United Arab Emirates: Dubai Introduces ‘One Free Zone Passport’ Across Free Zones

Certain businesses can now apply to operate across multiple Dubai free zones under a single trade license; previously, businesses would need to apply for a separate license for each zone. The scope of operation in the other free zones under the passport, however, will be limited: businesses will not be able to hire employees in, or transfer existing staff to, the other free zones; certain business types (for instance, retailers, among others) are not eligible for this passport; and virtual office arrangements, desk sharing, shared spaces, and business centers are not permitted under the initiative. Various regulatory points are expected to be further clarified in the future. We will continue to monitor the situation.   

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