Establishment cards and employee visas when setting up a UAE business

Why this step comes after your trade licence

A trade licence lets your company exist and operate. It does not, by itself, let you employ anyone. Hiring staff and sponsoring their visas is a separate layer of registration with a different set of authorities.

If you have not yet picked a legal structure, start with business licences in the UAE and mainland vs free zone in the UAE. This guide assumes your company is already licensed and you are now ready to sponsor your first employee.

The route differs depending on where you are set up:

• Mainland companies in Dubai deal with GDRFA Dubai (General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs) for the establishment, or immigration, card, and with MOHRE (Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation) for the employee side: registration, quota, work permits and labour cards.
• Mainland companies in other emirates go through the federal Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security Authority (ICP) rather than GDRFA, because GDRFA is a Dubai-specific authority. The MOHRE side of the process is federal and broadly the same across emirates.
• Free zone companies generally apply through their own free zone authority, which handles the immigration-card and visa steps on the company's behalf. Many free zones also run their own employment regulations instead of MOHRE's. This guide focuses on the mainland route through GDRFA and MOHRE; check your free zone's own portal for its specific process and fees.

Step 1: the establishment (immigration) card

For Dubai mainland and Dubai free zone entities, GDRFA's own service pages describe the establishment card as a document that records your business's information with the immigration authority. According to GDRFA, the requirements are:

• A copy of the appendix listing the partners' names.
• Passport copies of the authorised signatories.
• A notarised authorisation for authorised persons, if a manager is applying rather than an owner.

National companies and SMEs have a slightly different document list on GDRFA's page for that category: a copy of the sponsor's passport, a copy of the trade licence, and, for businesses receiving small-project support, an official letter from the Small Projects Support Program.

You can apply through GDRFA's smart services system (with UAE Pass or a username) or in person at a Customer Happiness Centre or Amer Service Centre. GDRFA states expected completion within 48 hours.

Step 2: register with MOHRE and get the e-signature card

Once your establishment card is issued, the next stage is registering your company with MOHRE. According to the UAE Government Portal (u.ae), this opens a file and issues an establishment card and number linked to your trade licence. You then apply for the establishment's e-signature card, one of the ways MOHRE lets an employer sign for itself electronically alongside UAE Pass and digital signature. MOHRE's own service page lists two fees for this card: an AED 72 request-typing fee and an AED 40 issuance fee, with no other documents required.

U.ae describes the e-signature card as "a prerequisite for any application submitted by the employer," and states that only after the card is issued can the employer apply for a pre-approval work permit. U.ae also confirms that MOHRE schedules a premises inspection and issues the card only once it finds no violations. This wording describes the mainland employer route specifically; it is not confirmed as a universal requirement across every MOHRE service or free zone.

Step 3: your employee quota

MOHRE sets a quota, the number of work permits your company is allowed to hold, based on your legal status, facility size, projects and declared business needs. U.ae states that employers submit supporting evidence and that the quota can be amended with MOHRE's approval.

MOHRE's own service page for quota applications notes:

• The establishment must hold a valid trade licence and have private status with no restrictions.
• A valid Taq'eem report must be submitted (fee: AED 406, according to MOHRE).
• The profession applied for must match the establishment's declared business activities.
• Business centres may charge a commission of up to AED 72 for handling the application. Applying directly through MOHRE's website or app is free, beyond the government fees.
• MOHRE states a processing time of two working days for this service.

MOHRE describes some quota allocation as proactive, meaning a quota can be awarded without a separate application, based on information MOHRE already holds about the business.

Step 4: the work permit (labour card) application

With the quota in place, you apply for a work permit for each employee. Per u.ae, the required documents are:

• A copy of your trade licence.
• The establishment's e-signature card.
• A colour photo of the worker on a white background.
• A copy of the worker's passport, valid for at least six months.
• Qualifications relevant to the role, authenticated by the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
• For regulated professions (doctors, pharmacists, nurses, teachers and similar), an approval letter from the relevant authority.

The worker must also meet basic eligibility conditions: be at least 18, not already hold a valid work permit with another employer, have a profession that matches the company's activity, and have a signed job offer.

Step 5: entry, medical test, Emirates ID, and the labour card

Once MOHRE approves the work permit, u.ae describes a validity period of 60 days for the permit itself. Approval fees and a refundable security deposit of AED 3,000 per registered employee, paid by the employer to MOHRE through an approved UAE bank, must be settled within this window, or the permit is automatically cancelled and the application has to be submitted again. This deposit is a standard banking instrument tied to the employee's work permit, refunded once the employee's service ends and the labour card is cancelled; it says nothing about whether the hiring itself will succeed.

Separately, the company opens a file with GDRFA (or ICP, outside Dubai) and applies for a work entry permit, which u.ae states is valid for two months. Within that period, the employer arranges:

• The employee's medical fitness test.
• An Emirates ID application through the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP).
• Issuance of the labour card from MOHRE.

Step 6: residence visa issuance

Once the medical test, Emirates ID and labour card are complete, the residence visa is granted on the basis of the work permit. It is not stamped into the employee's passport: since 11 April 2022, the UAE moved to an electronic residency system in which the Emirates ID itself serves as proof of residence, replacing the older passport sticker/stamp. From this point, the employee is officially sponsored by the employer and, once settled, can in turn sponsor eligible family members.

Mainland versus free zone: do not assume one process fits both

GDRFA's own establishment-card service for Dubai covers "Institutions in the Private Sector/ Free Zone" under one listing, which suggests Dubai free zone companies can route through GDRFA directly or through their free zone's own channel. In practice, most free zone authorities (DMCC, JAFZA, DIFC, ADGM and others) run their own establishment-card and visa processing on behalf of their licensees, with their own portals, timelines and fee schedules.

More significantly, several free zones, including DIFC and ADGM, operate under their own employment regulations rather than MOHRE's. This affects more than paperwork: it can change notice periods, gratuity calculations and dispute procedures, not just who issues the card.

If your company is in a free zone, treat the steps above as background on how the mainland route works, and get the equivalent process and current fees directly from your free zone authority before budgeting or planning hiring timelines.

General consumer information only, not legal advice. Rules and regulations can change, so check the latest official guidance for your circumstances.

If you are still deciding between a mainland and free zone structure before you reach this stage, see mainland vs free zone in the UAE and how to start a business in the UAE.