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Meydan vs IFZA starts with one difference: only Meydan prints its own prices. Meydan Free Zone sells its starter licence at AED 12,500 a year, with up to 3 activity groups and no visa. The IFZA free zone publishes nothing, and six setup agencies quote its zero-visa licence at AED 12,900 in government fees. So the entry cost is close. Meydan suits founders who want to buy direct and fast. IFZA suits people who want trading and consulting on one licence and are happy to go through an agent.
Meydan and IFZA side by side
| Meydan Free Zone | IFZA | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | AED 12,500 a year, official, 0 visas | About AED 12,900, agency figure, 0 visas |
| Licence with 1 visa | Agencies quote AED 16,350 to AED 20,670 | Agencies quote AED 14,900 to AED 15,000 slot only, AED 21,450 to AED 22,200 processed |
| Who sells it | Meydan, online, direct to you | Professional Partners (agents) only |
| Activities | 2,500+, 3 groups in the base licence | Thousands, commercial and professional combinable |
| Company forms | LLC-FZ, branch | FZCO, FZE, branch |
| Visa fees | Published per visa | Not published |
| Visa quota | Not published | Not published |
| Setup time | Within 24 hours, or under 60 minutes with Fawri | Not published |
| Licence term | Up to 10 years | Not published |
| Base | Meydan City, Dubai | Dubai Silicon Oasis, Dubai |
Figures from meydanfz.ae and ifza.com, with agency price pages where the row says so, all checked .
Price: an official list against agency quotes
Meydan's AED 12,500 is the figure on the zone's own website. It pays for registration, the trade licence, the online application and the right to use a flexi desk. There is a second route called Fawri at AED 15,000, which Meydan says issues the licence online in under 60 minutes, with a refund if it runs late.
The IFZA figure of AED 12,900 is a different kind of number. It shows up on six agency sites, and most of them add their own service charge after that. IFZA sells to its partners at wholesale rates, so two agents can quote you two totals for the same licence. To compare fairly, ask the IFZA partner whether the figure is government fees only. Then ask Meydan what its price leaves out: visas, medicals, the card and any office upgrade.
Add one residence visa and the gap all but disappears. Agencies put Meydan with one visa at AED 16,350 to AED 20,670 (2 agencies, checked ). IFZA agents price one visa two ways: AED 14,900 to AED 15,000 for the licence and a visa slot, with processing billed later (3 agencies), or AED 21,450 to AED 22,200 with the visa processed (2 agencies). These are agency numbers, not ours.
Visa costs you can check
This is where Meydan is easier to audit. Its site lists every visa line:
- Investor visa: AED 4,000
- Employee visa: AED 3,500
- Medical and Emirates ID: AED 2,250 per person
- Establishment card: AED 2,000, paid once
You can add those to the AED 12,500 yourself and test any quote against the total. IFZA lists no visa fee at all. Agencies fill in: visa processing at AED 3,550 to AED 4,800 per person (5 agencies) and the card at AED 1,500 to AED 2,200 (6 agencies).
Neither zone says how many visas a flexi desk carries. Ask for the slot count in writing before you pay. Our free zone visa cost page shows what the government parts of any visa cost.
Activities and company forms
Meydan lists more than 2,500 activities. The base licence holds up to 3 activity groups, and each extra activity costs AED 1,000. A second shareholder adds AED 2,000. Companies are formed as an LLC-FZ or a branch.
IFZA issues commercial, professional and branch licences, and lets the first two share one licence. That is the main reason people with a consulting business and a small trading line look at IFZA. Company forms are the IFZA FZCO, the FZE and the branch. IFZA gives no exact activity count, only "thousands".
Offices: Meydan City and IFZA Dubai Silicon Oasis
Both zones let a small company hold its licence on a flexi desk and lease real offices for bigger teams. Neither prints office rents on the pages we read. Meydan is based in Meydan City. IFZA's headquarters is at IFZA Business Park in Dubai Silicon Oasis. If you want a desk you will actually sit at, visit both before you sign.
Setup, remote founders and banks
Both let you form the company without flying in. Meydan says its setup is fully online. IFZA says no physical presence is needed during incorporation. Either way, a residence visa still means a trip for the medical and Emirates ID.
Meydan says no paid-up capital is needed for the licence. IFZA's pages say nothing on capital, so ask the partner.
On banking, Meydan's home page claims a guaranteed IBAN and more than 26 banking partners. That is the zone's own marketing, and each bank still runs its own checks. IFZA makes no banking claim on the pages we read. Our corporate bank account guide covers what banks ask for.
Regulation and what is not confirmed
Meydan's site does not name its licensing authority or founding law on the pages we checked. IFZA's site does not confirm who issues its licences either. Agencies say IFZA licences are issued within Dubai Silicon Oasis, and we could not verify that. Ask either zone to point you to its licence register before you commit.
Choose Meydan if
- You want to see the price on the zone's own site and pay there
- You want the licence the same day, or within the hour with Fawri
- You want to budget visas from published fees
- You may pay for a licence term of several years
Choose IFZA if
- You need commercial and professional activities on one licence
- You want an FZCO or FZE company form
- You prefer an agent to handle the whole file for you
- You can collect two partner quotes and compare them
If cost is the only test, compare both with the rest of the list on cheapest free zone in Dubai. For the full zone profiles, read Meydan Free Zone and IFZA. For a pricier option with a clear visa rule per office, see Meydan vs DMCC or DMCC vs IFZA.
Get both quotes at once
The form on this page sends your activities and visa count to us. UAEFreeZoneDirectory.com is a directory that works on its own, not for Meydan or IFZA. We pass the request to Meydan and to a licensed IFZA partner, so you can set the two replies side by side.
Sources
- https://www.meydanfz.ae/dubai-trade-license-aed-12500 : starter price, activity groups, capital
- https://www.meydanfz.ae/fawri : Fawri price and issue time
- https://www.meydanfz.ae/ : visa, medical and card fees, banking claim
- https://www.meydanfz.ae/cost-calculator : extra activity and shareholder fees
- https://ifza.com/en/about/ : partner sales model, location
- https://ifza.com/en/set-up-your-business/ : licence types, company forms, remote setup
- https://avyanco.com/ifza-free-zone-cost/, https://safeledger.ae/blog/ifza-license-cost, https://www.rizmona.com/ifza-free-zone/, https://www.businessdubai.ae/blogs/ifza-free-zone-setup, https://emirabiz.com/ifza-license-cost/ and https://binderr.com/marketplace/ae/ifza-company-formation : IFZA agency prices and card range
- https://avyanco.com/meydan-free-zone-cost/ and https://www.rizmona.com/meydan-free-zone/ : Meydan agency prices with one visa
