Dubai Airport Freezone (commonly abbreviated as DAFZ) is a

free economic zone Free economic zones (FEZ), free economic territories (FETs) or free zones (FZ) are a class of special economic zone (SEZ) designated by the trade and commerce administrations of various countries. The term is used to designate areas in which co ...

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, wikt:دبي, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the List of cities in the United Arab Emirates#Major cities, most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 ...

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (Middle East, The Middle East). It is ...

, providing company formation and business setup services in Dubai. DAFZ enables the following types of company formations:  * Free Zone Company (FZCO), which is a

limited liability company A limited liability company (LLC for short) is the US-specific form of a private limited company. It is a business structure that can combine the pass-through taxation of a partnership or sole proprietorship with the limited liability ...

that can operate within the free zone, or a branch of an existing company. It is in the free zone area of the region, adjacent to the

Dubai International Airport Dubai International Airport ( ar, مطار دبي الدولي) is the primary international airport serving Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and is the world's busiest airport by international passenger traffic. It is also the nineteenth-busies ...

, UAE. * Branch of an existing foreign company i
Dubai Airport Freezone
with no unique requirements for a share capital. * Subsidiary company – A foreign company that can own 100% shares of a Dubai Free zone company. DAFZ is home to more than 2,000 registered businesses from over 20+ sectors and various industries with 20,000+ professionals.

History

DAFZ was established in 1996. It came into being as a part of the Dubai Government's strategic plan to make Dubai an investment-driven economy. Today, it is one of the fastest-growing and pioneering free zones in the region, contributing to 4.7 percent of Dubai's GDP (

gross domestic product Gross domestic product (GDP) is a monetary measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjective nature this measure is of ...

). It allows international investors a completely duty-free business setup and execution of services, along with complete foreign ownership and no currency restrictions. Spanning over an area of 696,000 square meters, DAFZ includes 18 buildings and 256

warehouses A warehouse is a building for storing goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial parks on the outskirts of cities, town ...

. DAFZ is now home to more than 2000 registered businesses from over 20+ sectors and various industries with 20,000+ professionals, who benefit from a business-focused regulatory and tax environment that offers total ownership, full repatriation of earnings and a range of world-class facilities.,  IT and

telecommunications Telecommunication is the transmission of information by various types of technologies over wire, radio, optical, or other electromagnetic systems. It has its origin in the desire of humans for communication over a distance greater than that ...

pharmaceutical A medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy ( pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the medical field and ...

and

cosmetics Cosmetics are constituted mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either natural sources, or synthetically created ones. Cosmetics have various purposes. Those designed for personal care and skin care can be used to cleanse or protec ...

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...

 and building materials,

aerospace Aerospace is a term used to collectively refer to the atmosphere and outer space. Aerospace activity is very diverse, with a multitude of commercial, industrial and military applications. Aerospace engineering consists of aeronautics and ast ...

 and

aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' includes airplane, fixed-wing and helicopter, rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as aerostat, lighter- ...

logistics Logistics is generally the detailed organization and implementation of a complex operation. In a general business sense, logistics manages the flow of goods between the point of origin and the point of consumption to meet the requirements of ...

 and freight, food and beverage, jewelry, precious stones and luxury items.

Free Zone business licensing

The following

licensing A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...

options for company incorporation are offered to the companies willing to set up their businesses at DAFZ: * Trade License:  It allows the company to conduct trading activities like Import, export, distribution, and storage of products. * Service License: A license tailor-made for service catered businesses. Example: IT Services. * Industrial License: For carrying out light manufacturing, industrial activities, packaging, and assembling. * E-Commerce  License: For conducting trade of goods and services over the internet. * General Trading License: For trading in general items including import, export, re-export, storage, and distribution. * Dual License with the Department of Economic Development  (DED): This allows DAFZ companies to apply for a DED license without a physical office space in the mainland, operating outside of DAFZ’s premises.

Services

DAFZ provides numerous services such as:  '
Business Setup Services
*

Leasing A lease is a contractual arrangement calling for the user (referred to as the ''lessee'') to pay the owner (referred to as the ''lessor'') for the use of an asset. Property, buildings and vehicles are common assets that are leased. Industrial ...

and Licensing
Visa Services
* Dedicated�
Government Service Centers
Business Operational Services: * Interiors and Facility Management Services. * Information & Communication Technology. * Security Services. * Various facilities (

food court A food court (in Asia-Pacific also called food hall or hawker centre) is generally an indoor plaza or common area within a facility that is contiguous with the counters of multiple food vendors and provides a common area for self-serve dinner. ...

, retail area,

travel agencies A travel agency is a private retailer or public service that provides travel and tourism-related services to the general public on behalf of accommodation or travel suppliers to offer different kinds of travelling packages for each destinatio ...

and more). * Business setup services.

Initiatives

* Dubai Blink: Contributing to Dubai 10X Initiative, DAFZ launched its Dubai Blink Project, which focuses on being the world's first e-commerce platform for free zone companies by utilizing

artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is intelligence—perceiving, synthesizing, and inferring information—demonstrated by machines, as opposed to intelligence displayed by animals and humans. Example tasks in which this is done include speech ...

blockchain technology A blockchain is a type of distributed ledger technology (DLT) that consists of growing lists of records, called ''blocks'', that are securely linked together using cryptography. Each block contains a cryptographic hash of the previous block, a ...

and

virtual business A virtual business (short: virtubis) employs electronic means to transact business as opposed to a traditional brick and mortar business that relies on face-to-face transactions with physical documents and physical currency or credit. History Ama ...

 licenses. * FZ Exchange: Free Zone Exchange (FZ Exchange) initiative enables free zone companies to become public

shareholding A shareholder (in the United States often referred to as stockholder) of a corporation is an individual or legal entity (such as another corporation, a body politic, a trust or partnership) that is registered by the corporation as the legal o ...

 companies, listing themselves in the financial market to increase their capital, enhancing their activities’ presence, and creating a stable environment for foreign investments in Dubai and the UAE. * Internal Launchpad Program:  Includes an electronic platform for suggestions, a

business incubator Business incubator is an organization that helps startup companies and individual entrepreneurs to develop their businesses by providing a fullscale range of services starting with management training and office space and ending with venture c ...

 and a contribution platform of skills and expertise aimed at developing an "innovative environment". * The Global Gateway to Halal Industry: A Guidebook titled ‘Dubai: The Global Gateway to Halal Industries’ was launched at an exhibition in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

to encourage international investors to invest in the biggest

halal food Islamic dietary laws are dietary laws that Muslims follow. Islamic jurisprudence specifies which foods are '' '' (, "lawful") and which are '' '' (, "unlawful"). The dietary laws are found in the Quran, the holy book of Islam, as well as in coll ...

 & Beverage market in the UAE. A step-by-step guide on trading and investing in the halal industry of the UAE, the guidebook was published in both Portuguese and Spanish languages. * Developing Innovation Systems for Government Services:  Promoting

innovation Innovation is the practical implementation of ideas that result in the introduction of new goods or services or improvement in offering goods or services. ISO TC 279 in the standard ISO 56000:2020 defines innovation as "a new or changed enti ...

and cooperation between free zones and government sectors to ease foreign investments in Dubai. * Digital Intelligence Initiative:  Focusing on establishing an integrated and sustainable digital system, based on three main axis: the operational model of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) management, modernization of the Information Technology (IT) platforms, and ICT services. * Smart Office Initiative:  An interactive platform for international companies to explore the local and regional markets and study available investment opportunities enabled by Dubai's leading position in the global economy.

Accomplishments

* Awarded the 'Best Technology Award' for its Smart E-Gate Pass program during the 30th session of Ideas UK. * Earned a Platinum Certification from Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design (LEED) through its efforts in sustainability in the 'Operations Maintenance of Existing Buildings' at its main building. * Earned a golden certification from the Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design (LEED) for the Project of Developing the Building 8W within 'DAFZA Square'. * Presented with the 'Emirates Energy Award' in the Golden Category from the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy. * Granted, 'The Best Smart Initiative Award 2016' during the 'Big 5' awarding ceremony. * DAFZ and DAFZ Industrial Park were among the 20 free zones selected by the Cabinet Decision No. (59) of 2017, to be considered as designated zones. * During the World Government Summit 2018, His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, and Chairman of the Executive Council announced the approved projects, which include
DAFZ's Dubai Blink
and the Free Zone Exchange Projects to be implemented over 24 months. * Earned a platinum certification from Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design (LEED) in the operations of existing buildings.

External links

References

{{Authority control Special economic zones Transport in Dubai