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The establishment card in Dubai, and across the UAE, is the immigration file of your company. ICP describes it as an electronic card that carries the trade name, licence number, partners and activity, and lets the company sponsor visas. In a free zone you apply through the zone once the licence is out. DMCC charges AED 1,825 a year for it and Meydan AED 2,000 one time.
Looking ahead: see Free zone visa cost 2027.
Establishment card fees by free zone
| Free zone | Fee | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| DMCC | AED 1,825 | A year |
| Meydan Free Zone | AED 2,000 | One time |
| Expo City Dubai | AED 2,100 | New card |
| Dubai Healthcare City | AED 1,935 normal, AED 2,065 express | New card |
| Masdar City Free Zone | AED 1,600 | One time |
| KEZAD | AED 1,000 | New card; AED 500 to cancel |
| SPC Free Zone | AED 640 | Covers 2 years |
| ADGM | AED 1,127.27 | New or renewal, VAT included |
| DIFC | USD 618 normal, USD 656 express | New card |
Source: each zone's fee page, calculator or price list, checked .
Some zones fold the card into something else. Innovation City includes the e-channel in its visa fee and publishes no separate card fee. Ajman Free Zone issues the card within three working days of your portal request but does not publish the new card price. An independent newsletter (Emirae Pro, ) reports it from AED 750, and one agency quotes more, so the sources disagree.
IFZA publishes no fees at all. Six setup agencies list the IFZA establishment card at about AED 1,500 to AED 2,200, and about AED 2,000 is the figure you see most (published prices of 6 agencies, checked ). That is their quoted cost, not a figure from IFZA and not our price.
The TECOM parks, such as Dubai Internet City and Dubai Media City, keep the company card fee behind the axs portal login. The only official TECOM figure is AED 2,000 for a GoFreelance freelancer. For companies, five setup agencies quote AED 1,000 to AED 2,500 (published prices of 5 agencies, checked ).
Establishment card renewal in Dubai
The card runs alongside your licence and needs renewing on time. ICP publishes the federal lines behind any renewal: AED 100 application, AED 100 per year, AED 1,000 system subscription and AED 100 smart service. When you renew an establishment card in Dubai, your zone collects these inside its own renewal price, and adds its own service charge, so the total you pay differs from zone to zone.
Late renewal costs money fast. Once you are more than 30 days late, ICP adds AED 100 a month, capped at AED 1,000. Zones can add their own fines on top. Creative City's rules allow a fine of up to AED 1,200 after 28 days past expiry. In Fujairah Free Zone the card and e-channel renew every year with the licence, which is a good habit anywhere: renew both in the same week. See free zone license renewal for the licence side.
Getting a copy of the card
There is no plastic card. ICP issues an electronic record, so ask your free zone portal team or the PRO who filed it for the current copy. Banks, landlords and visa typists may all ask for it, so keep the latest copy with your licence.
What a licensed partner does for you
Tell us the zone and what you need: a new card, a renewal, an amendment or a cancellation. We pass it to a licensed partner who files in that zone. They quote one total with government and service fees shown apart, before they file. We are a directory, not ICP or the zone, so we do not issue cards.
Documents usually asked for
- Valid trade licence
- MOA or articles and the share register
- Passport copy of the manager or authorised signatory
- Emirates ID and visa of the signatory, if resident
- Lease or flexi desk agreement for the zone
Steps
- Licence issued by the free zone.
- Card requested through the zone portal.
- Zone and ICP process the file.
- Card issued as an electronic record.
- Visa slots open for investor and employee visas.
- Card renewed each year or term, with the licence.
Mistakes to avoid
- Filing a visa before the card is issued.
- Comparing a one time fee with a yearly one. DMCC's AED 1,825 comes back every year, while Meydan lists its AED 2,000 as one time.
- Renewing the licence and forgetting the card, then finding visa renewals blocked.
- Changing partners or the company name without amending the card.
- Ignoring the cancellation fee when you close: KEZAD charges AED 500 to cancel.
When you change shareholders or activities, the card follows the licence, so read license amendment. For visa costs once the card is live, go to investor visa UAE. The form on this page sends your request to us and we forward it to a partner for a quote.
Sources
- https://icp.gov.ae/en/services-details/?serviceid=64afe3c1035448005bd52e6e : what the card is, renewal fees and late fines
- https://dmcc.ae/blog/dubai-freezone-company-setup-cost : DMCC card fee
- https://www.meydanfz.ae/ : Meydan card fee
- https://assets.ctfassets.net/r2cfrvo3y08m/1bWGzdfXIymtBqyTMW1LW1/b61ed77fa9b3d3210f5842c6462574e6/28042025_ECDA_Services_Catalogue_-_Fees.pdf : Expo City card fee
- https://www.dhcc.ae//Documents/AboutDHCR/FeeStructure/DHCA_Service_Price_List.pdf : DHCC card fees
- https://masdarcityfreezone.com/explore/license-and-registration : Masdar card fee
- https://www.kezadgroup.com/en/business-facilities/tariffs : KEZAD new card and cancellation
- https://www.spcfz.ae/pay-as-you-go/ : SPC card fee
- ADGM government services fee schedule: ADGM card fee
- https://afz.gov.ae/en/help-and-support/faqs.html : Ajman Free Zone issue time and amendment fee
- https://innovationcity.com/faq : Innovation City e-channel in the visa fee
- DIFC private company handbook: DIFC card fees
- Fujairah Free Zone renewal process: card renewed with the licence
- Creative City rules and regulations: card fine
- Emirae Pro newsletter on Ajman Free Zone: reported AFZ card fee
- https://dic.ae/offerings/gofreelance : GoFreelance freelancer establishment card fee
- https://emirabiz.com/business-setup-tecom-free-zone-dubai/, https://dubaibusinesszone.com/tecom-free-zone-visa/ and https://freezonevisaservices.com/dubai-design-district/ : three of the five agency pages behind the TECOM card range
