Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone

OTP delivers to the registered signatory's mobile. Update inside portal profile if wrong. SIMs in a previous employee's name fail government OTPs; the authorised signatory must be the SIM owner. Government OTPs throttled during peak windows; switching from Wi-Fi to mobile data helps. UAE Pass push notification is an alternative if linked.

Web-based portal; mobile browsers can hang on uploads above 5MB. Compress PDFs. Use desktop Chrome or Safari for complex actions. Portal has scheduled maintenance overnight UAE time - transient failures during these resolve in a few hours. Clear browser cookies if the dashboard shows stale compliance data.

Master account: portal > Forgot Password with the registered email. Reset link in minutes; check spam. If email is no longer accessible, contact relationship manager with licence number, board resolution authorising new signatory, and new signatory's identity documents. Allow 3-5 working days for support-mediated recovery. Sub-user resets: master account holder resets via Users.

Among the most affordable in the UAE. Freelancer permit from AED 6,000/year - cheaper than most Dubai and Abu Dhabi free zones for solo founders. Business licence from low five figures vs AED 25,000-50,000+ at DMCC, DIFC, or ADGM. Industrial land is significantly cheaper than Dubai equivalents. The trade-off: RAK is geographically remote from Dubai's business density (90-minute drive in good traffic), and the brand recognition is lower than DMCC. For backend operations and freelance work, the cost savings are substantial.

Yes, the freelancer permit is built for solo professionals. AED 6,000 entry. Activity codes cover consultancy, IT, design, content creation, marketing, education, and many professional services. Includes single-visa entitlement subject to package. No physical office required; co-working access included or available. Renewable annually with minimal compliance. The main consideration: if you intend to hire even one employee, you need to upgrade to a business licence - the freelancer permit does not scale.

3-7 working days for standard cases (freelancer or simple business licence). Industrial-zone setup with land lease and customs onboarding can take 2-4 weeks. Multi-shareholder structures with extensive due diligence take longer. Visa stamping after licence issuance adds 1-2 weeks at RAK GDRFA. End-to-end from first application to ready-to-operate is typically 3-6 weeks for a business licence with one visa.

Medical fitness for residency runs through approved centres in Ras Al Khaimah; visa applications route through RAK GDRFA. RAKEZ-pre-approved visa cases use the RAK medical centres rather than Dubai or Abu Dhabi facilities. Results integrate with ICP for residency stamping. Turnaround usually 24-72 hours. The RAKEZ relationship manager points to the current approved centres at the visa-application stage.

Yes, but banks run independent KYC. RAKEZ provides referral letters and supports the bank-side process but cannot guarantee account opening. RAK-headquartered banks (RAKBank) and major UAE banks (Mashreq, ENBD, ADCB) all open accounts for RAKEZ companies subject to their criteria. Expect 4-12 weeks. Some activities (crypto, gambling-adjacent, certain commodities) face higher friction. Apply to multiple banks in parallel to manage timeline risk.

Yes, the federal Corporate Tax regime applies to all UAE entities including RAKEZ companies. Qualifying free-zone income may attract 0% under strict conditions (substance test, qualifying-activity definition, arm's-length rules). Non-qualifying income above carve-outs attracts 9%. Registration with FTA is mandatory regardless of qualifying status. Confirm the qualifying-income analysis with a UAE-qualified tax advisor - the rules are technical.

RAKEZ is the operational free zone with real-economy activities (trading, manufacturing, services, freelance). RAKICC (RAK International Corporate Centre) is the offshore/IBC corporate registry used for holding-company and investment structures that do not operate substantively in the UAE. RAKICC companies cannot sponsor UAE visas; RAKEZ companies can. For active operations choose RAKEZ; for holding structures consider RAKICC, ADGM offshore, or DIFC.

Yes, with structural arrangements. Direct B2B selling and services to UAE customers are generally permitted from any free zone. To open a physical retail presence or contracted government work in another emirate, you need a mainland branch licence or a commercial agency arrangement in that emirate. Office presence in Dubai for client meetings can run from co-working or virtual-office providers without requiring a mainland licence. Confirm activity-specific rules with the RAKEZ relationship manager.

UBO missed: licence renewal blocked plus federal-level fines. ESR notification missed: AED 20,000. ESR substance reporting missed: AED 50,000. AML registration missed for in-scope activities: regulatory enforcement. The portal shows deadlines but does not file on behalf of the company. Repeated breaches trigger escalating enforcement that can include licence suspension. For multi-jurisdiction structures, a corporate service provider handles compliance more reliably than in-house.

Initiate via the portal > Liquidation. Cease operations, settle creditors, cancel all employee visas (through RAK GDRFA), surrender the establishment card, file the final audit (if required), and surrender the licence. 60-120 days for clean cases. Complex cases with outstanding liabilities, multiple shareholders, or asset transfers take longer. The relationship manager guides through the steps; corporate service providers handle the process end-to-end for fee. Skipping the visa-cancellation step blocks final closure.