58.5% is the share of the emirate’s registered licenses within the country by the end of August
583,000 is the total number of business licenses in Dubai as of the end of August
Abu Dhabi – Sameh El-Laythi
Dubai issued approximately 42,000 new licenses for establishing businesses over the past year, bringing the total count of active business licenses in the emirate to 583,000 by the end of August this year. This reflects a year-over-year growth of over 7% compared to the 543,000 licenses registered by the end of August last year.
According to recent data from the licensing register from the Ministry of Economy, the emirate continues to be the most appealing location for business licenses and the top choice among investors for business establishment in the UAE. During this period, Dubai accounted for 50% of all business licenses granted across the country, totaling 84,000 licenses, which increased the overall number of licenses in the UAE from 912,100 at the end of August 2024 to 996,100 by the end of August this year.
Overall, the share of business activity licenses in Dubai reached about 58.5% of the total cumulative commercial licenses registered in the UAE by the end of August 2025.
Business Diversity
The local business environment in the emirate has shown remarkable diversity in registered business activities. Based on the legal forms of company establishment, limited liability companies remain the most common type to receive licenses from commercial licensing authorities in Dubai. This is followed by individual licenses and one-person companies, along with a significant number of civil company licenses.
Other licenses vary across several forms of businesses including partnerships, simple recommendation companies, cooperatives, branches of local companies, professional firms, free zone entities, and various other business structures.
Data indicates a successful business environment that has attracted foreign company operations and enhanced the presence of licensed branches in the market. Dubai has approximately 4,000 registered business licenses for branches of foreign and Gulf companies, reflecting the emirate’s appeal to global enterprises looking to establish regional offices. The total number of registered licenses in the emirate by the end of August also includes a large number of public and private joint-stock company licenses.