Consultancy licence in Dubai
A consultancy sells advice, not goods. On the Dubai mainland that is a professional licence: DET’s category for services based on intellectual or artistic ability, and this site already names consulting as the example. A free zone issues its own service or consultancy activity. A one-person permit is the freelance product, which is not a company with staff. None of these is a Golden Visa, and none has a package price on this page.
Company, freelance permit, or the wrong visa
| How you work | What to set up | Keep separate |
|---|---|---|
| A firm with shareholders, contracts and possibly staff | DET professional licence, or a free zone consultancy activity | A trading licence, unless you also sell goods |
| One person, one profession, no staff | Freelance permit | A professional company, and the MOHRE permit a Green Visa freelancer may need |
| Management advice plus a company you hope will qualify for residence | The licence the activity needs | The Golden Visa for business owners. Capital and tax tests are not waived because the activity says consulting. |
The activity title has to match the work. “Management consultancy”, “IT consultancy” and “marketing consultancy” are different lines. IT work also has the IT licence page. Marketing has the digital marketing page. We put the line the authority uses on the draft before the name is reserved.
THAJ’s fee is quoted in writing after the activity wording is accepted. Authority charges are extra and are not invented on this page. VAT & Corporate Tax Support is not included: Get connected with our licensed accounting and tax partners for VAT registration, Corporate Tax registration, return filing and bookkeeping.
Some advice needs another regulator
A plain management consultancy is a professional activity. Advice that is really a regulated profession — legal, medical, financial, or real estate brokerage — needs that profession’s approval as well as the trade licence. Real estate brokerage has a Dubai Land Department and RERA path. We do not hide a regulated activity inside the word consultancy.
Frequently asked questions
What licence do I need to consult in Dubai?
A DET professional licence if you will operate on the mainland, or the free zone’s consultancy activity if you will operate in that zone. A solo practitioner may be looking at a freelance permit instead.
Is a consultancy licence a freelance permit?
No. A freelance permit is a one-person permission. A consultancy company is a firm. Staff and a visa quota belong to the company, if the authority allows them.
Does a consultancy company give me a Golden Visa?
No. Business-owner Golden Visa routes have their own capital or tax tests. A licence is not one of them.
What does a consultancy licence cost?
DET’s published professional registration fee is on the cost page and is not the total. Zone fees are the zone’s. THAJ’s fee is quoted separately. There is no package on this page.
Official sources
Facts on this page were checked against these sources on 5 November 2026. Rules and fees can change; the authority’s current page always prevails.
- Business licensing — licence types and set-up process — Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism (DET)
- Establishing business in the UAE (licence types, trade names, premises) — UAE Ministry of Economy and Tourism
- Starting a business in a free zone — The UAE Government portal (u.ae)
- Business set-up options: mainland or free zone — Government of Dubai (dubai.ae)
Name the advice you invoice
Management, IT, marketing or a regulated profession. The word consultancy is not the activity.