RAKEZ Company Setup Cost 2026: Packages, Visas, Tax

RAKEZ company setup cost in 2026 starts at about AED 6,000 a year for a no-visa licence and AED 14,000 a year for RAKEZ's All-Inclusive Business Setup package with one residence visa, according to RAKEZ's own published packages. Each extra visa on that package costs AED 4,000, up to three more. A realistic first-year budget for a small company, once you add banking, accounting and audit, usually lands between about AED 14,500 and AED 36,000 (Osome, September 2026), and more if you need a warehouse or factory space.

Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone (RAKEZ) is one of the lowest-cost ways to hold a UAE licence, and it is growing fast: RAKEZ reported 19,000 new companies in 2025, a 44% increase on 2024, with India the largest source market at 33% of new companies (WAM, reported by Dubai Eye, 1 February 2026). This guide separates the package price from the real cost, shows a worked budget, and covers the VAT, corporate tax and Indian funding questions that decide whether RAKEZ is the right home. If you are setting up a UAE entity as part of an Indian or UK group, our India to UAE team helps with exactly this choice.

Key points

• RAKEZ publishes its main packages: All-Inclusive Business Setup at AED 14,000 a year with one visa, up to 10 activities and up to 50 shareholders, with the same renewal price guaranteed.
• Extra visas on that package cost AED 4,000 each, for up to three more, and dependent visas are discounted by 20%.
• Which RAKEZ business park you lease in matters. Al Hamra, Al Ghail and Al Hulaila Industrial Zones are VAT Designated Zones under Cabinet Decision No. 43 of 2019; the business zones used for desks and small offices are not.
• A RAKEZ company pays UAE corporate tax at 9% above AED 375,000 of taxable income unless it is a Qualifying Free Zone Person. Small Business Relief is available only for tax periods ending on or before 31 December 2026.
• RAKEZ is cheap because it is in Ras Al Khaimah. If your customers, staff and office need to be in Dubai, the saving can disappear.

How much does RAKEZ company setup cost in 2026?

The cost depends on four choices: the package, the number of visas, the facility you lease and whether you add paid support services. RAKEZ's own published offers and the ranges reported by setup consultants in 2026 are summarised below. Treat third-party figures as planning numbers and get a written RAKEZ quotation before you commit.

Three costs are not in any package and belong in every budget: a bank account (mainly time and minimum balances), bookkeeping and any audit your tax position requires, and corporate tax and VAT registration and filing, unless you buy the Premium upgrade. That is why Osome's September 2026 estimate of a realistic first year runs from about AED 14,535 with no visa to about AED 31,010 to 36,010 with two visas, higher than the headline package prices.

What do RAKEZ packages include and leave out?

The All-Inclusive package, as RAKEZ describes it, includes the trade licence, one UAE residence visa for the owner, immigration file and e-channel creation, pre-approval for activities, assistance with the medical test and Emirates ID, a shared workstation with unlimited access to the Compass Coworking Centre, a fully digital registration and renewal process, and payment by instalments. Up to 10 activities can be mixed, which matters for a trader who also wants to offer consultancy or e-commerce.

Before signing, ask for written answers on three points that packages rarely spell out:

• Which government fees are inside the price. "Assistance" with the medical and Emirates ID is not the same as paying for them.
• The visa ceiling. The package allows up to four visas in total. Beyond that, you need a larger facility, and the cost changes.
• The renewal basis. RAKEZ guarantees the same renewal price for this package. Check that the guarantee covers the add-ons you buy, not only the base licence.

A worked example: year one and year two for an Indian exporter

Take a hypothetical ₹40 Cr Surat textile exporter that wants a UAE trading entity to invoice Gulf and African buyers, with the founder holding one visa and a sales manager holding a second. Goods ship directly from India, so it needs a desk, not a warehouse.

Now change one input. If the exporter decides to hold stock in the UAE for faster delivery, a warehouse in an industrial zone adds a lease that brokers put at roughly AED 25,000 to 40,000 a year or more, and the zone choice starts to affect VAT on goods. At that point compare RAKEZ with Dubai options on logistics, not only on licence price. Our breakdowns of DMCC company setup cost and DAFZA company setup cost show the Dubai side of that comparison.

Which RAKEZ business park are you in, and why does it matter?

RAKEZ is not one location. It runs several business parks in Ras Al Khaimah, broadly split between business zones (Al Nakheel and Al Hamra Business Zones) used for desks, offices and service companies, industrial zones (Al Hamra, Al Ghail and Al Hulaila Industrial Zones) used for warehouses, factories and land, and an academic zone for education providers.

The split matters for VAT. Cabinet Decision No. 43 of 2019 added Al Hamra Industrial Zone, Al Ghail Industrial Zone and Al Hulaila Industrial Zone to the UAE's list of Designated Zones with effect from 4 July 2019. Designated Zone status can take certain supplies of goods within or between Designated Zones outside UAE VAT, subject to conditions. It does not help services: a consultancy in a business zone charges 5% VAT like any other registered UAE business. Two companies holding similar RAKEZ licences can therefore end up in different VAT positions because one leases a warehouse in Al Ghail and the other a desk in Al Nakheel. Always check the current Federal Tax Authority list for your exact premises.

Is a RAKEZ company tax free?

No. A RAKEZ company is within UAE corporate tax under Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022: 0% on taxable income up to AED 375,000 and 9% above that. It can pay 0% on qualifying income only if it meets every Qualifying Free Zone Person condition, including adequate substance in the zone, audited financial statements, arm's length pricing and keeping non-qualifying revenue within the de minimis limit of 5% of total revenue or AED 5 million, whichever is lower. Packages advertised as "guaranteed 0% tax" cannot guarantee this: the outcome depends on what you do, who you sell to and how you are run.

Small companies have a second option this year. Under Ministerial Decision No. 73 of 2023, a resident business with revenue of AED 3 million or less in the current and previous tax periods can elect Small Business Relief, but only for tax periods ending on or before 31 December 2026, and Qualifying Free Zone Persons cannot elect it. For a small RAKEZ company, choosing between the two regimes for its 2026 return is a real decision, and from 2027 the relief is not available unless it is extended.

If the people taking decisions sit in India, the company also risks being treated as resident in India under the place of effective management test, whatever the licence says.

How long does RAKEZ company formation take?

Consultants report about 5 to 10 working days to receive the licence (Avyanco, July 2026), with each visa adding one to two weeks, and the bank account commonly taking 4 to 8 weeks (UAE Roadmap, March 2026). A typical sequence:

1. Choose activities, package and business park.
2. Submit shareholder KYC: passports, proof of address and, for a corporate shareholder, its constitutional documents and board resolution.
3. Receive pre-approval and sign the incorporation documents digitally.
4. Pay 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.

Banks are usually the slowest step for Indian-owned companies, because they want to see who controls the group and where the money comes from. Our guide to opening a UAE corporate bank account for an Indian-owned company covers the document pack.

What Indian and UK owners must check first

For an Indian owner, the money that funds a RAKEZ company leaves India under the Overseas Investment framework and is reported through an authorised dealer bank. A resident individual can generally invest only in an operating foreign entity that is not in financial services and does not hold subsidiaries, under Schedule III of the Overseas Investment Rules 2022. If the RAKEZ company will own other companies, an Indian company or a non-resident usually needs to be the investor. See our explainers on ODI rules and funding an overseas company through ODI or LRS.

Indian services firms have one more trap. If the RAKEZ company invoices clients while the work is done by the team in India, both tax authorities will look at where the profit is earned, and the Indian company may need to charge the UAE company at arm's length. Our note on invoicing from a UAE company when your team is in India explains the risk.

For a UK owner, the questions are whether UK controlled foreign company rules could reattribute the RAKEZ profits and whether people in the UK are in practice running the business.

RAKEZ vs Dubai free zones: which fits?

For a wider view of low-cost licences, read our comparison of the cheapest free zone company setup in the UAE, and if most customers are onshore, start with Dubai free zone vs mainland.

When RAKEZ is the wrong choice

RAKEZ earns its place when cost, industrial space or a simple trading entity matter most. It is usually the wrong choice when:

• Your team will work every day from Dubai and needs an office there. Paying for a Dubai office on top of a RAK licence can cost more than a Dubai licence would have.
• Most revenue will come from UAE mainland customers. Qualifying income for corporate tax will be harder to show, and a mainland licence may be simpler.
• The company will be empty. A licence with no people in the UAE, invoicing for work done in India, creates tax risk in both countries in any zone.
• You need more than four visas on a desk package. The cost case changes once you need a larger facility.

RAKEZ setup checklist

• Written quotation showing package, visas, government fees and any agent fee separately.
• Business park confirmed, and its VAT Designated Zone status checked if you will hold goods.
• Activity list chosen with future services or e-commerce in mind.
• Funding route agreed with your Indian bank (ODI) or UK advisers before money moves.
• Bank shortlisted and KYC pack ready before the licence is issued.
• Corporate tax registration diarised, with a decision on QFZP status or Small Business Relief for 2026.
• Intercompany agreement and pricing in place before the first invoice.
• Decision-making genuinely in the UAE, with board minutes to show it.

How Greenwolf helps

Greenwolf Advisors works with founders and family businesses in 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 comparing RAKEZ with Dubai zones, speak to our team or see our corporate services.

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