Dubai CommerCity company setup, costs and visas
A dedicated e-commerce zone pairing licences with fulfilment infrastructure next to the airport. Priced for operators with real logistics; dropshippers can trade on a cheaper Meydan licence.
Dubai CommerCity in numbers
Estimate as of 27 Jul 2026. The zone publishes no tariff. This figure is our market estimate; the zone confirms the fee in writing when you apply.
Who Dubai CommerCity is built for
Dubai CommerCity is the region’s first free zone built purely around e-commerce, sitting in Umm Ramool a few minutes from Dubai International Airport (DXB). It fits one profile well: an online retailer or marketplace seller that holds stock, ships parcels and wants fulfilment, customs and the licence under one roof. Brands with real order volume (returns-heavy fashion, beauty or electronics) extract the most from the integrated Logistics Cluster next to the runway.
It does not fit an asset-light dropshipper or a founder who just needs a trade licence and a bank account. For that profile the AED 24,000 entry point is money spent on infrastructure you will never touch, and a plainer free-zone licence does the same job for less.
What the AED 24,000 licence does and does not cover
The headline from AED 24,000 buys the e-commerce licence itself. Unlike a virtual-desk zone, CommerCity requires physical space (an office in the Business Cluster or a fulfilment unit in the Logistics Cluster) so your real first-year cost is licence plus lease plus establishment card plus visas. Warehousing, cold storage and last-mile handling are separate operational lines on top of the licence fee.
Budget for all of that before you compare the listed price against a flexi‑desk zone; the two are not the same product. Model licence, office and visas together with our setup-cost calculator rather than reading the from-price alone.
Office, fulfilment and visas in Dubai CommerCity
CommerCity is laid out as three clusters: business (offices), logistics (warehousing and fulfilment) and social (retail and amenities). Because office space is mandatory, visa capacity here follows the area you lease rather than a fixed cap: the zone publishes no rigid per-licence quota, so headcount scales with the size of unit you take.
That suits a growing operation, but visas are not “free”: each one still carries the usual establishment-card, medical and Emirates ID steps. See our visas guide for the per-person cost stack. And remember the boundary: a free-zone licence covers cross-border and online sales, not a shop counter inside Dubai; local in-store retail needs a separate mainland route or a distributor.
CommerCity vs the obvious alternatives
| Zone | Niche | Space | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meydan | Low-cost e-commerce licence | Flexi‑desk included | Asset-light / dropship |
| Dubai CommerCity | Fulfilment near DXB | Physical office/unit | Stock-holding retailers |
| JAFZA / Dubai South | Port/airport-scale logistics | Warehouse | Large distribution |
For pure trade licensing with no warehouse, Meydan or another flexi‑desk zone wins on cost. For container-scale distribution, JAFZA or Dubai South carry more industrial weight. CommerCity fits the middle: a genuine online retailer that wants fulfilment and licence integrated right by the airport.
How to set up a company in Dubai CommerCity
Activities and trade name
Choose the licensed activities and reserve a trade name. The activities decide which approvals you need, how banks read your file and whether your income can qualify for the 0% QFZP rate.
Documents and KYC
Passports, application forms and a clear account of where the money comes from. Free zone companies can be 100% foreign-owned, so no local sponsor is needed.
Licence and establishment card
The zone issues the licence (typically 10–14 business days). The immigration establishment card comes next and opens visa processing.
Visas and bank account
Each visa holder needs an entry permit, a medical test and an Emirates ID. The corporate bank account is opened in parallel and is usually the slowest step.
Dubai CommerCity: questions founders ask
Is Dubai CommerCity worth it for a dropshipper?
What does the AED 24,000 CommerCity licence include?
How many visas can I get with a CommerCity licence?
Can I sell to customers inside the UAE from CommerCity?
Where does the AED 24,000 figure come from?
Can this company do business on the UAE mainland?
Does 0% corporate tax apply here?
This is general information on UAE rules. It is not legal, tax or immigration advice for your situation. Rules and government fees change; we confirm the position for your facts in writing before you act.