UAE branch office setup for a foreign company

A UAE branch office lets a foreign or existing UAE company operate in the Emirates under its own name, as an extension of the parent rather than a separate legal entity. It carries the parent name and activities, and it suits a company that wants a UAE presence without forming and capitalising a wholly new subsidiary.

What is a branch office?

A branch office is a legal extension of a parent company, operating under the same name and conducting activities within the scope the parent authorises and the UAE permits, rather than being a separate company with its own shareholders. A foreign company can open a UAE branch, and a UAE free zone company can open a mainland branch. Because it is the parent operating here, the parent stands behind the branch, which is the structural difference from a subsidiary.

Who should set up a branch rather than a subsidiary?

A branch suits an established company that wants to extend its own brand and operations into the UAE, keep a single legal identity, and avoid forming and funding a new company. A subsidiary suits where you want a separate legal entity with limited liability and its own shareholders. The choice turns on liability, branding and how you want the UAE operation to sit relative to the parent, which we work through against your plans.

What does setting up a branch involve?

A branch registration requires the parent company documents, usually attested, a board resolution approving the branch, and the appointment of a manager, alongside the licence application to the relevant authority, mainland or free zone. The attestation of the parent documents is the step most likely to add time, so it is started early. We handle the parent documentation, the approvals and the licence so the branch is established without the paperwork stalling it.

What can a UAE branch do?

A branch can generally carry on the activities the parent authorises and the UAE licence covers, invoice clients, and sponsor visas, within the scope of its licence. What it cannot do is operate outside the activities permitted or act as a legally separate entity from its parent. We confirm the activity scope the branch needs matches both the parent business and what the UAE authority will license, so there is no gap between what you plan and what the branch may lawfully do.

What is the next step?

Tell us about the parent company and what the branch will do and we will handle the documents and the registration. See our branch office setup and holding company services, and the UAE Government business guide. Every number here is checked against its source, such as the UAE Government free zones overview, before you rely on it, because published fees change.