| UAE government (u.ae) | Shareholder resolution to close. Cancel all employee and investor visas. Settle outstanding financial obligations. Deregister with the Federal Tax Authority if applicable. Submit the licence cancellation or liquidation application with the required clearances. After approval the authority issues a final de-registration certificate. Branches of free zone companies registered with the Ministry of Economy and Tourism also need closing. | No fees or processing times stated. | u.ae page (updated 27 Oct 2026) |
| RAKEZ | Cancel employee visas first through the portal; investor, partner and manager visas are cancelled during the licence cancellation. Return the facility to its original condition. Apply on the RAKEZ 360 portal and upload: a shareholders' resolution signed by all shareholders (attested where a company is a shareholder), the general manager's resignation or termination letter confirming dues are received, and termination of any local service agent agreement. RAKEZ inspects the facility, sends a quotation, and issues a Cancellation Certificate after payment. Land and warehouse licences need extra clearances such as utilities, customs NOC and civil defence; for warehouses contact your Key Account Manager. | AED 3,000 plus third-party fees if applicable (office and co-working). AED 3,000, or AED 4,500 for an industrial licence, plus external fees (land and warehouse). Processing 5 working days and a 14 day newspaper publication. | Office facilities, co-working, land and warehouse (pages show Copyright 2025, no update date) |
| Meydan Free Zone | In Meydan's order: record the shareholder decision in a resolution; cancel owner and employee visas and pay final staff dues; file final tax returns and deregister for Corporate Tax or VAT where registered; get a liquidation report from an accountant; close the bank account after liabilities clear; then submit the final cancellation request. Have ready the shareholder resolution, the owner's passport and Emirates ID, bank statements and latest accounting records, and signatory details if a representative acts. | No cancellation fee or processing time is given. Meydan says to treat only fees published by Meydan or a regulator as official. | Meydan cancellation article (updated 19 Oct 2026) |
| IFZA | Simply not renewing is not enough to close a business. Closure follows the Free Zone Regulation and other applicable law to cancel the licence and, for an FZCO, to formally liquidate it, and you pay all costs and fees due (clause 16). IFZA's article says all fines must be cleared before formal cancellation or liquidation. Visas issued under the licence can be cancelled (clause 20). | No cancellation fee or timeline on the pages we read. | IFZA Terms and Conditions, IFZA article (15 Jul 2026) |
| DMCC | Eight steps in DMCC's guideline: submit the application and first documents on the member portal; cancel active visas, PICs and TACs; upload the second set of documents; send the originals to DMCC; DMCC publishes the licence termination for 14 days; upload the liquidator's report; DMCC publishes the de-registration for 14 days; DMCC issues the termination and de-registration letters. The liquidator should be a reputable auditing or law firm in the UAE. Clearances cover telecom, utilities, the landlord and, for trading licences, a Dubai Customs NOC. | DMCC states 45 to 60 days once requirements are complete, including the 14 day publication twice. The guideline lists no fee amounts, only Immigration file-closing fees and fees for each lost document. | DMCC termination guideline 2.2.2.1 (no issue date shown) |
| SHAMS (Sharjah Media City) | The Liquidation Regulations set the routes. Shareholders' voluntary liquidation applies when the company has no liabilities or can pay all of them within six months: file the prescribed form, a shareholder resolution dated no more than 30 days earlier and a solvency statement signed by each director and manager. If it cannot pay within six months, creditors' voluntary liquidation applies, with a liquidator, a creditors' meeting and newspaper notices. The Authority may then issue a cancellation certificate. A licensee can also apply to terminate its licence (Companies and Licensing Regulations, Art. 13.1). | No fee amounts or processing times in the documents. | SHAMS Liquidation Regulations 2018, Licensing Regulations 2017 (undated copies) |