Dubai Internet City Company Setup Cost: 2026 Guide

Dubai Internet City company setup cost starts at about AED 18,520 for an FZ-LLC: a one-time Dubai Development Authority (DDA) registration fee of AED 3,500, AED 20 in Knowledge and Innovation Dirham fees, and an annual licence fee that agencies report at about AED 15,000 per activity segment. Office space and visas come on top and usually decide the real budget. A solo professional can enter for less through TECOM's GoFreelance permit at AED 7,500 a year.

Dubai Internet City (DIC) does not publish a price list, which is why online estimates range from under AED 20,000 to over AED 50,000. This guide separates official fees from agency estimates, prices a realistic first year for an Indian technology company, and explains the tax and India-side rules that matter more than the licence fee. If you already know DIC is right for you, our India to UAE services corridor team can plan and run the setup end to end.

Key points

• Official DDA fees: AED 3,500 registration plus AED 10 Knowledge Dirham and AED 10 Innovation Dirham, with provisional approval in 10 working days and registration in 2 more.
• The licence fee is set by activity and is not published by DIC; agencies quote about AED 15,000 a year per segment.
• DIC requires a registered physical workspace in the community, so office cost is a fixed line, not an optional extra.
• Most IT services are not Qualifying Activities, so a DIC tech company generally pays 9% corporate tax on profit above AED 375,000 unless Small Business Relief applies.

What is Dubai Internet City, and who is it for?

Dubai Internet City is a technology business community run by TECOM Group, with companies licensed and regulated by the Dubai Development Authority. DIC says it has added AED 100 billion to Dubai's GDP over 15 years, citing an impact study with Accenture (dic.ae, 2026). It suits companies whose clients, hires or partners value a recognised tech address: software and SaaS firms, IT services companies, data and cloud businesses, and regional offices of larger technology groups.

It is not the cheapest Dubai free zone, and it is not trying to be. The price premium buys the address, the community and access to TECOM's workspaces, including D/Quarters coworking and the in5 innovation centres. If price is your main filter, read our comparison of the cheapest free zone company setup in the UAE first.

How much does Dubai Internet City company setup cost in 2026?

The fees fall into three groups: official DDA charges, the activity-based licence fee, and costs that depend on your workspace and team. The table shows each line, the figure and where it comes from.

So the floor for an FZ-LLC is about AED 18,520 before workspace and visas: AED 3,520 one-time plus about AED 15,000 for the first licence year. Estimates you see that start at AED 35,000 or AED 50,000 are not wrong, they simply include a desk or office, one or two visas, and the agent's fee. When you compare quotes, ask each provider to split them into these same lines.

Why do online DIC prices disagree so much?

Three reasons. First, DIC prices on enquiry, so every published figure is second-hand. Second, some guides bundle Dtec into DIC, but Dtec is the entrepreneur campus at Dubai Silicon Oasis, a different free zone with its own pricing. Third, some quote share capital as a cost; it is not a fee, it is money the company keeps, though you still need to fund it.

What licence and entity options does DIC offer?

DIC companies are usually set up as one of three forms:

• FZ-LLC with individual shareholders. One or more people own the company directly. Suits founders relocating to Dubai.
• FZ-LLC with a corporate shareholder. An Indian, UK or other company owns it. DDA lists the documents: the parent's incorporation certificate, a certificate of good standing, its memorandum and articles, a notarised and attested board resolution, and a declaration appointing the general manager.
• Branch of a UAE or foreign company. No separate legal entity; the parent is directly liable. Useful in narrow cases, but for an Indian parent a branch can spoil the GST export treatment of services billed from India (see below).

Licence activities sit in technology segments such as software, IT services and internet and multimedia. Choose activities that match what you will invoice. A licence that says consultancy while you sell software subscriptions raises questions at the bank and at audit.

Is the GoFreelance permit a cheaper way into Dubai Internet City?

Yes, for individuals. TECOM's GoFreelance package costs AED 7,500 a year and includes a freelance licence and hot desk access in TECOM communities including Dubai Internet City, Dubai Media City, Dubai Design District and Dubai Knowledge Park. A one-year visa costs AED 4,600 or a two-year visa AED 5,042, with an establishment card at AED 2,000 (gofreelance.ae, November 2026). Tech categories include web development, software, data science and networking.

For the mainland question in more depth, see our Dubai free zone vs mainland comparison.

Worked example: a Bengaluru SaaS company opens a DIC front office

An Indian SaaS company with its product and engineering team in Bengaluru sets up a DIC FZ-LLC, 100% owned by the Indian company. Two people move to Dubai: a regional sales head and a customer success lead, with the sales head as general manager. The Dubai company signs customers in Saudi Arabia, the UK and the UAE free zones and pays the Indian parent for development and support.

Year-one fees (figures as sourced above; visas use TECOM's published GoFreelance visa fee as an indicator, not a company quote):

Add the workspace quote from TECOM, health insurance for both visa holders and an accountant. From year two, the registration fee drops away, but the licence, workspace and visa renewals repeat. The share capital is funded from India and stays in the company.

Tax in year one. Suppose revenue is AED 2.4 million and, after paying the Indian parent, salaries and rent, profit is AED 500,000. SaaS and IT services are not Qualifying Activities under Ministerial Decision No. 229 of 2025, so most of this income would not get the 0% free zone rate. The company has two choices:

• Standard rate: 9% x (500,000 minus 375,000) = AED 11,250 under Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022.
• Small Business Relief: with revenue at or below AED 3 million, it can elect to be treated as having no taxable income. Ministerial Decision No. 131 of 2026 extended the relief to tax periods ending on or before 31 December 2029 (The National, 7 August 2026). It is not available to a Qualifying Free Zone Person, so the company should elect deliberately, and expect to lose it once revenue passes AED 3 million.

Pricing from India. Under the Union Budget 2026-27, India grouped software development and IT-enabled services into one Information Technology Services safe harbour with a 15.5% margin on operating cost (Press Information Bureau, February 2026). If the Bengaluru team's cost for this work is Rs 3 crore, the safe harbour invoice to Dubai is at least Rs 3.465 crore. That charge reduces the Dubai profit, so the transfer price and the Dubai tax line must be planned together. Our guide to transfer pricing for India-UAE groups covers the method and documentation.

What does an Indian or UK parent need to do before setting up in DIC?

An Indian company funds a DIC subsidiary through overseas direct investment (ODI) under the Foreign Exchange Management (Overseas Investment) Rules, 2022, filed through its authorised dealer bank before money leaves India, with an Annual Performance Report every year. Our explainer on ODI rules for Indian companies investing abroad sets out the filings.

Three other rules shape the structure:

1. GST on India's invoices. Services the Indian company bills to the DIC company can be zero-rated as an export of services under a Letter of Undertaking if the conditions in section 2(6) of the IGST Act are met. One condition is that the two are not merely establishments of the same legal person, which is why an FZ-LLC usually works better than a DIC branch here. See our guide on export of services under GST.
2. Place of effective management. If the key commercial decisions for the DIC company are in substance made in Bengaluru, India can treat it as Indian-resident. Put real authority with the people in Dubai. Our article on place of effective management (POEM) explains the test.
3. Permanent establishment. Indian staff who regularly negotiate or conclude contracts for the Dubai company can create a taxable presence in the other direction. Read when expansion creates tax presence.

A UK parent faces the mirror image: the DIC company's profit can fall under UK controlled foreign company rules if it is earned from UK-managed functions, so the same substance point applies.

How to set up a company in Dubai Internet City: step by step

1. Write down the Dubai company's role: who it sells to, who signs, who delivers and how it pays the group.
2. Confirm DIC over cheaper zones. If the address and community will not win clients or hires, choose a lower-cost zone.
3. Choose the form: GoFreelance, FZ-LLC with individual shareholders, FZ-LLC with a corporate shareholder, or branch.
4. Request an itemised quote covering licence by segment, workspace, establishment card, each visa, medical and Emirates ID, and year-two renewal.
5. Complete parent approvals: board resolution, ODI filing for an Indian parent, notarisation and attestation of corporate documents.
6. Apply for provisional approval through DDA. DDA's service standard is 10 working days for provisional approval and 2 working days for registration once documents are complete.
7. Sign the workspace agreement and receive the licence.
8. Process the establishment card, visas and Emirates IDs.
9. Open the bank account. Banks ask for a business plan, client list and money-flow chart; see our guide to opening a UAE corporate bank account for an Indian-owned company.
10. Register for corporate tax straight after incorporation (late registration carries a fixed AED 10,000 penalty under Cabinet Decision No. 75 of 2023 as amended) and for VAT once taxable supplies pass AED 375,000 in 12 months.
11. Sign the intercompany agreement and fix the transfer price before the first invoice.

Common mistakes with a DIC setup

• Comparing a DIC quote that includes a desk and visas with another zone's licence-only price.
• Assuming a free zone licence means 0% tax on IT services income.
• Confusing DIC with Dtec at Dubai Silicon Oasis and applying for the wrong zone.
• Leaving share capital unfunded and then struggling at the bank.
• Running the company entirely from India, which invites POEM and profit attribution challenges.
• Opening a branch of the Indian company and losing the GST export treatment on India's invoices.
• Missing corporate tax registration because the company is small.

When is Dubai Internet City the wrong choice?

Skip DIC if nobody will work from Dubai, if your clients do not care about a UAE counterparty, or if most of your revenue will come from UAE mainland customers who need a mainland licence. In the first two cases an Indian company exporting services directly is simpler, and an empty DIC company adds cost and tax risk without moving any profit. If you want a Dubai entity but the address is not worth paying about AED 2,500 more for the licence alone than Meydan Free Zone, whose AED 12,500 price already includes a flexi-desk while DIC workspace is charged separately, take the cheaper licence. For a full market view, see our guide to the cost of starting a company in Dubai, and for technology companies in general, our IT company setup in Dubai guide.

The Greenwolf view

DIC is worth its premium when a real team sells, signs and manages clients from Dubai, and the address helps them do it. Start with that commercial role, then set the transfer price with the Indian or UK parent, then choose the tax position (Small Business Relief, standard rate or qualifying income), and only then pick the workspace and visas. Built in that order, the company is easy to explain to a bank, a client's procurement team and two tax authorities.

Greenwolf Advisors helps Indian and UK technology companies design, set up and run their UAE entity, from zone choice and company incorporation and governance to ODI filings, transfer pricing and corporate tax compliance. Speak to our team for an itemised DIC budget for your activities, visas and group structure.

This article is general information, not advice for a specific case. DIC prices on enquiry and fees change: confirm current figures with DDA and TECOM before you commit.