Dubai free zone profile
DMCC (Dubai Multi Commodities Centre)
The heavyweight address for trading firms, commodities and Web3. Located in Jumeirah Lakes Towers.
From
AED 21,000
Setup
1 to 3 weeks
Ownership
100% foreign
Visas
Scales with office size, from 1 on a flexi desk
About DMCC
DMCC has been named global free zone of the year by fDi Magazine repeatedly, and it hosts more than 25,000 companies across the Jumeirah Lakes Towers district. It is the natural home for commodities firms: gold, diamonds, tea, coffee and energy all have dedicated trading infrastructure here.
The zone runs its own Crypto Centre, which has grown into one of the larger concentrations of Web3 firms outside the United States. Licences for proprietary trading, blockchain development and NFT-adjacent activities are available with clearer guardrails than most jurisdictions offer.
Costs run higher than the newer digital-first zones, and the compliance bar is stricter. In exchange you get an address that carries weight with banks, counterparties and institutional partners. For a trading business that plans to move real volume, DMCC is usually worth the premium.
Licence types at DMCC
- Trading licence. Physical commodities, general trading and import-export at scale.
- Service licence. Consultancy, management services and professional advisory work.
- Industrial licence. Processing and manufacturing tied to commodity flows.
- Crypto Centre licence. Web3, blockchain development and approved virtual asset activities.
Offices and facilities
- Flexi desks
- Serviced offices
- Full floors in JLT towers
- Freehold purchase options
What DMCC costs
Indicative first-year cost including registration and a flexi desk. Confirmed quote issued on application. Budget from AED 21,000 for the first year, then add visa allocations, medicals and Emirates ID per person, and workspace if you upgrade beyond the entry package. Renewals typically come in below year-one totals. Our costs page breaks down every line item, and your written quote fixes the numbers before you pay.
Questions
DMCC questions, answered
Is DMCC worth the higher cost?
For firms trading physical goods, dealing with institutional counterparties or raising finance, usually yes. The address, the banking relationships and the compliance reputation shorten a lot of conversations. A one-person consultancy can get the same legal benefits elsewhere for half the price.
Can I run a crypto business from DMCC?
DMCC's Crypto Centre licenses proprietary trading, development and several other virtual asset activities. Anything touching regulated investor money also needs VARA authorisation, and we will tell you plainly which side of that line your model falls on.
How long does DMCC formation take?
Expect one to three weeks. DMCC reviews applications more carefully than the budget zones, particularly for trading activities, so the file needs to be right the first time.
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