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The lowest Abu Dhabi free zone license cost on official prices is Masdar City Free Zone's Startup package: AED 7,000 a year plus VAT, with up to 2 activities and no office. If you need a residence visa, the cheapest free zone in Abu Dhabi is KEZAD, at AED 9,450 for one year with one visa and VAT included. twofour54 waives its licence fees for two years, but only for media firms that rent space there.
No-visa licences in Abu Dhabi
| Free zone | Package | Price | What it covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Masdar City Free Zone | Startup | AED 7,000 a year plus VAT | Licence and registration, up to 2 activities, no office |
| twofour54 | Freelance licence, 12 months | AED 4,500, waived for 2 years | 12 months, 3 activities, for individuals |
| twofour54 | FZ-LLC licence | AED 15,000 a year, waived for 2 years | Up to 5 activities. Registration AED 3,500, also waived. Office required |
| ADGM | Category B, non-financial | USD 5,800 at registration | Registration and first-year licence. Renewal USD 5,300 |
Source: Masdar City Free Zone licence and registration page, Creative Media Authority licence page and ADGM Registration Authority fee overview, checked .
On paper twofour54 looks free. In practice the office you lease in the zone is the main cost, and the waiver ends after year two. Agencies publish twofour54 FZ-LLC setups at about AED 15,000 to AED 35,000 (published prices of 2 agencies, checked ), the gap coming from the office tier.
Masdar's Startup is the cheapest licence you can buy outright. Setup agencies list Masdar's no-visa entry at about AED 3,500 to AED 7,000 (published prices of 3 agencies, same date). The lower figure is a Start Lite offer that Masdar has not confirmed on a page we could load.
ADGM's tech start-up licence costs USD 1,500 a year for three years, but you need an eligibility letter from Hub71 first. ADGM suits finance, funds and holding structures more than a low-cost trading licence.
Abu Dhabi packages with a visa
| Free zone | Package | Price | Visas |
|---|---|---|---|
| KEZAD | Start-up, 1 visa | AED 9,450 incl. VAT | 1 |
| KEZAD | Start-up, 2 visas | AED 11,150 incl. VAT | 2 |
| Masdar City | Innovation | AED 12,000 plus VAT | 2, with a flexi desk |
| KEZAD | Start-up, 3 visas | AED 12,850 incl. VAT | 3 |
| KEZAD | Start-up, 4 visas | AED 14,550 incl. VAT | 4 |
| Masdar City | Business One | AED 17,500 plus VAT | 1, with establishment card and e-channel included |
| Masdar City | Enterprise | AED 27,000 plus VAT | 3 |
Source: KEZAD free zone business setup page and Masdar City Free Zone licence page, checked .
KEZAD's prices stay low because its tariff sets new registration and new licence fees at AED 0. You pay for the workstation and the visa allocation. Agencies publish KEZAD one-visa packages at about AED 9,450 to AED 20,000 (published prices of 3 agencies, checked ). The high end adds the agency's service and the full visa chain.
Masdar's Business One costs more than Innovation but bundles the AED 1,600 establishment card and the AED 2,600 e-channel registration. On Innovation you pay both yourself before the first visa, plus a refundable AED 2,500 visa deposit per employee.
Abu Dhabi zones without an official price
- Abu Dhabi Airports Free Zone. Its site blocked our checks. Three agencies publish a first year on a flexi desk at about AED 11,500 to AED 14,590 (published prices of 3 agencies, checked ). The higher figure carries a quota of up to 2 visas, with the visas themselves extra. Search engine snippets of adafz.ae pages show packages from AED 6,000 a year, but we could not open those pages, so they stay unconfirmed.
- Industrial City of Abu Dhabi. Its land now trades as KEZAD Musaffah and KEZAD Rahayel, leased by KEZAD Group. Serviced industrial plots cost AED 32 to AED 38 per sq m a year on the KEZAD tariff, and licence fees come by quote.
What comes on top in Abu Dhabi
- Visa fees. KEZAD lists the employment residence fee at AED 1,500 and the ID card at AED 300. ADGM lists a new 2-year visa from outside the UAE at AED 3,237.39. Masdar charges AED 3,050 for its employment visa package, with the medical and Emirates ID on top. twofour54 publishes no visa fee; two agencies put it at about AED 3,500 to AED 7,000.
- Establishment card. AED 1,000 new at KEZAD, AED 1,600 at Masdar and AED 1,127.27 at ADGM.
- Federal fees. ICP's AED 100 a year residence permit fee and AED 100 a year Emirates ID fee, plus service fees, and AED 500 for a change of status inside the UAE.
- VAT. Masdar's prices exclude 5% VAT. KEZAD's include it.
- Renewal. ADGM renews at USD 5,300 for a non-financial company. KEZAD lists AED 5,000 per 2 years for an industrial licence renewal. twofour54's year-three renewal is not settled in the sources we read, so get it in writing.
Trade-offs of the cheapest Abu Dhabi zones
Masdar City sets up in a few working days and lists more than 600 activities, but its pages describe the entry package three ways, so get the visa terms written into your quote.
KEZAD says setup takes 24 hours and sets no minimum capital. It sits near Khalifa Port, which suits traders and manufacturers. KEZAD also sells mainland land in its domestic economic zones, so check which side your quote is for.
twofour54 licenses media, gaming and entertainment, and setup takes about 14 working days. A Co-Lab office gives 1 visa.
ADGM applies English common law and has its own courts. It also costs the most to keep, and a regulated financial firm needs FSRA approval before it can be licensed.
For the full emirate picture, see Abu Dhabi free zones. For cheaper options in other emirates, see the cheapest free zone in UAE.
Ask for Abu Dhabi quotes
Use the form on this page to send your activity and visa count. We pass it to the Abu Dhabi zones that license it, or to a licensed partner, and you get their packages with every fee named. UAEFreeZoneDirectory.com is independent of KEZAD, Masdar, twofour54, ADGM and every other zone, and partners pay us for referrals.
Where to get a written quote
Agencies quote their own totals, and they differ. The top 15 setup consultants by weighted Google score are a fair place to start when you want quotes to compare with the figures on this page.
Sources
- Masdar City Free Zone licence and registration: https://masdarcityfreezone.com/explore/license-and-registration
- KEZAD free zone business setup solutions: https://www.kezadgroup.com/en/business-facilities/free-zone-business-setup-solutions
- Creative Media Authority regulation and licence (twofour54 fees and waiver): https://www.cma.gov.ae/regulation-license
- ADGM Registration Authority fees: https://www.adgm.com/
- Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development, mainland and free zones: https://www.added.gov.ae/en/grow/competitive-landscape/mainland-and-freezones
- ICP residence permit fees: https://icp.gov.ae/en/services-details/?serviceid=64afe3c1035448005bd52e64
- ADAFZ agency prices: https://emirabiz.com/adafz-license-cost/ and https://www.rizmona.com/freezone-company-formation/abu-dhabi-airports/, with Incorporate.ae
- KEZAD plots auction (former ICAD areas) and tariffs: https://www.kezadgroup.com/en/auction and https://www.kezadgroup.com/en/business-facilities/tariffs
