An e-commerce licence lets you sell physical or digital products and services online — through your own store, marketplaces or dropshipping. Here's where to base it, what it costs, the payment-gateway and VAT essentials, and how we set it up.
E-commerce is the lean choice for selling online — but the right base depends on whether you hold stock and whether you sell to UAE customers or abroad.
An illustrative lean free-zone starting point for an e-commerce licence. Your total depends on:
We match the licence to your products and markets, then send a full written quote — licence, visas, payment gateway and VAT — before you commit.
The details that decide how an e-commerce business runs.
What an e-commerce licence gives you, and what to weigh.
| Free Zone | Mainland | |
|---|---|---|
| Foreign ownership | 100% | 100%* |
| Sell to UAE customers | Via delivery / marketplaces | Directly, incl. B2B |
| Hold stock locally | Via warehouse / fulfilment | Yes |
| Setup from | AED 6,000 | AED 12,500 |
| Best for | Online-first, cross-border, dropshipping | UAE-market sales, local B2B |
In short: if you're online-first, cross-border or dropshipping, a free zone gives you 100% ownership at a lean cost, and you reach UAE customers via delivery & marketplaces. If you need to sell and invoice UAE businesses directly, go mainland DED. We'll map the cheapest compliant route for your products & markets.
What online sellers ask before setting up an e-commerce business. Anything else — AgentBiz answers instantly.
Ask AgentBizIt's a trade licence that lets you sell physical or digital products and services online — through your own store, marketplaces or apps. It's the standard base for online sellers, dropshippers and D2C brands, and platforms like Noon and Amazon.ae require a valid licence to onboard you.
A lean free-zone e-commerce licence typically starts from around AED 6,000, with a mainland DED licence from about AED 12,500. Your total depends on the emirate, visa count, whether you hold stock and payment-gateway setup — we send a full written quote first.
Yes, to consumers — free-zone sellers reach UAE customers through courier delivery and marketplaces like Noon and Amazon.ae. Selling and invoicing UAE businesses directly (B2B) is usually cleaner on a mainland DED licence, so we base the choice on who you sell to.
Both work. If you dropship, suppliers ship on your behalf and a lean free-zone licence with no warehouse is fine. If you hold stock, you'll want warehousing and fulfilment — we factor that into the base and budget.
You'll need a corporate bank account plus a payment gateway such as Stripe, Telr, Checkout or Network. We guide the applications during setup, though gateways run their own approval and charge per-transaction fees.
Once your taxable turnover crosses the mandatory threshold you register for 5% VAT and charge it on UAE sales. We support the registration and point you to an accountant for ongoing filing.
Ask AgentBiz which licence and base fit your products, or talk to a human advisor. Real requirements, honest guidance, no obligation.
