Meydan Free Zone from the UK: visas, timeline and who it suits

Meydan Free Zone sells speed: a Dubai licence issued online, in some cases within the hour. That suits many people leaving the UK, but the licence is only the first step. Dubai Transition Consultants is a Meydan Free Zone agent. This page sets out what Meydan offers, from its own website as at October 2026, and where it fits. For the wider comparison, see the free zone hub.

Who Meydan suits

• Solo founders and freelancers who will be the only shareholder (the Fawri route).
• UK consultants and online businesses that want a Dubai address and a flexi-desk.
• Founders who want the company before they move, and will add visas later.
• People who want to keep living elsewhere for now and run a UAE company (see base your company in Dubai but live abroad).

Meydan suits you less if you hold physical stock, need a large office, or want the name recognition of DMCC.

Licences and Meydan activities

• Activities: Meydan's home page says more than 2,500; its Fawri page says more than 1,800 approved for Fawri.
• Activity groups: up to three groups on one licence, several activities inside each.
• Fawri: single-shareholder companies only, issued in under 60 minutes after online application and payment, with a refund if late. No minimum paid-up capital.
• Standard digital licence: issued online within 24 hours, Meydan says.
• Licence term: licences can be issued for up to 10 years.
• Mainland work: a mainland permit is available if you want to work with mainland UAE companies.

Visas

Meydan lets you add visas "only when your business needs them" and handles investor and employee visas, including entry permit, medical, Emirates ID and stamping. After incorporation you need an immigration card and a visa allocation before you apply. With Fawri, visas, medical and Emirates ID sit outside the base licence as add-ons. If you are the sole shareholder you apply for an investor visa; if you share the company, a partner visa. Your spouse and children then follow as your dependants (how family sponsorship works).

Office

A flexi-desk comes with the standard licence and gives you a registered address and shared workspace. Fawri needs no office lease: Meydan includes a facility lease agreement in the Fawri package, and you can upgrade to a flexi-desk or dedicated office. You can move to a dedicated office later.

Timeline

1. Name check: Meydan says about 20 minutes.
2. Licence: under 60 minutes for Fawri after application and payment; within 24 hours for the standard licence.
3. Registers: Meydan requires a register of beneficial owners and a register of shareholders within 60 days of incorporation, with changes recorded within 15 days.
4. Immigration, visa and bank: for Fawri, Meydan quotes 1 to 2 business days to activate your immigration profile (establishment card), 3 to 7 business days for the visa process, and 1 business day to initiate the bank account. Final bank approval rests with the bank.

In practice the residence visa and bank account set the pace. See how long setup takes.

Banking

Meydan says it works with more than 26 local, international and fintech partners and that for Fawri licensees it initiates the corporate account process within 1 business day of the licence going live. Final approval rests with the bank. Meydan also warns that combining general trading with several unrelated activities may complicate account opening. Keep the activity list tight and prepare your source-of-funds documents first. Our banking service handles that file, and why accounts get rejected explains the common reasons.

How we set up a Meydan company from the UK

We check first that Meydan fits your activity and that Fawri or the standard licence suits your shareholding. Then you get one all-in price covering the licence, your visa and the bank account support. We choose the activity groups with you so the licence reads well to a bank, file the application, and set up the beneficial owner registers inside Meydan's 60-day window. When you fly out we book the medical, Emirates ID and bank meetings together. On the UK side, we flag where running the company from the UK could make it UK tax resident (central management and control). Full detail is on our company formation service page.