Business advisory services in Dubai

Alliance CA supports companies that hold a UAE licence: we renew and amend trade licences, add activities and branches, handle visas and PRO and, when a company closes, prepare its final accounts and VAT and corporate tax de-registration. From Deira, Dubai, we charge from AED 2,500 for licence and PRO work and AED 500 for de-registration, exclusive of VAT.

Starting a new company? Our company formation service covers setting up on the mainland or in a free zone. This page picks up once your licence is issued.

What does business advisory cover?

Four kinds of work a licensed company needs after setup. Fees exclude VAT and are agreed after a free scoping call.

Work

What we do

Starting fee

Licence renewals and amendments

Track the expiry date, prepare the application, update your FTA records

From AED 2,500

Business expansion

New activities, branches and structures, with the tax effects checked first

From AED 2,500

Visas and PRO

Investor and employee visas, work permits, Emirates IDs, renewals and cancellations

From AED 2,500

Company closure

Final accounts, plus VAT and corporate tax de-registration

De-registration from AED 500; accounts quoted after scoping

Government fees are set by each authority, and your quote lists the ones that apply. See all our fees.

How does trade licence renewal work in Dubai?

You renew with the authority that issued the licence: the Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) for a Dubai mainland company, or your free zone authority. A lapsed licence can bring fines and penalties for not renewing it (UAE Government portal).

We remind you before expiry, check that your licensed activities still match what the business does, and prepare the application. Then we update your tax records, which is easy to miss: the FTA must be told within 20 working days when a trade licence is renewed or amended, or when the business name, address, activities or authorised signatory change. Late notice carries an administrative penalty (FTA).

How do you add an activity, a branch or a new structure?

Usually by amending your licence or licensing a branch, and then updating your tax records. A business can hold more than one activity, and some activities need another authority's approval first (UAE Government portal).

Before anything is filed, we check the VAT and corporate tax effect, for example whether a new company should join a tax group. For valuation, due diligence or feasibility work, see our fractional CFO and corporate finance service.

What do PRO services in Dubai include?

PRO services are the government paperwork a company needs to employ people and keep its files current. We prepare the applications and documents and follow them through.

For an employee of a mainland company, the company first opens a file with the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE), which issues work permits, and then with the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) for the entry permit. The employee then takes a medical test, applies for an Emirates ID and receives a labour card, and the residence visa follows (UAE Government portal).

How do you close a company in Dubai?

A Dubai mainland company closes through liquidation: the partners appoint a liquidator, creditors get time to claim, and the licence is cancelled. We are not the liquidator. In Dubai the liquidator must provide an auditor registration certificate (UAE Government portal), so we work alongside the liquidator you appoint.

Step

Who does it

Notarised general assembly minutes approving the liquidation and naming the liquidator

You, the partners

Acceptance letter, with the liquidator's licence, auditor registration certificate and notarised signature

The liquidator

Certificate of dissolution and liquidator appointment (the portal lists a fee of AED 520)

The licensing authority

Books brought up to date for the liquidator

We prepare

Notice in two Arabic local newspapers, giving 45 days for claims

The liquidator

Labour card and visa cancellations

We prepare

Final report, and a declaration that no objections were received

The liquidator, with you

Cancellation of the licence

The licensing authority

Final accounts to the licence cancellation date, final VAT and corporate tax returns, de-registration

We prepare; the FTA approves

The managers must give the liquidator the company's books, documents and accounts (Commercial Companies Law, Article 320), so clean books save time. A free zone company follows its own authority's procedure, which includes cancelling visas and de-registering with the FTA where that applies (UAE Government portal). If the company cannot pay its debts, take legal advice first.

When must you de-register for VAT and corporate tax?

Apply within 3 months of the company's dissolution, liquidation or cessation for corporate tax (FTA Decision No. 6 of 2023), and within 30 business days of the obligation arising for VAT (FTA). The FTA charges no fee for either.


Corporate tax

VAT

Final return

Covers the period up to and including the date of cessation

Return and tax due within 28 days of the de-registration date

Before de-registration

All returns filed and all tax and penalties paid

Final return approved and all tax and penalties settled

The FTA asks for

Licence cancellation document; financial statements up to the cancellation date

Licence cancellation certificate, liquidation letter, board resolution, turnover template

The corporate tax rows come from Article 52 and the FTA's de-registration page. Applications go through your EmaraTax account; our corporate tax and VAT teams prepare them, and our accounting team can clear a backlog first.

Who leads our business advisory work?

Ratul Sharma, our Founder & Chief Executive Officer, leads it. He also oversees a group of businesses in hospitality, trading, security, interior design and IT (our founders). Alliance CA has been licensed in Dubai since 2015 and works from 904 Al Reem Tower, Al Maktoum Street, Deira. Book a free scoping call.

Questions about business advisory

What is a business advisory service?

At Alliance CA, it is the practical support a licensed company needs after setup: renewals, expansion, visas and PRO, and closure. Planning and valuation sit with our corporate finance service.

Is business advisory the same as consulting?

Not as we use the term. Consulting is generally understood as giving advice, while our business advisory work is mostly practical: we prepare and follow up licence renewals and amendments, new activities and branches, visa and PRO applications, and the final accounts and tax de-registrations when a company closes. For advice on strategy, planning or valuation, see our corporate finance service.

What happens if my trade licence expires?

The authority can charge fines and penalties for not renewing it (UAE Government portal). If you are closing the business, cancel the licence properly rather than letting it lapse.

What does PRO stand for in the UAE?

PRO stands for Public Relations Officer: in the UAE, the person who handles a company's transactions with government departments. MoHRE's service for the role is called "Issuance of a Public Relations Officer Card (PRO)" (MoHRE). PRO services are that work done for you by an outside firm, as described above.

What is a PRO card?

A MoHRE card that lets its holder submit the ministry's transactions for the establishment where they are registered. The holder needs a file with the ministry, which means a valid work permit (MoHRE).

Who can be a liquidator in Dubai?

Someone with an auditor registration certificate (UAE Government portal) who is not the company's auditor and has not audited its accounts in the previous five years (Commercial Companies Law, Article 316). Alliance CA does not act as liquidator.

Who pays for a liquidation?

The company, from its own funds: debts arising from the liquidation are paid before any other debts. The liquidator's fee is set in the decision appointing them or, failing that, by the court (Articles 318 and 325). Our fees are quoted separately.

Can a company move instead of closing?

It may. Since Federal Decree-Law No. 20 of 2025, a company can move its registration between emirates, or between a free zone and the mainland, keeping its contracts and obligations, without liquidation. It can also change its legal form (Ministry of Economy and Tourism). Both authorities must approve a move (the decree, in Arabic).

Sources