United Arab Emirates: Corporate and Company Law

The DIFC Prescribed Company regime has undergone its most significant transformation since inception, removing restrictive eligibility criteria and replacing them with a governance-focused framework. These changes open new opportunities for investors, family offices, and multinational groups to access cost-effective holding vehicle structures in the DIFC, while introducing enhanced oversight requirements through mandatory corporate service provider appointments for non-exempt entities.

Directors and managers in the UAE may face personal liability for fraud, abuse of authority, conflicts of interest, and breaches of legal duties. Understanding when corporate protection ends and personal responsibility begins is essential for anyone managing a company in the Emirates.

When a business partner vanishes, a borrower goes silent or an investor suspects funds might have been diverted, the first question is often simple: What happened to the assets?

The Dubai International Financial Centre has introduced a Variable Capital Company regime that combines institutional governance with flexible capital management. This comprehensive legal analysis examines how the DIFC VCC operates through segregated cells, variable share capital, and ring-fenced liability structures, offering sophisticated investors a consolidated platform for multi-strategy wealth planning within a respected common law jurisdiction.

A WPS block in the UAE can restrict a company’s ability to process work permits, visas and other MoHRE services. These blocks usually arise when salary payments are delayed, processed outside approved WPS channels or incorrectly reported, even where employees have already been paid.

The concept of dual licensing has emerged as a transformative development in the UAE’s business ecosystem, giving companies the strategic flexibility to operate across both free zones and the mainland under a more integrated structure.

There has been a noticeable uptick in sophisticated scam arrangements targeting corporates in the energy, infrastructure and broader commercial sectors, particularly in relation to purported financing...

The Federal Tax Authority (“FTA”) has issued Public Clarification CTP010, providing guidance on the meaning of “director” and “officer” for the purposes of the UAE Corporate Tax regime.

For tech startups in the UAE, protecting new ideas is not only the law; it’s also good business. Your intellectual property can be your most valuable asset, whether you are making software, hardware, AI tools, or fintech solutions.