---
title: "Setting up a UAE company"
url: https://www.boruconsulting.com/glossary/situations/setting-up-a-uae-company
type: ItemList
reviewed: 2026-10-06
---

# Setting up a UAE company

> The licence is the easy part. Whether the company actually works turns on the free zone choice, genuine substance, and a bank that will open the account.

## The concepts this turns on

1. [Free Zone Company](https://www.boruconsulting.com/glossary/free-zone-company) — Structure | UAE
   A company incorporated within a designated UAE economic zone that permits full foreign ownership and operates under the zone’s own licensing regime. Free zone entities are a common route for non-residents establishing a UAE presence.
2. [Mainland Company](https://www.boruconsulting.com/glossary/mainland-company) — Structure | UAE
   A UAE company licensed by an emirate’s Department of Economic Development to trade directly in the local market, rather than within a free zone. Since 2021 most mainland activities allow full foreign ownership.
3. [Qualifying Free Zone Person (QFZP)](https://www.boruconsulting.com/glossary/qualifying-free-zone-person) — Status | UAE
   A UAE free zone entity that meets the conditions to benefit from a 0% corporate tax rate on its qualifying income. Keeping that status depends on adequate substance, audited accounts, and staying within the qualifying activity rules.
4. [UAE Corporate Tax](https://www.boruconsulting.com/glossary/uae-corporate-tax) — Tax charge | UAE
   The federal corporate tax the UAE introduced in 2023, applying to business profits with a standard rate, a small-business relief for lower turnovers, and a zero rate on qualifying free zone income. An in-scope company must register and file a return even when no tax is payable.
5. [Economic Substance](https://www.boruconsulting.com/glossary/economic-substance) — Legal test | UK · IE · UAE
   The requirement that an entity claiming to be resident or active in a jurisdiction has genuine operations there, such as staff, premises, and decision-making, rather than existing only on paper. Substance rules determine whether a structure is respected for tax purposes.
6. [Registered Office](https://www.boruconsulting.com/glossary/registered-office) — Obligation | UK · IE · UAE
   The official statutory address of a company, used for legal correspondence from the registrar, tax authority, and courts. It must be a genuine address in the jurisdiction of incorporation where documents can be delivered and acknowledged.
7. [Ultimate Beneficial Owner (UBO)](https://www.boruconsulting.com/glossary/ultimate-beneficial-owner) — Status
   The natural person who ultimately owns or controls an entity, however many layers of ownership sit in between. Identifying the UBO is a core requirement of anti-money-laundering and corporate transparency regimes.

Related: [Dubai company setup for UK residents](https://www.boruconsulting.com/company-setup-in-dubai-for-uk-residents)

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Source: https://www.boruconsulting.com/glossary/situations/setting-up-a-uae-company