KEZAD Al Ain (Al Ain Industrial Zone)
Al Ain · Est. 2006 · KEZAD Group
Manufacturers, food/agri processors and logistics/warehousing operators that want the UAE's lowest-cost serviced industrial land with direct UAE/GCC market access, and do not need VAT-designated-zone or QFZP 0% treatment.
Businesses that specifically need free-zone tax status (0% QFZP, VAT designated zone), port-adjacent operations, published fixed pricing, or large guaranteed visa quotas - they should look at KEZAD's Abu Dhabi free-zone areas (KIZAD/Al Ma'mourah) or RAKEZ instead.
01Capability profile
02Where KEZAD Al Ain sits
KEZAD Al Ain: 66th percentile (AED 9,450) · Licence + registration, AED.
KEZAD Al Ain: 40th percentile (10 days) · Total estimated days from application to operational.
KEZAD Al Ain: 11th percentile (8 visas) · Absolute maximum visa allocation. Values above 500 clipped to the right edge so the bulk of the distribution stays readable.
KEZAD Al Ain: Moderate · Corporate bank account opening difficulty. Each cell is one zone.
03Costs
- Base licence
- AED 9,450
- Registration
- AED 0
- Renewal (year 2+)
- AED 9,450
- 3-year total
- AED 28,350
- 2-year visa cost
- AED 2,250
- Flexi-desk per year
- AED 9,450
- Establishment card
- AED 1,000
- Cancellation fee
- AED 2,500
- Visa cancellation
- AED 500
- Emirates ID (per visa)
- AED 370
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04Visas & workspace
- Maximum visas
- 8
- Flexi-desk cap
- 4
- Office cap
- 5
- Warehouse cap
- 3
- Family sponsorship
- Available
- Freelancer permit
- Not available
- Golden visa
- Available
- Green visa
- Available
- Medical required
- Yes
- Processing time
- ~7 days
- Virtual office
- No
- Flexi-desk
- Yes
- Coworking
- Yes
- Dedicated office
- No
- Executive office
- No
- Warehouse
- Yes
- Industrial unit
- Yes
- Land plot
- Yes
- Ejari issued
- No
- Parking
- Yes
- Dedicated office cost
- AED 139,650/yr
05Banking & setup
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time to account
- ~21 days
- Minimum deposit
- AED 15,000
- Corp tax rate
- 9%
- Audit cost (est)
- AED 10,000
- UBO filing
- Required
- AML / KYC
- standard
- Registration modeFully online — no in-person visit required
- Documents & applicationPassport, visa, business plan — ~3–5 days
- Licence issued~1 business day after submission
- Bank account activeAdditional ~21 days · Moderate banking
- OperationalTypically ~10 days, up to ~40 days
06Permitted activities
Food processing & AgriTech (Al Ain agricultural heartland)
Oilfield chemicals blending (Haber/Elixir, 2026)
Metal forming & coating (Precent Enterprises, 2026)
Industrial & logistics warehousing (Unibal Park II, 2026)
Car care products manufacturing (Grand Line, 2026)
07Jurisdiction & ecosystem
This zone offers physical-office options sufficient for a standard QFZP substance posture, though the bar still applies at the entity level (CTGFZP1).
Focus: Light & medium manufacturing, Food processing & AgriTech, Logistics & warehousing, Chemicals & plastics, Building materials, Automotive aftermarket, Metals & engineering
Unibal Group Investment (Unibal Park II logistics), Haber/Elixir (oilfield chemicals), Grand Line Industries (car care products), Precent Enterprises Metals Coating, ZERO x ADQ AgTech Park vertical farm (Al Ain expansion announced)
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.
08Strengths & limitations
- ['Cheapest industrial land in the KEZAD network: serviced plots at AED 15-20/m2/yr in Al Ain vs AED 32-45 in Abu Dhabi (official tariff)'
- 'Zero licence and registration fees for new licences (first 2 years); renewals just AED 5
- 000 - among the lowest-cost industrial licensing in the UAE'
- "Domestic Economic Zone status: sell directly into the UAE and GCC ('Made in UAE' certification) without a mainland distributor"
- "Established industrial city since 2006 with worker accommodation nearby and Al Ain's lower operating costs (30-50% below Dubai)"
- 'Active investment pipeline: AED 47M across four new projects signed April 2026; Hafeet Rail corridor to Sohar Port due 2027']
- Not a VAT designated zone and (as a Domestic Economic Zone) standard 9% corporate tax - the 0% QFZP and VAT benefits of KEZAD apply to its Abu Dhabi free-zone territory, not clearly to Al Ain
- No published visa quotas or warehouse prices - everything beyond the 1-4 visa workstation packages is quoted case-by-case
- Inland location ~150 km from Khalifa Port; no port adjacency, and Al Ain-specific data (tenant counts, facility pricing) is not published separately from the KEZAD Group
- Zone-specific track record is thin: Google presence is one office listing with a single review
Not ideal for: Businesses that specifically need free-zone tax status (0% QFZP, VAT designated zone), port-adjacent operations, published fixed pricing, or large guaranteed visa quotas - they should look at KEZAD's Abu Dhabi free-zone areas (KIZAD/Al Ma'mourah) or RAKEZ instead.
09Tax considerations
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%.
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.
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.
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.
10Similar zones in Abu Dhabi
11About this data
KEZAD Al Ain 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
- Al Ain
- Established
- 2006
- Authority
- KEZAD Group
- Last verified
- 2026-07-18
- Confidence
- high
- Methodology
- How we score →
- QFZP eligibility (0% corporate tax)Secondary · 2026-07-18Primary source ↗
- Audit requirementSecondary · 2026-07-18Primary source ↗
- Economic substanceSecondary · 2026-07-18Primary source ↗
- Mainland trading permitSecondary · 2026-07-18Primary source ↗
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