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Sub-zone · Dubai South · Dubai

Dubai South Business Park

Dubai South Business Park

Dubai South · Est. 2015 · Dubai Aviation City Corporation (DACC)

AED 11,000 – AED 40,950/ yr
high confidenceVerified 18 Jul 2026official ↗
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Best for

Trading, e-commerce and professional-services SMEs and startups wanting the cheapest credible Dubai free zone address with same-day digital setup, 0% QFZP tax and airport/logistics-corridor proximity.

Not ideal for

Businesses needing a prestigious central Dubai address, daily client footfall, large visa quotas without leasing space, or regulated financial-services activities.

01Capability profile

Six independent dimensions, scored from official zone data.

?
Banking10/15
?
Visa scale15/15
?
Cost (lower=better)16/20
?
Activity breadth4/25
?
Workspace options9/15
?
Location9/10
02Where Dubai South Business Park sits

Tick marks for every zone, Dubai South Business Park highlighted. The shape of the field, not just the rank.

Year 1 cost← lower is better

Dubai South Business Park: 52th percentile (AED 11,000) · Licence + registration, AED.

Setup time← lower is better

Dubai South Business Park: 92th percentile (3 days) · Total estimated days from application to operational.

Visa caphigher is better →

Dubai South Business Park: 83th percentile (200 visas) · Absolute maximum visa allocation. Values above 500 clipped to the right edge so the bulk of the distribution stays readable.

Banking ease← better
Easy
4
Moderate
73
Difficult
15
Very difficult
1

Dubai South Business Park: Moderate · Corporate bank account opening difficulty. Each cell is one zone.

03Costs

Year-one license, renewals, and 5-year totals in AED.

11,000
– 40,950
Year 1 range · AED
AED 18,305 less than DMCC
mid tier
Show in
Base licence
AED 10,000
Registration
AED 1,000
Renewal (year 2+)
AED 10,000
3-year total
AED 31,000
2-year visa cost
AED 2,580
Flexi-desk per year
AED 17,000
Hidden & one-off costs
Establishment card
AED 2,060
Minimum share capital
AED 300,000
Cancellation fee
AED 3,500
Visa renewal
AED 1,740
Visa cancellation
AED 290
Emirates ID (per visa)
AED 390
Dependent / spouse visa
AED 2,000
Year-on-year fee tracking begins 2026 — changes appear here as they accrue.
Indicative, from published ratesOfficial fee schedule ↗Verified 2026-07high confidence

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04Visas & workspace

Visa caps, workspace options, and family-sponsorship rules.

Visa allocation
Maximum visas
200
Flexi-desk cap
2
Office cap
6
Warehouse cap
3
Family sponsorship
Available
Freelancer permit
Not available
Golden visa
Available
Green visa
Available
Medical required
Yes
Processing time
~5 days
Workspace options
Virtual office
No
Flexi-desk
Yes
Coworking
Yes
Dedicated office
Yes
Executive office
Yes
Warehouse
Yes
Industrial unit
No
Land plot
No
Ejari issued
Yes
Parking
Yes
Dedicated office cost
AED 30,000/yr
05Banking & setup

Banking difficulty, partner banks, and setup timeline.

Banking
Difficulty
Moderate
Time to account
~20 days
Minimum deposit
AED 25,000
Corp tax rate
0%
Audit cost (est)
AED 8,000
UBO filing
Required
AML / KYC
standard
Partner banks
Emirates NBDADCBMashreqFAB
Neo-bank options
Wio BusinessMashreq NeoBiz
Setup timeline
  1. Registration mode
    Fully online — no in-person visit required
  2. Documents & application
    Passport, visa, business plan — ~3–5 days
  3. Licence issued
    ~3 business days after submission
  4. Bank account active
    Additional ~20 days · Moderate banking
  5. Operational
    Typically ~3 days, up to ~10 days
06Package pricing

5 packages from official fee schedules.

All figures in AED, from official fee schedules. Visa and health-insurance costs are additional.

PackageVisasYear 1Renewal
Virtual License – 0 VisasBest value0AED 12,000AED 10,000
Virtual License – 1 Visa1AED 15,000AED 12,000
Flexi Desk – 2 Visas2AED 22,000AED 15,000
Serviced Office – 4 Visas4AED 38,000AED 28,000
Dedicated Office – 6 Visas6AED 55,000AED 40,000
07Permitted activities

Activity categories, restrictions, and approval flags.

3500 activities

E-commerce (EZDubai zone within Dubai South)

Aviation services (MBR Aerospace Hub)

Logistics corridor operations (sea-air via Jebel Ali/DWC)

Categories
Trading / general tradingLogistics & freightAviation & aerospace servicesProfessional & consultancy servicesE-commerceEducation & trainingLight industrial (Logistics District)
Matched industry clusters
logistics
Restricted
Banking / financial services and investment management for third partiesActivities requiring external regulator approvals (e.g. education, healthcare, media)Activities contrary to UAE public policy
Require approval
Activities regulated by external UAE authorities require third-party approvals before license issuance
08Jurisdiction & ecosystem

Legal framework, tax status, audit requirements, and zone focus — every value sourced.

Common lawNo
VAT designated zoneYes
QFZP eligible (0% tax)Yes
Inferred · 2026-07-18
Mainland permitYes
Inferred · 2026-07-18
Audit requiredNo
Inferred · 2026-07-18
Economic substancestandard
Inferred · 2026-07-18

This zone offers physical-office options sufficient for a standard QFZP substance posture, though the bar still applies at the entity level (CTGFZP1).

Focus: SME offices & business services, Trading & e-commerce, Logistics, Aviation & aerospace, Education & training

4200 companieslarge (zone-wide >4,200 companies; Business Park is one of several districts) communityIncubator: Yes
Notable companies

Nestlé, IKEA, CEVA Logistics, Aramex, Siemens, Samsung, Sinopec, DHL, Maersk Training, Sobha Aviation, J&P Group

QFZP, audit, mainland-permit and substance values are sourced where the zone authority or FTA publishes them, and inferred from published zone characteristics otherwise. How we determine these values.

09Strengths & limitations

5 strengths · 4 caveats.

Strengths
  • Low entry cost for a Dubai free zone: licence AED 10,000/yr (DACC Tariff 2025) and Business Hub bundles from AED 12,500 incl. flexi-desk, promo AED 11,375
  • Same-day, 100% digital licensing via Dubai South Business Hub; no physical presence required
  • VAT Designated Zone (Dubai Aviation City, Cabinet Decision 59/2017) for qualifying goods; 0% corporate tax for QFZPs
  • Strategic location beside Al Maktoum International Airport, Expo City and the Jebel Ali logistics corridor; dual free zone + DED licensing available
  • On-site licensing & visa authority; cheap 2-year visa at AED 2,580 and transparent official tariff
Caveats
  • ~35-40 km from central Dubai; car-dependent with the nearest metro at Expo City (planned extension not yet operational)
  • Flexi-desk packages capped at 2 visas; larger quotas require leasing physical office space
  • Bank account opening still takes weeks for flexi-desk SMEs despite the Apr 2026 Emirates NBD MoU
  • District is still maturing — fewer walk-in amenities, dining and networking density than established business districts

Not ideal for: Businesses needing a prestigious central Dubai address, daily client footfall, large visa quotas without leasing space, or regulated financial-services activities.

10Recent developments

2 policy and pricing updates on record.

  1. Q1 2026Dubai South Business Park launched a new co-working hub targeting logistics tech startups and e-commerce operators, with subsidised rates for Expo City alumni companies.
  2. Q3 2024Dubai South announced an infrastructure investment of AED 1.2 billion to accelerate Business Park and Residential City development ahead of the Al Maktoum airport expansion.
11Tax considerations

5 tax questions relevant to this zone.

Questions to raise with your tax advisor

  1. Does your planned revenue qualify under the QFZP qualifying-income rules?

    QFZP 0% only applies to qualifying income. Mainland trading or revenue from non-free-zone clients is generally non-qualifying and taxed at 9%.

  2. Will you need audited accounts even if this zone doesn't require them?

    FTA corporate-tax filing typically expects audited accounts for revenue above AED 50M, and banks often request them at much lower thresholds.

  3. Do your goods movements actually fall inside the VAT Designated Zone treatment?

    Designated Zone status applies to goods within the zone, not services. Most service businesses get no VAT benefit from being inside one.

  4. How much of your revenue will come from mainland UAE customers, and how does that affect QFZP and 5% VAT obligations?

    Mainland revenue beyond ad-hoc levels can disqualify QFZP and triggers full 9% corporate tax plus standard VAT on supplies.

  5. Do any of your customers, suppliers, or shareholders meet the FTA's related-party definition?

    Related-party transactions need transfer-pricing documentation and may push otherwise-qualifying income into the 9% bracket.

These prompts are due-diligence questions, not tax advice. Confirm every answer with a UAE-licensed tax advisor before incorporating.

12Frequently asked

4 common questions specific to Dubai South Business Park.

13Similar zones in Dubai

3 comparable zones in the same emirate.

14About this data

Last verified 2026-07-18 · high confidence.

Dubai South Business Park data is sourced from official zone authority publications, government fee schedules, and where available, verified against direct communications with the zone. All figures in AED.

Location
Dubai South
Established
2015
Authority
Dubai Aviation City Corporation (DACC)
Last verified
2026-07-18
Confidence
high
Methodology
How we score →
Cited source
Fee data sourced from the official fee schedule, fetched 2026-07-18. View source ↗
Per-field citations
How we verify every zone →
15Founder reviews

What founders who've registered here say.

4.9★200 reviewsGoogle

Founder reviews

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16Take the next step

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