How to Add or Change Activities on Your UAE Trade License (2026 Guide)

How to Add or Change Activities on Your UAE Trade License (2026 Guide)

Quick Read: Adding or changing activities on a UAE trade license

• What it is: Adding, removing or replacing an activity is a formal license amendment. You cannot legally offer a new service or product until it appears on your license.
• Who processes it: Dubai mainland companies apply to the Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) through Invest in Dubai or a service centre. Abu Dhabi mainland companies apply to ADDED through TAMM. Free zone companies apply to their own free zone authority, such as IFZA, Meydan, SPC, RAKEZ or Ajman Free Zone.
• Category and package matter: Activities are grouped as commercial, professional or industrial, and most free zones cap activities by package or activity group. A new activity outside your category or package may need an upgrade, extra approval or a separate license.
• Extra approvals: Regulated activities such as healthcare, education, food and legal consultancy need a sector regulator's approval first.
• Paperwork knock-on: Companies with shareholders usually need a shareholder resolution and an amended Memorandum of Association (MOA).
• Tax deadline: If you are registered for VAT, Corporate Tax or Excise, update your tax records on EmaraTax within 20 business days of the change.

To add or change an activity on your UAE trade license, you need to do six things:

1. Find the exact activity name and code on your authority's activity list.
2. Check it fits your license category, package and premises.
3. Get any sector regulator approval the activity requires.
4. Pass a shareholder resolution and update your MOA (if your legal form needs it).
5. Submit the amendment to DET, ADDED or your free zone authority and pay the fees.
6. Update the FTA, your bank and other records with the amended license.

Businesses rarely stay the same shape. A consultancy starts offering training. A trading company adds e-commerce. A marketing agency moves into events. Each time the business changes, the license has to keep up. This guide covers how to add or change activities on a UAE trade license, how the process works in the main free zones, and the follow-up steps most owners miss.

Why your license activities matter

Your trade license lists exactly what your company is allowed to do. Anything outside that list is an unlicensed activity, even if it feels closely related. The listed activities also shape:

• Your bank's risk view. Banks compare your transactions against your licensed activities. Money arriving for a service you are not licensed for can trigger KYC reviews. See how to avoid bank account rejection in Dubai.
• Your visa job titles. Employee job titles generally need to fit the company's licensed activities.
• Your tax position. For free zone companies, the activities you carry out affect whether income can be treated as qualifying income for Corporate Tax.
• Your contracts. Government entities and large corporates often check your license before signing.

If you are still choosing activities for a new company, read choosing a business activity: how to avoid a licensing nightmare in the UAE first.

Add, remove or change: which amendment do you need?

Step 1: Find the exact activity and code

Authorities approve activities by their official name and code, not by your description. Two activities with similar wording can sit in different categories and carry different approval requirements.

• Dubai mainland: search DET's activity list on the Invest in Dubai platform.
• Abu Dhabi mainland: use ADDED's business activity information service.
• Free zones: each free zone publishes its own activity list. An activity available in one free zone may not exist in another.

Choose the narrowest activity that genuinely covers what you will do. Overly broad activities can attract approvals you do not need.

Step 2: Check category, package and premises

UAE licenses are generally issued as commercial, professional/service or industrial. Adding an activity from the same category is usually a straightforward amendment. Adding one from a different category can mean:

• an additional approval,
• changing the license type, or
• an additional license or branch.

In free zones, your package matters as much as the category. Most free zones include a set number of activities or activity groups in each package, and anything beyond that is an add-on or an upgrade.

Premises matter too. An activity that needs a warehouse or specific fit-out cannot be added to a flexi-desk without upgrading the space.

Step 3: Secure external approvals for regulated activities

Some activities need a sector regulator's no-objection before the licensing authority will add them. Common examples:

• Healthcare and wellness: the emirate's health authority (e.g. DHA in Dubai)
• Education and training: the emirate's education regulator (e.g. KHDA in Dubai)
• Food and beverage: municipality food safety approval
• Transport: RTA in Dubai
• Legal consultancy: additional documents and approvals in most jurisdictions
• Financial or investment services: the relevant financial regulator; these are rarely simple add-ons

Start these early. External approvals are the most common reason an amendment stalls.

Step 4: Update your corporate documents

What you need depends on your legal form:

• Sole establishment or single-owner FZE: usually an owner's declaration or simple request.
• LLC, FZ-LLC or multi-shareholder company: a shareholder resolution approving the change, and an amended MOA where applicable.
• Corporate shareholder or branch: a board resolution from the parent company, attested if issued abroad.

Our guide to the Memorandum of Association (MoA) explains why the MOA's objects clause must match your license.

Step 5: Submit the amendment

Dubai mainland (DET)

DET's license amendment service covers modifying business activities, alongside changes to partners, location, manager, capital and trade name. Apply through Invest in Dubai or an approved service centre. Typical documents:

• Current trade license
• Passport and Emirates ID copies of shareholders and manager
• Shareholder or board resolution
• Amended MOA or addendum (where the legal form requires it)
• External approvals for regulated activities
• Updated tenancy contract (Ejari) if the new activity changes premises requirements

See our Dubai mainland page for the wider licensing framework.

Abu Dhabi mainland (ADDED)

ADDED handles amendments to the trade name, address and activity of an economic license through the TAMM platform. Log in with UAE Pass, select the license amendment service, add the activity and upload any approvals. See Abu Dhabi mainland.

How to add or change activities in popular UAE free zones

Free zone companies must apply to their own free zone authority. DET does not process free zone amendments. Each zone has its own activity list, package limits and portal. Here is how it works in the free zones we work with most.

IFZA (Dubai Silicon Oasis)

IFZA licenses carry activities chosen from IFZA's own activity list. To add or change one, you submit an amendment request to IFZA with the activity name, any external approval, and a shareholder resolution if the company has more than one shareholder.

Example: An IFZA management consultancy wants to start offering IT consulting to the same clients. Both are service activities, so this is usually a straightforward addition. If the same company wanted to start trading laptops, that would move into a different category and needs a check against its license package first.

See IFZA business setup.

Meydan Free Zone (Dubai)

A Meydan Free Zone license includes up to three business activity groups. Adding an activity inside a group you already hold is usually quick and rarely needs third-party approval. Adding a new group, or moving into a regulated sector, takes longer. Amendments are handled through Meydan's online portal.

Example: A Meydan marketing agency adds social media management. That sits within its existing group, so it is a simple addition. If the agency later wants to run paid training courses, the education activity needs KHDA approval. A move into wellness services would need DHA clearance.

See Meydan Free Zone business setup.

SPC Free Zone (Sharjah)

SPC Free Zone licenses activities from a broad catalogue that goes well beyond publishing, and its instant license package lets you choose up to three activities. SPC also offers a dual licensing option for companies that want to work with both mainland and free zone clients.

Example: An SPC e-publishing company wants to add digital marketing services. Both can sit on one SPC license if the package allows the extra activity. If the company then wins UAE mainland retail clients, the better route may be SPC's dual licensing option rather than another activity amendment.

See SPC Free Zone business setup.

RAKEZ (Ras Al Khaimah)

RAKEZ publishes one of the clearest amendment processes among UAE free zones. Its license amendment service covers adding, removing or replacing activities:

• Fill in the application form and an activity amendment resolution.
• All shareholders, or their authorised representatives under a valid power of attorney, must sign the resolution. A corporate shareholder must also provide its own resolution.
• RAKEZ verifies the request, prepares any legal documents, and shareholders sign them electronically.
• RAKEZ issues the amended e-license and, where applicable, an amended MOA.

RAKEZ quotes 5 to 7 working days for free zone license amendments. For RAKEZ non-free zone (RAK DED) licenses, it quotes 10 to 20 working days. The number of activities per license is limited and subject to RAKEZ approval. Warehouse and legal consultancy activities need extra forms.

Example: A RAKEZ trading company holding a warehouse wants to add light assembly. It submits the activity amendment with RAKEZ's detailed warehouse activity form. If the activity changes the license type to industrial, RAKEZ treats it as a license type change rather than a simple addition.

See RAKEZ business setup.

Ajman Free Zone

Ajman Free Zone offers a large activity list across commercial, industrial, service and e-commerce license types. The number of activities you can hold depends on your license type and package. Amendments go to Ajman Free Zone directly.

Example: An Ajman Free Zone general trading company wants to start selling online. Adding an e-commerce activity may sit within its license type, or it may need a change to an e-commerce license type. Confirm which before you apply.

See Ajman Free Zone business setup.

Ajman NuVentures Centre Free Zone

Ajman NuVentures is built for startups and digital businesses. Activity amendments go to the NuVentures authority, and the same checks apply: the activity must be on its list and allowed by your package.

Example: A NuVentures app developer adds IT consulting. Both are service activities, so this is normally a clean addition.

See Ajman NuVentures business setup.

Fujairah Free Zone (FFZA)

FFZA licenses trading, industrial and service activities, with access to Fujairah's port and logistics infrastructure. Activity changes go to FFZA directly. Warehouse or industrial activities usually need premises that fit the new activity.

Example: An FFZA trading company importing building materials wants to add logistics services. Because the new activity depends on its warehouse and port operations, FFZA will review premises suitability as part of the amendment.

Free zone tips

• Check the package first. Most amendments fail on package limits, not paperwork.
• Plan around renewal. If the change can wait, ask your free zone whether filing it with your trade license renewal is simpler.
• Need mainland clients? No activity amendment fixes a jurisdiction problem. Look at dual licensing, a mainland branch or mainland business setup instead.

Step 6: Update everything that depends on your license

This is the step most owners skip.

1. Federal Tax Authority (FTA). If you are registered for VAT, Corporate Tax or Excise Tax, submit a Tax Records Amendment on EmaraTax within 20 business days of the change. The FTA lists changes to business activities and trade license amendments among the details that must be updated. Late updates can attract administrative penalties. See VAT registration in the UAE and UAE Corporate Tax registration.
2. Qualifying Free Zone Person check. If your free zone company relies on the 0% rate for qualifying income, review whether the new activity produces qualifying or non-qualifying income before you add it. Our corporate tax consultancy team can model the impact.
3. Your bank. Send the amended license to your relationship manager so your KYC profile matches what you now do.
4. Visas and labour records. Check that employee job titles still fit the license, especially after removing an activity. See visa & PRO services.
5. UBO and company registers. If the amendment also changes shareholders or managers, update your UBO filing. See UBO compliance in the UAE.
6. Website, invoices and contracts. Make sure what you market and invoice matches your licensed activities.

Six mistakes to avoid when changing license activities

1. Starting the new activity before the amendment is issued. Trading outside your license is a violation, even for a few weeks.
2. Picking an activity by description, not code. Similar-sounding activities can carry different categories and approvals.
3. Ignoring your free zone package limits. Extra activities or groups may need an upgrade.
4. Forgetting the MOA. A license that says one thing and an MOA that says another causes problems with banks and at renewal.
5. Missing the FTA 20-business-day window. This is a separate obligation from the license amendment itself.
6. Removing an activity that visas depend on. Check staff job titles and permits first.

How Consult Kumar® helps with license amendments

Consult Kumar® has advised UAE businesses on company formation and restructuring since 2010. For activity changes we handle:

• Activity mapping and code selection
• Category, package and premises checks
• External approvals
• Resolutions and MOA updates
• Submission to DET, ADDED or your free zone
• FTA records amendment, bank updates and visa alignment

If your change is bigger than an amendment, our corporate structuring team can advise on a branch, dual license or new entity. Book a consultation to check whether your new activity can sit on your current license.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I add another activity to my existing UAE trade license?

Yes, in most cases. You apply for a license amendment to DET (Dubai mainland), ADDED via TAMM (Abu Dhabi mainland) or your free zone authority. The new activity must be on that authority's activity list, fit your license category, package and premises, and have any required sector approvals.

Can I add a commercial activity to a service or professional license?

Not always. Activities are grouped into commercial, professional/service and industrial categories. Adding an activity from a different category may require extra approval, a license type change, or an additional license. Check with your licensing authority before you apply.

How do I add an activity to a free zone license?

Apply directly to your free zone authority, not to DET. Each free zone, including IFZA, Meydan, SPC, RAKEZ and Ajman Free Zone, has its own activity list, portal and package limits. Confirm the activity is available in your zone and allowed by your package first.

How long does a free zone license amendment take?

It depends on the zone and the activity. RAKEZ, for example, quotes 5 to 7 working days for a free zone license amendment. Regulated activities that need approval from bodies such as KHDA, DHA or the municipality take longer.

Do I need to update the FTA after changing my license activities?

Yes, if you are registered for VAT, Corporate Tax or Excise Tax. Submit a Tax Records Amendment on EmaraTax within 20 business days of the change and upload the amended license. Missing this deadline can lead to administrative penalties.

Do I need to amend my MOA to add a business activity?

Usually, if your company has shareholders. You will typically need a shareholder resolution and an amended MOA where applicable. Single-owner establishments often need only an owner's declaration.

Can I remove an activity from my trade license?

Yes. Removing an activity is also a license amendment. Before you remove it, check that no employee visas, permits, contracts or approvals depend on that activity.

Can a free zone company change its activity and keep its 0% Corporate Tax rate?

It depends on the activity. A Qualifying Free Zone Person must earn qualifying income to keep the 0% rate on that income. Review whether the new activity produces qualifying income before adding it.