Ras Al Khaimah DED licence fees in 2026

The Ras Al Khaimah Executive Council approved the DED's fee schedules in Executive Council Resolution No. (6) of 2026 on Approving Economic Development Department Services Fees. It was promulgated on 23 March 2026 (4 Shawwal 1447H), came into force on promulgation and is to be published in the Official Gazette. Any provision of an earlier resolution that contradicts it is repealed.

The resolution cites, among others, Law No. (8) of 2016 on Regulating Practicing Economic Activities in Ras Al Khaimah Emirate and Law No. (2) of 2025 on Organizing the Department of Economic Development. It attaches three schedules:

• Schedule 1: trade name fees;
• Schedule 2: licensing services fees, including licence issue and renewal, legal form fees, amendments, cancellation and late renewal;
• Schedule 3: commercial and marketing permits, such as extended opening hours, kiosks, sales and promotions.

The DED is asked to monitor the effect of the fees on the economy and business environment and to propose changes where needed. Any change must be made by a further Executive Council resolution, so check the DED for amendments before you budget.

Item 1 of Schedule 2 charges the same fee to issue or renew an economic licence, to change the licensed activity or to add a new activity. The fee depends on the licence category:

• first category: AED 10,000;
• second category: AED 5,000;
• third category: AED 2,500;
• fourth category: AED 1,000;
• fifth category: AED 400.

The schedule does not explain which activities fall into each category, so ask the DED which category applies to your activity before you sign a lease or budget.

Other lines in the same schedule:

• professional or trade licence issued by the Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone Authority: AED 5,500, and AED 7,500 for an industrial licence, with AED 10,000 added for branches of companies licensed outside the Emirate or the State;
• subsidised licence: AED 1,000 for UAE nationals and AED 1,500 for non-UAE nationals;
• electronic commerce websites licence: AED 3,000;
• appointing a service agent for the licence: AED 700;
• development fee: AED 200.

These are DED fees only. Approvals from other bodies, lease registration, chamber membership and visas are charged separately.

Schedule 1 prices a trade name by type. An ordinary name made of common words linked to the activity costs AED 200 for two months. A distinctive name, a foreign name or a name containing a registered trademark costs AED 2,000 for two months each. The schedule lists transliterated names, abbreviations, names with numbers and names referring to places or countries as distinctive. Other lines include:

• trade name translation for existing companies: AED 500;
• name containing marketing words such as 'World of Discounts': AED 3,000 a year;
• exclusive trade name across the RAK mainland: AED 50,000 for ten years;
• name protected within a business sector: AED 20,000 for ten years;
• extending a trade name reservation: AED 200.

Item 12 of Schedule 2 adds a one-off fee for the legal form:

• sole proprietorship and joint liability company: AED 400 each;
• civil works company: AED 1,000;
• limited partnership, limited liability company, group or holding company and family-owned company: AED 2,500 each;
• private joint stock company and free zone branch: AED 5,000 each;
• public joint stock company, foreign company branch and GCC company branch: AED 10,000 each.

Schedule 2 also prices the changes most businesses make during the life of a licence:

• amending any licence detail: AED 150;
• amending an owner or partner name in a legal person's licence: AED 300;
• adding a partner: AED 100 per partner;
• adding a non-compatible activity: AED 1,000;
• suspending a licence for up to six months: AED 500;
• licence translation: AED 250.

Cancellation fees depend on how long the licence has been expired. Cancelling a valid licence, or one expired for up to 90 days, costs AED 100. If it has been expired for more than 90 days and up to three years, the fee is AED 300. The schedule shows AED 150 for a licence expired for more than three years, and AED 10 for a licence under a support programme or a subsidised licence.

Late renewal costs extra. The schedule charges AED 10 a month for the period of practising the activity without renewing the licence. Continuing to trade after expiry without renewal costs the activity licence issuance fee divided by 12, multiplied by the number of months of delay, with part of a month counted as a full month. For closing a company, see RAK DED licence cancellation and tax.

The figures below are illustrative and use only lines from the resolution. A new mainland LLC with an ordinary trade name, in an activity the DED places in the third category, would pay at least:

• trade name reservation: AED 200;
• LLC legal form fee: AED 2,500;
• licence issue: AED 2,500;
• development fee: AED 200, if the DED applies it to the transaction.

That is AED 5,400 in DED fees before other approvals, the lease and visas. The same activity in the first category would carry a AED 10,000 licence fee instead of AED 2,500.

If the licence later expires and the company keeps trading for four and a half months before renewing, the late fee is AED 2,500 divided by 12, multiplied by five months, which is about AED 1,042, on top of the renewal fee itself.

Before you rely on any figure:

1. Confirm your activity's category with the DED.
2. Ask which lines apply to your application, as the resolution lists fees but not which ones are bundled together.
3. Keep the DED receipts: they are business expenses for corporate tax (see bookkeeping in Ras Al Khaimah).