Ajman: The UAE's First Free Zone
Here at ESW we are continuing are series of MENA Region articles focused on three states: Egypt, the UAE and Oman. As mentioned in the previous piece on Al Ayn (Al Ain), the MENA section articles will form our compendium of a Mideast residency and real estate overview book, ESW's first e-book.
The author will be Ahmed and the editor, yours truly. The book will be part of a marketing campaign focusing on potential South Asian and EAEU citizen clients desiring residency in Egypt and the Gulf region for business purposes. We anticipate having the book ready for sale on the ESW website and App by January 1, 2025.
-- James Smith
Editor-in-Chief and Publisher, ExitStrategy.World
July 14, 2024
The UAE is a federal system consisting of seven emirates. Amjan is considered the smallest of these seven.
Ajman is located on the Persian (referred to in Arab nation school systems as the Arabian) Gulf. And while it is quite small and adjoining the emirate of Sharjah, it is known for many things. Mainly its coastline, modern living standards, a rich archeological heritage, and the most important of all --the Ajman Free Zone, which we will discuss today.
Photo credit: Waterfront view, Ajman, UAE
Uploaded to iStock by trabantos April 2019
The Ajman Free Zone is considered one of the earliest free trade zones established in the Arab World in the late 20th century, founded in 1988--not even a full 20 years after the establishment of the UAE in 1971.
Established in the Emirate of Ajman for the specific purpose of attracting foreign investors, there are many pros to enter the Free Zone, such as the location and accessibility of the zone, the business environment and its modern infrastructure, which is considered superb by the standards of the Arabian peninsula. There are also valued support services, and of course, many incentives and benefits for capital.
It is located near the Ajman Port, one of the most active sea ports in the UAE, which itself is not far from Dubai and Sharjah. The FZ allows for 100% foreign ownership, full repatriation of profits and capital, and many import and export duties are exempt, the regulation in the free trade zone is also streamlined, so paperwork is not an issue. There is also a 24 hour customer care support line to call for basic set up questions.
Photo credit: Rooftop view at sunset, Ajman, UAE (above and below)
Uploaded to iStock by Kyrylo Neiezhmakov December 2020
The Free Zone comes with office spaces, warehouses, and several industrial units that are specific for almost all lines of business. Thus, there is a complete diverse range of industries in the zone, such as logistics, services, manufacturing, import/export, and so forth.
The Zone is also focusing on supporting small to medium sized enterprises and startups, with special growth opportunities given to them, to enable market growth and prevent monopolization.
The UAE is also careful to add access to banking and other financial services to allow for easier access in the financial sector, the administration of the zone is considered to be a high priority and thus is of a high quality.
The contribution of the Ajman Free Zone to the Ajman Emirate and the wider UAE cannot be underestimated: Ajman represented 20% of all exports from the UAE in 2021. The E-Commerce sector grew by 45% in 2022, corporate taxpayer companies ( the institutions) increased by 33%, etc. The Free Zone trajectory is clearly going up, not down.
Photo credit: Rooftop view daytime, Ajman, UAE
Uploaded to iStock by Kyrylo Neiezhmakov December 2020
Other benefits in the Ajman zone include the following:
As in the rest of the Emirates: zero corporate tax and zero personal income tax. No import or export duties for goods, no VAT taxes and no capital gains taxes. We already mentioned the convenient location and the thriving service sector above.
We previously touched on the ecosystem in the Free Zone. But the list of business categories may be found here, on the Ajman Free Zone website. There are also service companies such as IT, accounting/consulting, marketing, and finance. There are also legal back offices in Ajman as well. The Car Market is a magnet for automobile buyers. For Chinese investors, there is a China Mall where they can find Mandarin-speaking businesses and services.
To register a company in the Ajman Free Zone, you first must submit an application to the government with your business plan and legal documentation. That is done by submitting documents to the Ajman Free Zone Authority. After the Authority reviews your application, you must submit the supporting documents, such as the Memorandum of Association, Articles of Association, Proof of Address, shareholder documents, and so forth. They must all be notarized and follow the standards set by the Free Zone Authority.
After that, you will simply need to pay your fees, sign a lease agreement for office, or warehouse storage space, and you will be issued your Ajman Free Zone business license.