UAE’s new foreign ownership rules aim to create 700,000 companies by 2030

UAE’s new foreign ownership rules aim to create 700,000 companies by 2030

The recent amendments to the commercial companies law in the UAE aim to increase the number of companies in the UAE to one million within the next 10 years.

According to Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri, the UAE's Minister of Economy, there are 300,000 companies in the UAE currently, and 99.3 percent represent national companies.

Sami Al Qamzi, director general of Dubai Economy, says foreign investments are expected to see a 35% increase as a result of the amendments

Al Marri discussed the benefits of the amendments on the business environment and the national economy, such as enhancing the openness of the country's business climate, creation of new job opportunities, and increasing the confidence of foreign investors, during a recent virtual media briefing organised by the Ministry of Economy.

The UAE is to abolish the need for companies to have Emirati shareholders in a major shake-up of foreign ownership laws aimed at attracting investment into an economy reeling from the coronavirus and a decline in oil prices.

Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, amended the UAE Commercial Companies Law of 2015 to allow foreign nationals 100 percent ownership effective from December 1.

Previously, Sami Al Qamzi, director general of Dubai Economy, said