One of the main questions of a new business owner in the UAE - the choice of the right office premises. In this article we will explain you what you should primarily pay attention at in order to avoid potential difficulties.

The first thing that should be noted is that an office rent in the United Arab Emirates is available to onshore companies only. If you open an offshore company, the rent of a real office or storage facilities is not allowed in the UAE. When you register an offshore company, you get the address, provided by your registration agent.

What should you pay attention at when choosing an office for an onshore company in the UAE?

The requirements for an office or warehouse can greatly vary depending on the line of business of your company and a FTZ it is registered in. Some FTZs allow renting a virtual office; others require office premises to be real ones.

There are 4 important points that you should pay attention at when choosing business premises in the UAE:

• It is allowed to rent office premises only on the territory of the free zone, where your company is registered. Although the area of search for the office is limited, the variety of office premises is endless even within one FTZ.
• According to the regulations, no more than one company may be located in one office. That is why it is impossible to save money by renting a joint office with other entrepreneurs. However, there are exceptions: some of the FTZs allow renting office premises by several companies, on condition that the shareholders are the same in all companies and the office meets all the applicable requirements.
• You can rent only the premises possessing a commercial status (the authorizing documents must be provided). Moreover, if you need an office in the UAE, it is required to have the status of office premises, for a warehouse - the status of storage premises. A rather standard situation in other countries, namely when an office is located on the ground floor of a residential building, is impossible in the United Arab Emirates. Use of residential property for business purposes is strictly prohibited.
• The number of residence visas that can be issued to employees and shareholders depends on the floor area of office space. The approximate calculation formula is as follows: 1 visa = 8-10 sq. m. of office space

Summarizing, one can say that when choosing the place for registration in the UAE, not only the cost of starting a business, but also options for renting office premises should be taken into consideration. Spending less money on the registration of an onshore company, you can face such problems as high rental rates or complete absence of premises that meet your requirements.

That is why, when starting a business in the UAE, it is advisable to get the help of professionals who can assist you to choose a suitable place of registration subject to the nature of your business.

• Checked / Updated: 07.25.2022
• Published on: 10.16.2016
• Author: Elvira Savir