RAKEZ Free Zone Company Setup
Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone - a wide-ranging free zone built for industrial, trading, and consulting businesses that want lower operating costs without sacrificing UAE market access.
RAKEZ (Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone) is built for a wider range of physical operations than most Dubai-based free zones - it offers everything from standard offices to warehouses and industrial land plots, at a lower cost base than Dubai zones. It's a strong fit for manufacturing, industrial, and trading businesses, and increasingly competitive for consulting and service setups too.
Who RAKEZ suits best
- Manufacturing and industrial businesses needing warehouse or production space
- Trading businesses wanting lower facility costs than Dubai-based zones
- SMEs prioritising cost efficiency over a Dubai postal address
- Consulting and service businesses comparing cost across multiple zones
Licensed activities
- Industrial and manufacturing
- General trading
- Media and consulting
- Education and e-commerce
Cost profile
RAKEZ is generally positioned at the lower-to-mid end of UAE free zone pricing, with a particular cost advantage for industrial and warehouse facilities compared to Dubai-based zones. Office-only packages for trading and consulting are also competitive - see our full cost breakdown for ranges.
What sets RAKEZ apart
Facility range is RAKEZ's real differentiator - few UAE free zones offer the same span from flexi-desk to full industrial land plot under one authority. Combined with Ras Al Khaimah's lower cost base relative to Dubai, it's a genuine option for businesses that need physical operations, not just a licence and a virtual desk.
Setup process
Activity & licence match
We confirm your activity fits RAKEZ's permitted activity list and licence category - the list spans general trading through to academic and media activities, and which sub-zone you're placed in (industrial, general, or academic) depends on the specific activity chosen.
Trade name reservation
Reserved directly with Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone.
Application & documentation
Application form, passport copies, and Memorandum of Association submitted. Industrial and warehouse-based activities may require additional facility documentation, since RAKEZ spans multiple sub-zones (including dedicated industrial and academic zones) with different requirements.
Licence issuance
The RAKEZ trade licence is issued once documents and fees are finalised, with the exact process varying slightly by sub-zone - an industrial facility licence typically involves an additional facility inspection step that a standard flexi-desk package doesn't.
Office/facility & visa allocation
RAKEZ offers one of the widest facility ranges of any UAE free zone, from flexi-desks to full industrial plots - the right package depends on which of its sub-zones fits your activity, with visa quota tied to that choice.
RAKEZ questions, answered.
Yes - RAKEZ licenses a broad range of activities including e-commerce, media, and consulting, not only industrial and manufacturing. It's competitive on cost across most activity types.
Yes, this is one of RAKEZ's core strengths - it offers dedicated industrial land plots and warehouse facilities alongside standard office packages, which many Dubai-based free zones don't.
Roughly an hour's drive from central Dubai, which is manageable for periodic site visits but worth factoring in if you need to be physically present in Dubai frequently.
RAKEZ spans several sub-zones, from flexi-desks and standard offices through to dedicated industrial and academic zones - the facility range is one of the widest of any UAE free zone, which is also why confirming the right sub-zone for your activity matters before applying.
Visa quota is tied to the facility package and sub-zone selected - it varies meaningfully between a flexi-desk in the general zone and a warehouse unit in an industrial sub-zone, so we confirm the number against your actual package.
Start your RAKEZ company setup.
Tell us your activity and we'll confirm the right licence category, cost, and timeline for RAKEZ.