IFZA Company Setup Cost 2026: Licence, Visas and Tax

IFZA company setup cost in 2026 starts at about AED 12,900 for a licence with no visa, and rises to roughly AED 17,700 with one residence visa and AED 28,000 with two, according to Avyanco's IFZA fee guide (updated September 2026). A realistic first year for a solo founder, once you add the establishment card, medical, Emirates ID and health insurance, usually lands between AED 18,000 and AED 24,000 (Osome, September 2026). Add bookkeeping, tax filings and an audit if you need one, and a lean IFZA company costs more than any package headline suggests.

The International Free Zone Authority (IFZA) is based in Dubai Silicon Oasis and is popular with consultants, IT firms, traders and e-commerce businesses because it combines a Dubai address with flexi-desk packages and multi-activity licences. This guide reconciles the conflicting prices you will find online, shows a worked budget for year one and year two, and covers the tax and funding questions that decide whether IFZA is the right home. If you are building a UAE front office for an Indian services business, our India to UAE services team helps with exactly this choice.

Key points

• IFZA does not publish a price list on its website. Every price you see comes from a setup agent, so ask for a written quote that separates IFZA's fees, government fees and the agent's own fee.
• Agent-published 2026 prices: about AED 12,900 with no visa, AED 17,699 with one visa, AED 28,000 with two and AED 34,550 with three (Avyanco, September 2026).
• Multi-year licences are discounted: Business Dubai (June 2026) reports 15% off for two years, 20% for three and 30% for five.
• An IFZA company is inside UAE corporate tax: 0% up to AED 375,000 of taxable income and 9% above. Small Business Relief has been extended to tax periods ending on or before 31 December 2029 by Ministerial Decision No. 131 of 2026.
• For most consultancy and IT service companies, the 0% Qualifying Free Zone Person rate is out of reach, because services to mainland and overseas clients are generally not qualifying activities.

How much does IFZA company setup cost in 2026?

The cost depends on four choices: how many visas you need, how many activities you bundle, what workspace you take and how many years you pay for upfront. The table below brings together the figures published by setup consultants in 2026. Because IFZA quotes through partners, figures differ by a few hundred to a few thousand dirhams between agents. Treat them as planning numbers and confirm with a written quotation.

Why do agents disagree so much? Three reasons. Some quote the licence alone and add the establishment card and visa costs later; others quote an all-in figure. Some include their own service fee; others bill it separately. And some packages are built for a specific number of visas, so the price per visa is not linear: Avyanco's figures imply the second visa adds far more than the first. Ask every agent for the same line-by-line format and you can compare them properly.

What does an IFZA package include, and what costs extra?

A standard IFZA package generally includes the trade licence, company registration, a flexi-desk in IFZA's business park and the right to apply for an establishment card and visas (Avyanco, September 2026). Consultants report that a flexi-desk can support up to six visas, so most small teams do not need a physical office to meet visa rules (Business Dubai, June 2026).

Items that usually sit outside the package:

• Visa costs per person. Entry permit, status change, medical test, biometrics and Emirates ID are paid per person, and again at each renewal.
• Dependent visas for a spouse or children, which are priced separately.
• External approvals for regulated activities, such as certain financial, education, health or media activities.
• Bank account opening, mainly time and minimum balance requirements rather than a fee.
• Bookkeeping, corporate tax registration and filing, VAT registration and any audit. These are the costs founders most often forget.

IFZA licences come in professional, commercial and holding forms, with up to three compatible activities usually bundled into one licence (UAE Roadmap, March 2026). That matters for a founder who wants to combine, say, IT consultancy and software trading on one licence rather than paying for two companies.

A worked example: an Indian IT consultancy's IFZA budget

Take a hypothetical Bengaluru software consultancy whose founder wants a UAE company to contract with Gulf clients. The founder takes one investor visa; delivery stays with the team in India. No office is needed beyond the flexi-desk.

Bookkeeping, tax and attestation figures are Osome's September 2026 ranges. The visa is normally valid for two years, so the visa renewal cost of roughly AED 3,000 to 4,500 lands in year three. If the company needs audited accounts, for example to claim Qualifying Free Zone Person status, Osome puts an audit at AED 5,500 to 15,000 a year on top.

Now the tax. Suppose the company bills AED 900,000 in its first year and makes taxable income of AED 500,000. Without any relief, corporate tax is 9% of the AED 125,000 above the AED 375,000 threshold: AED 11,250. Because revenue is under AED 3 million, the company can elect Small Business Relief and be treated as having no taxable income for that period. Under Ministerial Decision No. 131 of 2026, announced by the Ministry of Finance on 7 August 2026 (reported by The National), that election is available for tax periods ending on or before 31 December 2029.

The larger tax question sits in India. If the founder runs the UAE company from Bengaluru, the company risks being treated as tax resident in India under the place of effective management test, which would put its whole profit into Indian tax. And if the Indian team does the work, the Indian company should charge the UAE company an arm's length fee for it. Our guide to transfer pricing in the UAE explains how to set this up, and the Indian side of the invoice is covered in export of services under GST.

Is an IFZA company tax free?

No. An IFZA company is within UAE corporate tax under Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022, at 0% on taxable income up to AED 375,000 and 9% above that. It pays 0% on all qualifying income only if it is a Qualifying Free Zone Person, which requires adequate substance in the UAE, audited financial statements, arm's length transfer pricing and non-qualifying revenue within the de minimis limit of 5% of total revenue or AED 5 million, whichever is lower.

The qualifying activities are set out in Ministerial Decision No. 229 of 2025, issued by the Ministry of Finance on 3 September 2025. They include activities such as manufacturing, trading qualifying commodities, holding shares, treasury and financing for related parties, and distribution from a Designated Zone. General consultancy, marketing or IT services sold to UAE mainland or overseas clients are generally not on the list. Many IFZA companies are exactly that kind of business, so they should plan on the standard 0% and 9% rates, or Small Business Relief, not on QFZP status. Note that a business cannot be a Qualifying Free Zone Person and elect Small Business Relief at the same time. Our explainer on corporate tax for free zone companies covers the conditions in detail.

VAT works as it does for any UAE business: 5% on taxable supplies, with mandatory registration once taxable supplies exceed AED 375,000 in 12 months and voluntary registration from AED 187,500, as set out by the Federal Tax Authority. IFZA does not appear by name on the FTA's list of Designated Zones, so an IFZA trading company should not assume goods held there are outside VAT. If an agent offers a "designated zone" package, ask which premises it refers to and check them against the current FTA list.

How long does IFZA company formation take?

Consultants report that the licence is issued in about 3 to 10 working days (Business Dubai, June 2026; Avyanco, September 2026), each visa adds one to two weeks, and the bank account commonly takes 4 to 8 weeks (UAE Roadmap, March 2026). A typical sequence:

1. Choose the licence type, activities and number of visas.
2. Reserve the trade name and submit shareholder KYC: passports, proof of address and, for a corporate shareholder, its constitutional documents and a board resolution.
3. Receive initial approval and sign the incorporation documents.
4. Pay the fees and collect the licence and establishment card.
5. Apply for visas: entry permit, medical test, biometrics and Emirates ID.
6. Open the bank account.
7. Register for corporate tax with the Federal Tax Authority, and for VAT if taxable supplies cross the threshold.

The bank is usually the slowest step for an Indian-owned company, because the bank wants to understand who controls the group and where the money comes from. See our guide to opening a UAE corporate bank account for an Indian-owned company for the document pack.

Who should own the IFZA company, and how is it funded?

For Indian owners, ownership and funding are decided by Indian rules, not by IFZA. Money that funds the IFZA company leaves India under the Overseas Investment Rules and Regulations of 2022 and is reported through an authorised dealer bank. A resident individual can generally invest only in an operating foreign company that is not in financial services and has no subsidiaries of its own, so an IFZA holding licence owned personally by an Indian resident usually does not work. If the UAE company will hold other companies, an Indian company or a non-resident founder is usually the right investor. Our explainers on ODI rules and funding an overseas company through ODI or LRS go through the options, and who should own your Dubai company covers the ownership decision.

For UK owners, the questions are whether UK controlled foreign company rules could attribute the IFZA company's profits back to a UK parent, and whether the company is in practice managed from the UK, which can make it UK tax resident. Our guide for UK businesses setting up in Dubai covers both.

IFZA vs Meydan, DMCC and RAKEZ: which fits?

For a wider ranking of low-cost options, see our comparison of the cheapest free zone company setup in the UAE.

When IFZA is the wrong choice

• The company will be empty. A licence with no decision-making in the UAE, invoicing for work done in India, creates tax risk in both countries whatever the zone.
• You need a licence for a regulated activity such as financial services, where a zone like DIFC or ADGM is the natural home.
• You will hold stock for UAE customers. A zone with warehousing and Designated Zone status may suit better.
• You are counting on 0% tax. If your business plan depends on QFZP status for consultancy income, revisit the plan before you choose any zone.
• You will grow past six visas quickly. You will need a physical office, and the cost comparison with other zones changes.

IFZA setup checklist

• Written quotation showing the IFZA fee, government fees, visa costs and the agent's fee on separate lines.
• Activities chosen with the next two years in mind, including any you plan to add.
• Single-year or multi-year licence decided, with the discount weighed against flexibility.
• Shareholder decided (individual, Indian company or holding company) and the ODI or UK route agreed before money moves.
• Bank shortlisted and KYC pack ready before the licence is issued.
• Corporate tax registration diarised, and a decision taken on Small Business Relief for each year up to 2029.
• Intercompany agreement and pricing in place before the first invoice.
• Decisions genuinely taken in the UAE, with board minutes to show it.

How Greenwolf helps

Greenwolf Advisors works with founders and family businesses across the India, UAE, UK and US corridors on the whole decision, not only the licence: whether a UAE entity makes commercial sense, which zone fits, who should own it, how it is funded, how it charges the rest of the group and how it stays compliant. Commercial design comes first; the tax position follows functions, risks and substance. If you are expanding an Indian services firm into the Gulf, read our guide to expanding an Indian services business to Dubai, see our corporate services or speak to our team.

This article is general information, not advice for a specific case. IFZA packages and government fees change, and agents price differently: confirm current figures with IFZA's partners, the Federal Tax Authority, your bank and your advisers before you act.