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The Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED) names six free zones in the emirate. The lowest published Abu Dhabi free zone price is Masdar City's Startup package at AED 7,000 a year plus VAT, for a licence with no office. KEZAD sells the cheapest package with a visa: AED 9,450 for one year, VAT included, with a shared workstation and 1 visa. The table lists all six with their own figures.
Abu Dhabi free zone list: how the six zones differ
Abu Dhabi's zones are less alike than Dubai's. Each one was built for a different kind of business, so the first question is your activity, not the price.
- ADGM on Al Maryah Island is a financial centre that applies English common law and has its own courts. Fees are in US dollars. Funds, family offices, holding companies and regulated finance firms use it. Regulated activities need FSRA approval before the licence is issued.
- KEZAD sits by Khalifa Port, between Abu Dhabi and Dubai. It is the zone for traders who move goods, logistics firms and manufacturers. KEZAD Group was formed when AD Ports Group merged KIZAD and ZonesCorp on .
- Masdar City Free Zone targets clean tech, AI, life sciences and start-ups. It lists 600+ activities, setup is online, and its four packages are priced on the zone's licence page.
- twofour54 on Yas Island is for media, gaming and entertainment. The Creative Media Authority issues the licences and waives licence and registration fees for the first 2 years.
- Abu Dhabi Airports Free Zone (ADAFZ) suits air cargo, freight and aviation work. Its website blocked our checks, so no official ADAFZ fee is confirmed. Three setup agencies publish a first year on a flexi desk at AED 11,500 to AED 14,590, with no visa (checked ).
- Industrial City of Abu Dhabi (ICAD) is on the ADDED list. Its areas now trade as KEZAD Musaffah (once ICAD II) and KEZAD Rahayel (once ICAD V), and KEZAD Group leases the plots. Licence fees come by quote.
Abu Dhabi free zone license cost: read what each price covers
The headline prices above are not like for like, so line them up before you compare.
- VAT. KEZAD's start-up prices include VAT. Masdar's do not, and its ads page says so.
- Visa or no visa. Masdar's AED 7,000 Startup package has no clear visa quota, and the zone's own pages describe it three different ways. Its Innovation package, AED 12,000 with 2 visas and a flexi desk, is the first one with a firm visa count.
- Office. twofour54 waives the licence, but you still rent a Creative Zone office, and its rents are not published. ADGM also requires a registered office in the zone.
- Currency. ADGM charges its registry fees in US dollars, so the dirham total moves with the rate the registry uses.
If price is what decides it, our page on the cheapest free zone in Abu Dhabi ranks the published entry packages and explains the extras.
Who each zone suits
| If you are | Look at first |
|---|---|
| A fund, family office or holding structure | ADGM |
| A trader with stock, or a factory | KEZAD |
| A tech or clean energy start-up | Masdar City, or ADGM through Hub71 |
| A media, games or film company | twofour54 |
| An air freight or aviation firm | ADAFZ |
Names that are not separate free zones
Some names come up when you search for Abu Dhabi free zones but do not license companies on their own.
- Hub71 is a tech programme that works from ADGM. Start-ups in it get the ADGM Tech Start-up licence, which needs a Hub71 eligibility letter.
- ZonesCorp no longer exists as a separate operator. It is now part of KEZAD Group.
- Khalifa Port Free Trade Zone is described by setup agencies as part of KEZAD. It is not on the ADDED list, so ask KEZAD which area your licence covers.
- Al Ain and Al Butain airport free zones appear only on the FTA's list of VAT designated zones, not on the free zone lists of ADDED or u.ae.
The two official lists do not match. u.ae names five Abu Dhabi zones and ADDED names six; the difference is ICAD.
Mainland or free zone in Abu Dhabi
ADDED's own comparison puts it simply. A mainland company can do business throughout the UAE. Free zones offer 100% foreign ownership, full repatriation of capital and profits, tax exemptions and dual licensing options. Mainland companies can also be fully foreign owned for most activities since early , so ownership alone is no longer the deciding point. Where your customers are matters more. KEZAD is unusual because it offers both: free zone land and domestic economic zone land, which is mainland. Our free zone or mainland guide sets out the trade-offs.
Asking for quotes
Fill in the form on this page with your activity, the number of visas and the space you need. We pass it to the Abu Dhabi zones that match, or to a licensed setup partner, and they send their prices. UAEFreeZoneDirectory.com is an independent listing site with no link to ADDED or any zone authority, and partners may pay us for referrals.
Sources
- ADDED, mainland and free zones: the six zones and the mainland comparison
- AD Ports Group, KEZAD Group launch: the KIZAD and ZonesCorp merger
- Hub71 and ADGM tech start-up overview: how Hub71 start-ups are licensed
- FTA list of designated zones: the airport VAT zones
- KEZAD plots auction: former ICAD areas, now KEZAD Musaffah and KEZAD Rahayel
- Emirabiz ADAFZ cost page and Rizmona ADAFZ page, with Incorporate.ae: ADAFZ agency prices
