened new doors to business investment all across UAE. Since the introduction of Jebel Ali Free Zone, Dubai, in 1985, free zones have become a popular form of business registration. Due to their lucrative benefits for business setups, foreign investors are rapidly becoming fond of it. There are more than 40 active free zones in UAE at present.
Starting as a Free Zone Entity: Basic Requirements
To start a business in any of UAE’s free zones, you must have a UAE’s trade license for the specific activity or trade your business does. The license must be renewed on a yearly basis. This means your business must have a physical presence to represent you company in the free zone. To satisfy this, you are required to have an office with its official name along with a manager to act as authority and legal representative of the company. You will also need a local distributor to carry out your business operations outside of the free zone. Without a local distributor your business will not be permitted to trade outside the jurisdiction of the free zone. Lastly, your company must have the mandated share capital and at least on share holder.
Setting up your business in a UAE free zone comes with some lucrative benefits.
- First off, you no longer need a sponsor to register and can get 100% ownership entitlement.
- Your company runs independent business operations with 100% tax free transfer of funds
- You get complete import and export duty exemption on goods, given that you are not bringing the goods into UAE.
- Your business gets 100% repatriation of revenues and profits
- You can carry out more than one activity in UAE while maintaining confidentiality of your business
- Compared to incorporation from outside of free zones, you get faster company formation with no income taxes.
- Fast hiring procedures for labor recruitment added with services for immigration, legal support and sponsorship for housing.
- Investors get several incentives such as warehouse facilities, suitable production and assembling areas and 25 years lease options for owning properties.
SHAMS (Sharjah Media City) Free Zone
With the rising interests of foreign investors in free zone company setups, new places are being selected and developed for upcoming free zones while others have already been opened for registration. SHAMS free zone is among the latest entries to the UAE free zone list. Here are some reasons why you need to consider this particular zone for your company.
- Area of Specialty: SHAMS free zone is particularly focused on providing media businesses with 100% proprietorship.
- Formation Charges: It is affordable as almost any entrepreneur can secure funds to register in SHAMS free zone
- Import and Export Duties: Like all free zones in UAE, you are exempted from import and export duties as you expand and grow your business.
- No Presence Required for Incorporation: To start free zone company formation in SHAMS free zone, you don’t necessarily need to be existent in UAE. You can start it from any part of the globe with no need of NOC.
- Hiring and Recruitment: SHAMS free zone incorporates fast and low cost set up procedures with easy recruitment process to find suitable talent.
- Repatriation of Profit: Your business transactions remain 100% tax free throughout the process.You don’t have to pay extra charges at any point.
- Company Ownership: No need to hire a local sponsor. You will have 100% ownership and control of your business
- Carry Out Multiple Activities: In SHAMS free zone your business can carry out a wide range of activities that cover services, trading and industrial licenses.
IBG presence in SHAMS
IBG Consulting is a registered partner in SHAMS Free Zone and already has a number of clients whose business was setup successfully in this free zone. This includes Bachmann International, a US based MNC, which wanted to establish its presence in Middle East and chose to partner with IBG Consulting on its first subsidiary setup in UAE. IBG Consulting worked with them closely and ensured that Bachmann International’s UAE business in SHAMS was setup in just 7 working days.
