Insights Business Setup
List of Free Zones in the UAE: All 40+ Zones Mapped by Emirate
Full list of free zones in the UAE for 2026 — 40+ zones across Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, RAK, UAQ and Fujairah, with what each is built for.
Key takeaways
- 40+ free zones operate across the UAE in 2026 — each with its own regulator, licence types and published tariff.
- Dubai hosts the most — DMCC, JAFZA, DAFZA, Dubai South, IFZA, Meydan, DIFC and the TECOM cluster among 20+.
- Abu Dhabi consolidates — KEZAD Group absorbed ICAD and the industrial zones; ADGM, Masdar and twofour54 cover finance, cleantech and media.
- Northern emirates compete on price — Ajman, UAQ, RAK and Fujairah zones publish some of the lowest package rates in the country.
- Two financial free zones — DIFC and ADGM — run their own courts and common-law frameworks, unlike commercial free zones.
- Corporate tax applies everywhere — the 0% free zone rate is conditional QFZP treatment, not an automatic exemption in any zone.
The UAE runs more than 40 free zones across its seven emirates — the largest concentration of free zone jurisdictions anywhere in the world. Each has its own licensing authority, its own activity list, its own published tariff and its own personality: JAFZA is a port, DIFC is a courtroom, Masdar is a cleantech campus, and Ajman Free Zone is a price list. This page, updated July 2026, is the full list of free zones in the UAE organised by emirate, with a one-line verdict on what each zone is actually built for and links to our detailed guides where founders most often need the depth. If you want the shortlist argued out against your own activity, customers and budget, our business setup advisory in Dubai team does exactly that before any licence application.
What a UAE free zone actually is
A free zone is a defined economic area with its own company registrar and licensing authority, created to attract foreign investment with a standard bundle: 100% foreign ownership, full repatriation of capital and profits, customs duty suspension on goods held inside the zone, and streamlined visas tied to the zone’s facilities. The model started with Jebel Ali Free Zone in 1985 and multiplied until nearly every emirate had a portfolio of zones aimed at different industries.
Two things the brochures blur. First, a free zone licence restricts direct mainland trading — goods sold onshore clear customs and typically flow through a distributor or branch. Second, the famous “0% tax” is now conditional: since Federal Decree-Law 47 of 2022, free zone companies pay 9% corporate tax above AED 375,000 unless they genuinely hold Qualifying Free Zone Person status, with real substance and audited accounts. Both points shape which zone — or whether a mainland licence — fits, and our Dubai free zone company formation guide unpacks the decision in full.
40+
Active free zones across the seven emirates in 2026
Dubai free zones list
Dubai operates over 20 free zones — the deepest bench in the country. The list of free zones in Dubai that founders actually shortlist:
| Zone | Built for | Our guide |
|---|---|---|
| DMCC (Dubai Multi Commodities Centre) | Commodities, trading HQs, crypto — the prestige generalist | DMCC guide |
| JAFZA (Jebel Ali Free Zone) | Port-side logistics, industrial, regional distribution | JAFZA guide |
| DAFZA (Dubai Airport Free Zone) | Air-cargo trading, aviation, electronics | DAFZA guide |
| Dubai South (incl. Dubai Logistics City, EZDubai) | Logistics, e-commerce fulfilment, aviation at DWC | Dubai South guide |
| IFZA (International Free Zone Authority) | Budget-tier services and consulting licences | IFZA guide |
| Meydan Free Zone | Digital-first solo founders and SMEs | Meydan guide |
| DIFC (Dubai International Financial Centre) | Banks, funds, fintech — common-law financial zone | DIFC formation guide |
| DUCAMZ | Used-car re-export trade | DUCAMZ guide |
The TECOM Group cluster licenses most of Dubai’s knowledge economy: Dubai Internet City (tech), Dubai Media City (media and agencies), Dubai Studio City, Dubai Production City, Dubai Knowledge Park and Dubai International Academic City (education), Dubai Science Park and Dubai Design District (d3). Beyond TECOM sit Dubai Silicon Oasis — the emirate’s original smart zone for tech and electronics, now under the Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority alongside DAFZA and Dubai CommerCity (e-commerce) — plus Dubai World Trade Centre free zone (events and crypto under VARA’s shadow), Dubai Healthcare City, Dubai Maritime City, the DMCA-run maritime cluster, Gold and Diamond Park, and Dubai Outsource City. What each actually charges is a moving target — our free zone licence cost in Dubai breakdown tracks the published rates zone by zone.
Abu Dhabi free zones list
Abu Dhabi consolidated aggressively in 2022, folding ZonesCorp’s industrial estates — including the Industrial City of Abu Dhabi (ICAD) — into KEZAD Group, which now runs the largest integrated economic zone platform in the region around Khalifa Port. The working list:
- KEZAD — industrial, manufacturing and logistics at scale; our KEZAD guide covers packages and port logic.
- ICAD I–V — the legacy industrial areas in Mussafah, now KEZAD communities for heavy manufacturing.
- ADGM (Abu Dhabi Global Market) — the common-law financial free zone on Al Maryah Island; see the ADGM formation guide.
- Masdar City Free Zone — cleantech, energy, mobility and AI companies in the low-carbon campus.
- twofour54 / Yas Creative Hub — media, gaming and production.
- Abu Dhabi Airport Free Zone (ADAFZ) — air-cargo and aviation-linked business.
How the nine zones compare — and when the AD DED mainland route beats all of them — is the subject of our dedicated Abu Dhabi free zones comparison and the wider business setup Abu Dhabi guide.
Sharjah free zones list
Sharjah runs six zones with two clear champions on volume. SAIF Zone (Sharjah Airport International Free Zone) handles trading and light industrial by the airport; Hamriyah Free Zone is the port-side industrial heavyweight — packages from AED 5,500 per its published tariff, covered in our Hamriyah setup guide. SHAMS (Sharjah Media City) sells the emirate’s cheapest service licences from AED 5,750, Sharjah Publishing City claims the publishing niche, SRTIP (Sharjah Research, Technology and Innovation Park) anchors R&D, and Sharjah Healthcare City licenses medical operators. The full comparison — including when Sharjah mainland under SEDD wins — is in our Sharjah free zones list and business setup Sharjah guide.
Northern emirates: Ajman, UAQ, RAK and Fujairah
The northern emirates compete on one axis: price — and they are genuinely the cheapest licences in the country.
| Emirate | Zones | Positioning |
|---|---|---|
| Ajman | Ajman Free Zone, Ajman Media City | Packages from AED 5,555; budget trading and services — Ajman Free Zone guide, plus the Ajman mainland and offshore routes |
| Umm Al Quwain | UAQ Free Trade Zone | Among the lowest published rates in the UAE — UAQ setup guide |
| Ras Al Khaimah | RAKEZ, RAK ICC (offshore), RAK DAO (digital assets) | RAKEZ from AED 5,499 with real industrial depth — RAKEZ guide and RAK trade licence costs |
| Fujairah | Fujairah Free Zone, Creative City Fujairah | East-coast port access and low-cost media/service licences — Fujairah free zone guide |
A note on names you may meet in the wild: IFZA began life in Fujairah before relocating its operations to Dubai, RAK’s former twin authorities (RAK FTZ and RAKIA) merged into RAKEZ in 2017, and offshore registries — JAFZA Offshore, RAK ICC, Ajman Offshore — are company registrars rather than free zones proper; they issue non-resident holding entities with no visas or premises, a structure we compare in the offshore company formation guide.
How to actually choose from 40+ zones
Nobody needs to compare forty zones. Activity, customers and visa count eliminate thirty-five of them in ten minutes — the real decision is always between the last three.
The filter that works, in order:
- Activity first. Zones publish activity lists; regulated, industrial and food activities immediately narrow the field. A general trading company shops a different shortlist than a consultancy — see the general trading licence routes.
- Customer geography. Mostly mainland UAE customers? Weigh a mainland licence or dual-licence zone before any pure free zone. Export and international clients? The free zone restriction barely bites.
- Visa arithmetic. Entry packages carry 0–6 visas; quotas scale with facility size. Price the package that carries your real headcount, not the teaser tier.
- Substance and tax. Chasing QFZP 0% treatment demands premises, people and audited accounts in the zone — test your model against the QFZP checklist before letting tax drive the choice.
- Three-year cost. Renewals, visa renewals and facility upgrades decide the true number. Our business setup cost calculator models the all-in figure across zones side by side.
How Velmont Crest helps
Velmont Crest is an accounting and advisory firm, not a licence reseller — no zone pays us commission, which is precisely why our shortlists look different from a setup agent’s. We compare the zones on this list against your activity wording, customer geography, visa plan and tax position, model the three-year cost honestly, and then run the finance layer after incorporation: bookkeeping, VAT registration, corporate tax registration and the audit file a QFZP claim requires. The forty-zone list above is the map; talk to us when you need someone to argue the route.
Frequently asked questions
- How many free zones are there in the UAE?
- More than 40 active free zones operate across the seven emirates in 2026, with Dubai hosting over 20, Abu Dhabi nine under a handful of authorities, Sharjah six, and the northern emirates — Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah — at least one major zone each. The count moves as authorities merge (Abu Dhabi consolidated its industrial zones under KEZAD Group in 2022) and new clusters launch.
- What is the difference between a free zone and mainland company in the UAE?
- A mainland licence, issued by an emirate's Department of Economic Development, lets you trade anywhere in the UAE without restriction. A free zone licence is issued by the zone's own authority, gives 100% foreign ownership and simplified setup, but limits direct onshore trading — selling into the mainland typically flows through a distributor, a branch or specific dual-licence arrangements. Since mainland ownership rules were liberalised in 2021, the choice turns mostly on activity, customers and cost.
- Which is the cheapest free zone in the UAE?
- The northern emirates consistently publish the lowest rates: Ajman Free Zone packages from AED 5,555, RAKEZ from AED 5,499, Hamriyah from AED 5,500 and SHAMS from AED 5,750, per their published tariffs. Umm Al Quwain's UAQ FTZ competes in the same bracket. Dubai's budget tier — IFZA from AED 12,900 and Meydan from AED 12,500 — costs roughly double. Always compare the three-year total with visas, not the year-one headline.
- Do all UAE free zones offer 100% foreign ownership?
- Yes. Full foreign ownership without a local partner has been the defining feature of the free zone model since JAFZA opened in 1985. Free zone companies also enjoy full repatriation of capital and profits and customs duty suspension on goods that stay within the zone. Since 2021 most mainland activities also allow 100% foreign ownership, which removed a key free zone advantage and shifted the comparison to cost, activity scope and regulation.
- Do free zone companies pay UAE corporate tax?
- The 9% corporate tax regime applies to free zone companies like everyone else. The much-quoted 0% rate is conditional Qualifying Free Zone Person treatment under Federal Decree-Law 47 of 2022 — it requires qualifying activities, real substance in the zone, audited financial statements and de minimis limits on non-qualifying income. No zone on this list confers automatic exemption, whatever the marketing says.
- What are the financial free zones DIFC and ADGM?
- Dubai International Financial Centre and Abu Dhabi Global Market are the UAE's two financial free zones — a separate constitutional category with their own common-law legal systems, independent courts and financial regulators (DFSA and FSRA). They host banks, funds, fintechs and holding structures rather than trading warehouses, and their setup costs and compliance obligations sit well above commercial free zones.
- Can a free zone company do business in mainland Dubai?
- Not directly, as a rule. A free zone entity invoices mainland customers through a locally licensed distributor, opens a mainland branch, or uses a dual-licence scheme where its zone offers one — some authorities, like RAKEZ, even issue non-freezone licences alongside. Service businesses have more practical flexibility than goods traders, for whom customs duty applies the moment products leave the zone for the mainland.
Filed under: Free Zone, UAE Free Zones, Business Setup, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Northern Emirates
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