How to add activities in a trade license in Dubai

How to add activities in a trade license: the short answer

You add an activity by amending the trade license you already hold, provided the activity fits that license. On the Dubai mainland, Decree No. 13 of 2024 on the Unified Digital Platform for establishing companies in Dubai requires licensing and permit requests to go through Invest in Dubai, the platform DET operates and manages.

Invest in Dubai lists the service as a request to amend a trade license. Free zone companies apply to their own free zone authority instead, and each authority runs its own amendment service, portal and fee schedule.

In every case, the authority decides. What you control is the quality of the request: the right activity, any approvals it needs and documents that match each other.

When should you add a new activity?

Add the activity before you start selling the new product or service, because your license sets out what your company may do. Dubai Silicon Oasis, for example, states that a free zone company there may only conduct the activities stated in its license.

Your license should be valid when you apply. The Jebel Ali Free Zone (JAFZA) says every business needs an active license to make an amendment, while DMCC accepts amendment requests from companies with an expired license only with a justification letter, subject to its approval.

Timing can also change the cost. At the time of writing, JAFZA's guide charges an amendment made with the renewal at the license fee plus AED 500, but describes the charge for an amendment during the license term in two different ways, so ask JAFZA for the total before you apply. If your renewal is close, ask your authority whether to combine the two.

Does the activity fit your license type and legal form?

Check the new activity against your current license before anything else. The UAE government portal u.ae calls the activity the basis for selecting both the legal form and the license type, and lists six license types under the Ministry of Economy and Tourism (MoET): commercial, professional, industrial, tourism, agricultural and crafts.

An activity from a different license type may need a separate license rather than an amendment. DMCC states this outright: added activities must come from the same license type (trading, service or industrial), and otherwise the company applies for an additional license. Ask your own authority the same question early.

On the mainland, look the activity up in Invest in Dubai's Search Business Activities tool, which can filter for activities open to foreign ownership. That filter matters if your company is foreign owned, because u.ae lists activities that cannot be fully owned by foreigners, including banking, insurance and telecommunications. Our activity finder and business setup planner help you compare where an activity is allowed.

Check your trade name as well. u.ae says a trade name must be compatible with the type of activity and the legal status of the business, so confirm your current name still sits comfortably with the new line of work.

Which approvals from other authorities might you need?

Some activities need a sector regulator's approval before the licensing authority will add them. Free zones work the same way: DMCC asks companies with regulated activities for a no objection certificate (NOC) from the regulating authority, and JAFZA validates environment, health and safety (EHS) approvals itself but expects the business to obtain any third-party approval.

These approvals run on the other authority's timeline, so start them first. u.ae gives these examples of mainland activities and the bodies that approve them:

• Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA): telecommunications activities.
• Central Bank of the UAE: banks, money exchanges, insurance companies and insurance agents.
• Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA): financial consultation, share broking and investment advisory.
• General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA): air cargo and travel agencies with ticketing.
• Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE): manpower supply and recruitment.
• Ministry of Climate Change and Environment: agriculture, veterinary and environmental consultancy.

Does your MOA, premises or visa setup change?

If your company is a limited liability company (LLC), plan for an MOA amendment. Under Federal Decree-Law No. 32 of 2021 on Commercial Companies, an LLC's MOA states the objects the company was established for, so a new activity outside those objects normally means changing it.

The same law requires partners holding at least three quarters of the shares represented at the general assembly to approve an LLC's MOA amendment. Each amendment must be written in Arabic and attested, and it takes effect once registered in the commercial register. Our MOA drafting service prepares the amendment from what the partners agree.

Premises are the next question. u.ae says business premises must comply with the authorities' requirements, so an activity that needs a warehouse, shop or workshop may not fit an office. DMCC runs an Operational Fitness Certificate (OFC) step for locations that need one, while JAFZA says EHS approval is not required for office or workstation facilities.

Visas are a separate track. The amendment changes what your company may do, while work permits and residence visas for any new staff are separate applications to MOHRE and the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs Dubai (GDRFA Dubai). If the new activity means hiring, raise it before you apply.

Step by step: adding an activity on the Dubai mainland

On the mainland, the whole application runs online through Invest in Dubai, and the platform shows the fee before you pay. Treat any price quoted elsewhere as a guide only, because the amount depends on your own license.

The usual order looks like this:

• Find the activity in Invest in Dubai's Search Business Activities tool and note its exact name.
• Confirm it belongs to the same license type as your current activities and suits your legal form.
• Check whether it needs another authority's approval or is closed to full foreign ownership, and start any approval first.
• Prepare an MOA amendment with your partners if your company is an LLC, and arrange signing and attestation when the application calls for it.
• Sign in to Invest in Dubai and submit the request to amend your trade license, selecting the new activity.
• Upload the supporting documents the platform asks for, such as external approvals or the amended MOA.
• Pay the fee shown, answer any request for more information and keep a copy of the amended license once DET issues it.

Trade license amendment in free zones and Abu Dhabi

Free zone companies amend their license with their own free zone authority, not DET, and each authority sets its own portal, rules and fees. If you are still choosing a zone, our free zone company formation page compares the options.

In Abu Dhabi, the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED) offers its license services through TAMM, including amending an economic license and amending the trade name, address and activity.

Three Dubai free zone authorities show how differently the same request is handled, at the time of writing:

• DMCC: the License Amendment service on the DMCC Member Portal, listed at 2 business days, excluding any OFC processing time.
• JAFZA: License Activity Amendment – Approval on the Dubai Trade portal, listed at 3 working days, with AED 500 for each activity above a group's allowance.
• Dubai Development Authority (DDA): the Add Activity service on the AXS portal, for activities within a segment of the license, requested by the general manager or an appointed legal representative and listed at 2 working days.

After the amendment: update your FTA records

Once the amended license is issued, tell the Federal Tax Authority (FTA). Its Tax Records Amendment service lists a change in business activities and an amendment of the trade license among the changes to report, within 20 working days of the change.

The service is free and runs on EmaraTax, the FTA's online platform, which you access with UAE PASS. Late notification can lead to an administrative penalty, so attach the amended license and submit promptly. Our FTA services team can file the update for VAT and corporate tax.

It is also sensible to send the amended license to your bank and to any client or supplier that keeps your license on file.

Why do activity amendments stall?

Most delays come from mismatches and missing pieces rather than from the activity itself. Check for these before you submit:

• Choosing an activity from a different license type and expecting a simple amendment.
• Starting the new work before the amended license is issued.
• Applying without the regulator's approval or NOC the activity needs.
• Submitting an MOA amendment without the required partner majority, or with wording that does not match the application.
• Operating from premises that do not suit the new activity.
• Letting the license expire before applying.
• Leaving a draft unfinished: DMCC voids draft service requests after 60 calendar days without action.
• Forgetting the FTA update once the license changes.

How Global Sky PRO helps

Global Sky PRO checks the activity against your license type, legal form and trade name, identifies any external approval and types the MOA amendment where your company needs one. We then prepare and submit the application to DET through Invest in Dubai, or to your free zone authority, and follow it up until there is a decision.

DET, the free zone authorities and the sector regulators decide every application. Government fees are paid at cost and shown separately from our service fee, which we confirm in writing before work starts. If the activity needs a new company rather than an amendment, our mainland company formation service covers the full setup.