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Company documents attestation in the UAE comes up as soon as a foreign company is involved in your free zone setup. A subsidiary owned by a parent abroad, or a branch of a foreign company, has to show the parent's papers, and most free zones want them attested. The usual chain is the UAE embassy in the country that issued the document, then the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) in the UAE. Some zones also want the papers notarised first or translated into Arabic after.
UAEFreeZoneDirectory.com is an independent directory, not an embassy, a ministry or an attestation office. If you ask for help, we pass your list to a licensed partner who quotes.
What free zones ask for
Each zone sets its own list. These are the attestation rules we found on official zone pages:
| Free zone | What must be attested or notarised |
|---|---|
| Umm Al Quwain Free Trade Zone | Board resolution of a corporate shareholder, attested by the UAE embassy and MOFA |
| Fujairah Free Zone | Attested board resolution for a branch or subsidiary; the parent's incorporation certificate, MoA, licence, good standing and POA are also on the list |
| Ajman Free Zone | Manager's university degree, attested by the UAE embassy at home and MOFA, translated into Arabic |
| Ajman NuVentures Centre Free Zone | Licence, MOA or AOA and board resolution of the parent, for branches |
| SRTIP | Notarised board resolution |
| Dubai Development Authority zones (Dubai Internet City, Dubai Media City and others) | Power of attorney, notarised and attested, if one is used |
| RAK Maritime City | Corporate shareholder documents legalised by the UAE embassy |
| Sharjah Healthcare City | Corporate papers attested |
Sources: the setup, FAQ and document pages of each zone, checked .
If your zone is not here, the pattern is still the same. Papers issued by a UAE body inside the country do not usually need the embassy step. Papers issued abroad usually do.
The documents that most often need it
- Certificate of incorporation of the parent company
- Memorandum and articles of association of the parent
- Board resolution approving the new free zone company or branch, and naming the manager
- Power of attorney for the person signing in the UAE
- Certificate of good standing or incumbency
- Latest audit report of the parent, for some branch setups
- Personal documents for certain roles, such as a manager's degree
The board resolution and MOA page explains what those two documents should say before you attest them. Getting the wording right first saves a second round of stamps.
How attestation works, step by step
The exact chain depends on the country that issued the document. In general:
- Get the original or a certified copy from the company registry or the issuing body.
- Notarise it in the issuing country, if the zone or the embassy asks for it.
- Complete any steps the home country requires before the UAE embassy will stamp it. The UAE embassy in that country can tell you what they are.
- Attest it at the UAE embassy or consulate in the issuing country.
- Attest it at MOFA in the UAE once the document arrives.
- Translate it into Arabic through a legal translator, if the zone asks for it.
- Upload or hand in the attested document with your free zone application.
Start early. The original has to pass through each office in turn, and one rejected stamp sends it back to the start.
What it costs
We have no verified general fee for attestation, and prices from embassies and MOFA change by document type and country. The one fixed figure we can show is Ajman Free Zone's own charge of AED 2,000 for attesting a partnership agreement when shareholders change, from its fee list. For everything else, ask for a quote per document that splits the government stamps from the service fee.
Mistakes that cause delays
- Attesting a board resolution before the zone has approved its wording.
- Sending copies when the embassy wants originals or certified copies.
- Skipping a home country step, so the UAE embassy refuses the stamp.
- Leaving translation until the zone asks for it, after the deadline has started.
- Attesting old documents. A good standing certificate that is months old may be refused.
Ask for a quote
Use the form on this page. List each document, the country that issued it and the free zone you are applying to. A licensed partner checks the chain for that country and quotes per document before any work starts. For corporate structures, the holding company and UBO register pages cover what else the zone will ask. The full order of set up tasks is in the free zone company setup steps.
Sources
- UAQ Free Trade Zone new company document list (attested board resolution)
- https://freezone.fujairah.ae/en/start-your-business (branch and subsidiary documents)
- https://afz.gov.ae/en/help-and-support/faqs.html (degree attestation, partnership agreement attestation fee)
- https://ancfz.ae/types-of-companies/ (branch documents)
- https://srtip.ae/rules-regulations/establishing-companies-institutions/ (notarised board resolution)
- https://dda.gov.ae/registration-licensing/setting-up-a-business/free-zone-limited-liability-company/registration-fz-llc-with-natural-person (attested power of attorney)
- RAK Maritime City company registration guidelines (legalised corporate documents)
- https://shcc.shj.ae/setup-business (attested corporate papers)
