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Expo City Dubai Free Zone Company Setup
Lexoford Services L.L.C-FZ is an Expo City Dubai Free Zone Channel Partner for company registration in Expo City Dubai Free Zone.
Lexoford Services is an IFZA Authorized Professional Partner. Partner ID 11215-7490. The certificate is dated 2026-09-25. Lexoford Services is a SHAMS Authorized Partner and an Expo City Dubai Free Zone Channel Partner. The Authorized Professional Partner title applies to IFZA. Lexoford Services is licensed in Meydan Free Zone, Dubai, licence 2651822.01. That licence is Lexoford Services' own trade licence. It is not an Expo City Dubai licence.
What the service covers
Match the planned activity to a form the Companies Regulations recognise: a Company, or a Branch. The June 2024 guide describes those routes as an FZ-LLC and a Free Zone Branch. Confirm the activity list in writing before filing.
Prepare the business-setup application, the identity papers the guide lists, and the articles, shareholder resolution and ultimate beneficial owner declaration it lists for final approval.
Follow the journey the June 2024 guide describes: initial approval, legal documents, registration, the lease, then the licence, registration certificate and company card if the Authority grants them. External approvals stay with the authority that issues them.
The December 2024 company application form cites the UAE beneficial-owner rules and asks who ultimately owns or controls the company. Lexoford Services coordinates the information the file needs.
Prepare the corporate account file and coordinate with the bank. The bank decides. Account opening is not guaranteed.
Coordinate the visa steps that sit inside the service tier you select. Immigration decides. Visa approval is not guaranteed.
Lexoford service fee from AED 3,999; government and free-zone fees are extra, paid at cost. Estimate your itemised total.
Other jurisdictions
If Expo City Dubai Free Zone is not the right jurisdiction, Lexoford Services is a SHAMS Authorized Partner. Lexoford Services can arrange company registration in Meydan Free Zone, DMCC, RAKEZ or SPC Free Zone, and on Dubai mainland. IFZA company setup is the only page on which Lexoford Services is an IFZA Authorized Professional Partner.
Compare activity, visas and budget before choosing a zone. How to choose a Dubai free zone is a decision framework, not a ranking. Company formation covers mainland, free zone and offshore work beyond this page.
What Expo City Dubai publishes about setup
The points below are taken from the Companies Regulations, the Licensing Regulations, the June 2024 setup guide, and the Authority's business-setup pages, checked on 2026-10-14. This page does not add fee amounts or one processing time that those sources do not agree on.
Law No. (14) of 2022 established Expo City Dubai and the Expo City Dubai Authority. The Companies Regulations define the free zone as the zone established under that law, and the Authority as the public authority that regulates it. The June 2024 guide describes Expo City Dubai as a free zone inside Dubai's 2040 Urban Master Plan, and places the Client Relations Centre on level 2 of the Women's Pavilion in the Sustainability District. The same guide says registered clients use the Expo City Dubai Portal as well as that centre.
Article 3.1 recognises Companies and Branches. A Company has a separate legal personality. Shareholder liability is limited to any amount unpaid on the shares, subject to the article the regulations name. A Branch has no separate legal personality, and its liabilities remain liabilities of the parent. Article 6.1 says any one or more persons may apply to register a Company. The June 2024 guide calls these routes an FZ-LLC and a Free Zone Branch of a company registered outside the zone. A shareholder on an FZ-LLC can be an individual or a company.
Licensing Regulations Article 4.1 lists a Commercial Licence, a Service Licence, a Manufacturing Licence, an E-commerce Licence, a Holding Company Licence, a Logistics Licence, and any other category the Authority makes available. The Authority may change, merge or combine categories. The June 2024 guide describes commercial, general trading, service, e-commerce, logistics and holding licences. The December 2024 new-company form lists commercial, industrial, service and holding. This page does not collapse those lists into one.
A licence is valid for the permitted activities named on it, for the period the licence states. The Registrar publishes a permitted-activity list. Ancillary lawful activities are allowed only within the conditions in Article 4.6, including any further approval the law requires. The June 2024 guide states more than 2,000 business activities. The free-zone services page also links a freelance-permit guide. That permit is not the Company or Branch in the Companies Regulations, and this page does not restate the freelance guide.
The June 2024 guide's benefits table states 100% foreign ownership. That is the guide's statement. The same table refers to tax benefits and does not state a rate.
Article 21.3 says share capital is denominated in UAE dirhams. Article 21.4 says there is no prescribed minimum share capital a company must maintain. Article 21.5 says the Registrar may specify a minimum for a company type, an activity, or a particular company. Article 21.6 says a share must be paid up in full. The free-zone services page asks whether a minimum capital is required. On 2026-10-14 the answer text was not in the page content used for this check, so this page does not state a dirham minimum.
The published setup sequence
The guide asks the client to identify an FZ-LLC or a Free Zone Branch, and a licence type that fits the activity. The regulations require the prescribed application.
The guide describes submitting the application and supporting documents through the portal. The Authority reviews the name and the activities. The guide says that initial approval is valid for 30 days.
The guide then describes the articles, resolutions and beneficial-owner declaration, payment of the registration fees, and registration of the entity. Signing can be in person or virtual.
The guide describes a final lease agreement, then the licence, registration certificate and company card, together with an employee allocation. Banking and visas are later applications.
The Licensing Regulations describe a different clock for in-principle approval: Article 5.9 says it is valid for three months, or longer if the Registrar determines. Article 5.12 says a licence application needs a valid lease or freehold unless the Registrar determines otherwise. The June 2024 guide calls the signed lease offer letter optional at initial approval, and puts the final lease at a later step. This page does not resolve that difference. The guide also describes a non-refundable application fee and later registration and licensing fees. This page does not repeat those amounts.
The guide prints three working-day figures on the journey: 3 working days, subject to third-party approvals; 1 working day after all documents are submitted and the licence-registration payment is complete; and 1 working day for the lease signature, subject to a signed lease and a final compliance check. It does not label those figures as one licence-issuance promise.
Sources: ECDA Companies Regulations No. (1) of 2024 (PDF); ECDA Licensing Regulations No. (2) of 2024 (PDF); How to set up your business in Expo City Dubai, version 02, June 2024 (PDF); Expo City Dubai — new company or branch; Expo City Dubai — free zone services; Expo City Dubai — laws and regulations. Checked 2026-10-14.
Visas, in Expo City Dubai's own wording
- The June 2024 guide says the company card is issued with an employee allocation.
- The appendix says the allocation may vary with the activity, the layout, and health and safety. It states one employee per 9 square metres of office space, one per 15 square metres for food and beverage or retail, and two employees per shared desk.
- Those ratios are the guide's method. They are not a Lexoford fee and they are not an approval for a named person.
- Medical tests, Emirates ID and residence stamping are separate from licence issuance.
Those statements do not fix a visa count for every file. The visa counts named in the service tiers below are Lexoford Services' service-fee scope, not an Expo City Dubai allocation. Approval of the company application does not mean a visa will be approved for a particular person.
Source: How to set up your business in Expo City Dubai, June 2024. Checked 2026-10-14.
Service fees
The three service tiers and the visa-count sentence below are the same wording as the pricing section on the Lexoford Services homepage. They are Lexoford service fees, not Expo City Dubai fees.
0–1 visa: Starter AED 3,999. 2–3 visas: Business AED 4,999. 5 visas: Premium AED 7,999. Each additional visa adds AED 1,000 service fee beyond the visas your tier includes. Customer pays = government/free-zone fees at cost + Lexoford service fee.
Government and free-zone fees are extra, paid at cost. Estimate your itemised total. This page does not publish an Expo City Dubai fee schedule.
How Lexoford Services handles an Expo City Dubai file
Activity, customers, shareholders, whether the file is an FZ-LLC or a branch, and whether anyone needs a residence visa.
Service fee and authority fees listed separately, using the service tiers above. No all-in sticker on this page.
The business-setup application, the identity papers, and the articles, resolution and beneficial-owner declaration that apply to the shareholder type.
Licence documents first. Banking and visas are separate applications. The bank and immigration decide.
It depends on the jurisdiction, business activities and authority review; Lexoford gives an estimate after checking your documents. That is not an Expo City Dubai service level. Remote company setup separates licence steps from medical, Emirates ID and bank visits.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. Lexoford Services L.L.C-FZ is an Expo City Dubai Free Zone Channel Partner. Lexoford Services is an IFZA Authorized Professional Partner. Partner ID 11215-7490. The certificate is dated 2026-09-25. Lexoford Services is a SHAMS Authorized Partner. Lexoford Services can arrange company registration in Meydan Free Zone, DMCC, RAKEZ and SPC Free Zone, and on Dubai mainland. The Authorized Professional Partner title applies to IFZA.
No. AED 3,999 / 4,999 / 7,999 are Lexoford service fees (Starter / Business / Premium). Free-zone and government fees are billed at cost, with no markup. This page does not publish an Expo City Dubai fee schedule.
The Expo City Dubai Authority Companies Regulations No. (1) of 2024 recognise a Company and a Branch. A Company has a separate legal personality, and a shareholder's liability is limited to any amount unpaid on that shareholder's shares. A Branch has no separate legal personality from its parent. The June 2024 setup guide names the same routes as a Free Zone Limited Liability Company (FZ-LLC), with one or more individual or corporate shareholders, and a Free Zone Branch (FZB) of a company registered outside Expo City Dubai. Article 6.1 says any one or more persons may apply to register a Company. Those sources do not state a maximum number of shareholders.
The June 2024 setup guide lists an ECDA business-setup application, passport copies of the licensed parties, UAE visa and Emirates ID copies where they apply, and extra papers for controlled activities. For final approval it lists articles of association on the ECDA template, a shareholder resolution, an ultimate beneficial owner declaration, and, for a branch or a corporate shareholder, parent-company documents including a licence, incorporation certificates and a resolution appointing the manager. Do not send passports or identity documents through the form on this page.
The June 2024 guide says legal documents can be signed by a legal representative in person or virtually, and that registration and the lease signing can take place physically or virtually. It does not say that every applicant must travel to Dubai before the licence is issued. Visa, medical and Emirates ID steps are separate from licence issuance. The guide prints working-day figures beside the journey, each with a condition, and does not publish one unconditional issuance time. It depends on the jurisdiction, business activities and authority review; Lexoford gives an estimate after checking your documents. That is not an Expo City Dubai service level.
The June 2024 guide says the company card is issued with an employee allocation. The appendix says that allocation may vary with the activity, the layout of the premises, and health and safety, and it gives area ratios for office, retail, warehouse and a shared desk. Those ratios are Expo City Dubai's published method. They are not a Lexoford fee and they are not a promise that a particular person will be approved. The visa counts in Lexoford's Starter, Business and Premium service tiers are the scope of the service fee, not an Expo City Dubai allocation. Visa approval is not guaranteed.
Law No. (14) of 2022 established the Expo City Dubai free zone. The Companies Regulations define the Expo City Dubai Authority as the public authority that regulates it. The June 2024 guide places the Client Relations Centre on level 2 of the Women's Pavilion in the Sustainability District, and says services are also available through the Expo City Dubai Portal. That centre is not Lexoford Services' meeting office. Lexoford Services' public office is Office 607, 6th Floor, RAG Tower Business Center, Al Barsha 1, Dubai. In-person meetings are by appointment. Email info@lexofordservices.ae or call +971 58 500 2191.
What this page does not state
- No Expo City Dubai licence, visa or authority fee in dirhams. The business-setup pages publish package amounts and a fees list. This page does not repeat them, so they are not read as Lexoford fees.
- No channel-partner number. Expo City Dubai has not published one for Lexoford Services. This page does not invent one.
- No single processing time. The June 2024 guide prints 3 working days subject to third-party approvals, 1 working day after the documents and the licence-registration payment are complete, and 1 working day for the lease signature subject to a signed lease and a final compliance check.
- No single validity period for the first approval. The guide says 30 days. Licensing Regulations Article 5.9 says three months for in-principle approval, or longer if the Registrar determines.
- No minimum share capital in dirhams. Article 21.4 states no prescribed minimum unless the Registrar specifies one. The free-zone services FAQ asks the question. On 2026-10-14 this page did not use an answer text from that page.
- No freelance permit as the company form. The free-zone services page links a separate freelance guide. The Companies Regulations recognise a Company and a Branch.
- No tax rate. The June 2024 guide refers to tax benefits and does not state a rate. See UAE corporate tax and VAT.
- No guarantee of licence, visa or bank-account approval, and no ranking of free zones. Lexoford Services is an Expo City Dubai Free Zone Channel Partner.
Lexoford Services is not a law firm. What Lexoford Services does not guarantee.
Discuss an Expo City Dubai company registration
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Office 607, 6th Floor, RAG Tower Business Center, Al Barsha 1, Dubai, UAE. Meetings by appointment. Licence No. 2651822.01.