Why choose Meydan Free Zone?

The UAE’s free zones are one of the country’s greatest economic successes. Accounting for about 8% of all businesses in the country, ever more companies choose to set up in a free zone each year. According to the National Economic Register, UAE free zones grew by 4.4% last year, and now host an astonishing 60,000 companies.

If you’re thinking of setting up your company in a UAE free zone, there are over 40 of these business hubs to choose from. Each free zone is unique and aims to attract different kinds of businesses and entrepreneurs.

The Meydan Free Zone, established in 2009 in Dubai’s Meydan Hotel, has become a thriving place for entrepreneurs from the UAE and around the world to launch exciting companies. So, what draws entrepreneurs to the Meydan Free Zone, and why should you consider basing your business here?

9 reasons to choose the Meydan Free Zone

With its stunning glass and steel façade, and location right next to the Meydan race track and golf course in central Dubai, the Meydan Free Zone offers a stunning base to impress customers, build your company and enjoy your leisure time. But it offers a lot more than just attractive aesthetics! Let’s look at 6 of the most important business reasons to choose the Meydan Free Zone.

• You’ll be at the heart of Dubai

Located a short 15 minutes drive from the Dubai International Airport and 12 minutes from Dubai’s buzzing downtown, Meydan Free Zone is centrally located for ease of access. You’re never far from the hustle and bustle of the city centre at Meydan Free Zone. This makes it incredibly easy for you to travel to client meetings, or for clients and employees to travel to your offices for work, meetings and events.

The free zone itself resides within the iconic and beautiful Meydan Hotel, overlooking Meydan Golf Course and the horse racing track. This makes for an impressive location to bring your guests, and you will benefit from wonderful views and access to all the hotel’s amenities (restaurants and entertainment) for those deal-clinching meetings.

And it’s not just about the UAE. From the Dubai International Airport, there are 2.5 billion people living within a four-hour flight, and 5 billion within an eight-hour flight or less. Dubai offers unparalleled access to the world’s largest emerging growth markets, including GCC countries, India, Pakistan, the Middle East, Central Asia, Africa and Europe.

• The Meydan Free Zone is entrepreneur ready

Meydan Free Zone’s trade-friendly environment is designed to be as attractive as possible for the budding entrepreneur. You will benefit from:

• 100% foreign ownership
• Tax-free policies
• Low-cost setup and renewal structures
• 1,500 business activities to choose from
• Support desk
• Modern communications infrastructure
• No currency restrictions

For new businesses looking to establish or expand, Meydan Free Zone offers efficient, seamless and cost effective startup options.

All businesses operate under a Limited Liability Company license issued by the free zone (LLC- FZ ).

Meydan Free Zone provides you with a vibrant community where you can work, live and play. You will have endless opportunities to network with other businesses and innovative entrepreneurs, plus make partnerships with other companies operating in your field.

• Join a vibrant, world-class community

Setting up your company in the Meydan Free Zone provides you with access to a unique community that inspires growth through innovation and collaboration. We organise and run regular networking events where you can meet other companies working at the free zone – and from outside. These business networking events facilitate meetings with new customers, decision makers and potential partners, and are very popular with our members.

Our location in the centre of Dubai gives you direct access to everything you need to start and grow your business. The city is home to countless startups, SME’s and multinationals from a wide range of industries and sectors. There is a dynamic mix of Private and Government companies working in Dubai and at Meydan which you can connect with.

• We are empowering businesses

Our mission is: To make entrepreneurship accessible and inspire business growth. To foster a vibrant and connected ecosystem for entrepreneurs and innovators to create, grow and lead.

Meydan Free Zone’s outlook is all about building a future-forward strategy. The free zone is designed to empower any company operating here and give them all the tools they need to be successful. And this is why we offer a wide range of options when it comes to incorporating your business.

We also provide:

• World class facilities
• Freedom to choose from a wide range of licenses
• Immigration services
• Business support services
• A wide choice of workspaces
• Premium address
• Bank account opening services

These services are all intended to empower your business and make setting up and running your company as smooth as possible.

• A digital platform to get up and running fast

Meydan Free Zone supports entrepreneurs with a purpose build digital platform where you can perform all transactions with ease and speed. As part of our digital transformation, our platform is designed to make the management of all the ‘paperwork’ side of your business as smooth as possible.

When you set up in the Meydan Free Zone, you’ll have access to our innovative customer platform. This is designed for ease of operations and to simplify the process of setting up your business. The free zone brings companies together in an integrated environment that is both transparent and secure. You can choose from a wide range of licenses, immigration services, business support services, and choice of workspaces to streamline the workflow seamlessly from right within the platform – and can manage all your company’s records and business documents in a single place.

• A paperless experience

No modern entrepreneur wants to spend hours filling in paper forms and keeping them in a filing cabinet. And that’s why we offer you a totally paperless experience when setting up and running your business in the Meydan Free Zone.

Our smart and intuitive license application kit means you will work with easy-to-use forms that significantly reduce time and effort during the application process. The platform brings together all aspects of compliance and regulation for your businesses (such as UBO, ESR, AML) in a single interface.

We’ve also developed a digital payment platform which provides an easy payment option. That means you can instantly access and pay for services at the click of a button – no complex and time-consuming bank transfers! Our digital platform lets you do things like:

• Complete all processes relating to establishing a new company
• Licensing applications and approval
• License renewal
• Apply for and store permits
• …and much more!

Meydan Free Zone simplifies the entire business setup processes for companies. We aim to deliver accessibility through technology innovation, and to create a paperless experience all delivered through our purpose-built platform. Our customers really value the ease of use of this technology, and freedom from reliance on endless paper forms, stamps and filing.

• Start taking and making payments – fast

When you start your business at Meydan Free Zone, you get access to Meydan Pay — the first and only solution that provides our new businesses with an instant and guaranteed IBAN.

So, you can start transacting in the UAE without waiting for lengthy due diligence and account opening procedures. Meydan Pay is open to all nationalities, suitable for both residents and foreigners, and it is fully digital.

To access Meydan Pay, all you need to do is start your business at Meydan Free Zone, complete the sign-up procedure and receive your instant IBAN.

• Get everything you need for eCommerce

Our businesses get exclusive access to Meydan Commerce, our tailor-made solution for eCommerce companies.

Meydan Commerce gives you guaranteed product placement on Amazon, Noon and other major eCommerce platforms of your choice. From just AED 6,000, we’ll set up your eCommerce stores, optimise your product listings, and help manage order fulfilment, vendor management and delivery.

Signing up for Meydan Commerce is easy. Once you have received your Meydan Free Zone business license, complete the short online application, and we’ll do the rest – giving you access to your eCommerce portal in no time.

• Pay your way – with affordable and flexible plans

Meydan Free Zone offers a wide range of license packages built to meet the needs of businesses of all types and sizes.

You can get a trade license here for just AED 12,500 that will allow you to operate within three business activities. For AED 14,350, this package also includes one visa allocation. If you need greater scope, our AED 23,600 package includes allocation for up to six visas, with more available on request.

Thanks to our close links with some of the biggest banks in the region, all of our license packages are available on 0% Easy Payment Plans, helping you reduce initial costs.

Set up your business in the Meydan Free Zone

The Meydan Free Zone offers a fantastic base for your entrepreneurial ambitions. With a great mixture of quality office space, location, smooth business setup and an environment that encourages success, it brings together everything you need to start your company in Dubai.

It is very straightforward to get started in the Meydan Free Zone. The location offers a smooth registration process, tailored packages and assistance on hand to ensure all your specific business needs are met.

If you’re ready to set up your Dubai business, choose the Meydan Free Zone.

To find out more, visit our website, or get in touch with us via setup@meydanfz.ae or 800FZ1.

If you prefer, you can visit us at Meydan Free Zone Business Centre, Mezzanine Floor, Meydan Hotel, Meydan Rd, Nad Al Sheba 1, Dubai, UAE.

© Press Release 2022