How much does it cost to renew a UAE free zone licence in year 2?

It depends on the zone — and most zones do not publish the figure. Verified June 2026: Meydan Free Zone states a regular business licence costs AED 12,500 per year including renewal; DMCC publishes an official renewal tariff (standard trade/service licence renewal AED 20,265 per year plus AED 1,825 establishment card, with renewal packages from AED 35,564). IFZA, SPC Free Zone, RAKEZ and Masdar City publish no renewal prices and quote each company privately at renewal time.

Does IFZA publish its licence renewal fees?

No. IFZA's official guidance says renewal cost 'will depend on various factors' and that the authority 'will review your application and provide a quotation'. No public renewal price list exists on ifza.com as of June 2026.

What happens if I renew my free zone licence late?

Zones charge published late penalties — for example Meydan Free Zone publishes a AED 200 per month late-renewal fine and RAKEZ publishes AED 50 per day. Renew before expiry to avoid penalties and immigration-file complications.

Is the renewal price the same as the first-year setup price?

Sometimes, but you cannot assume it. Year-1 promotions and bundled one-time fees mean year 2 can be higher or lower. Only Meydan publicly frames its headline price as an annual recurring cost. For zones that don't publish renewals, get the year-2 figure in writing before you commit.

Do visa costs recur in year 2?

Generally no — UAE free-zone residence visas are typically issued for two years, so visa renewal lands in year 3, not year 2. Year-2 cost is mainly the licence renewal plus any recurring items like establishment-card or e-channel fees.

formenzo.

Guide · verified 12 June 2026

UAE free zone renewal costs in year 2: what's actually published

By Formenzo · Every claim below was checked against the zone's own official website in June 2026. Sources linked inline.

Every comparison site can tell you what a UAE free-zone licence costs in year 1. Almost nobody tells you what it costs in year 2 — because most free zones don't publish it. We checked the official websites of six major zones. The result surprised even us.

The headline: only 2 of 6 major zones publish renewal prices

Free zone	Year-2 renewal price public?	What's published
Meydan Free Zone (Dubai)	✓ Yes	AED 12,500/yr — the headline licence price is explicitly an annual recurring cost
DMCC (Dubai)	✓ Yes	Official renewal tariff: standard licence renewal AED 20,265/yr + AED 1,825 establishment card; renewal packages from AED 35,564 (incl. flexi desk + 1 visa); general trading AED 50,265/yr
IFZA (Dubai)	✗ No	No price list — renewal is individually quoted
SPC Free Zone (Sharjah)	✗ No	No package-specific figures — renewal via customer portal
RAKEZ (Ras Al Khaimah)	✗ No	Renewal quotation emailed ~60 days before expiry
Masdar City (Abu Dhabi)	✗ No	No renewal price list; only e-channel renewal (AED 1,600/yr) is published

What the zones say, in their own words

Meydan Free Zone is the clearest of all:

"At Meydan Free Zone, a regular business license costs AED 12,500 per year. That covers up to three business activities and gives you the legal right to operate and renew each year."— meydanfz.ae, retrieved June 2026 (late renewal fine: AED 200/month)

DMCC publishes a full renewal schedule — the only zone with this level of detail. A standard trade/service licence renews at AED 20,265 per year plus an annual establishment card of AED 1,825; bundled renewal packages (licence + establishment card + flexi desk + one visa) run AED 35,564–43,720 per year. dmcc.ae/members/licence-renewal-packages

IFZA, by contrast:

"The cost of renewing your trading license will depend on various factors… the licensing authority will review your application and provide a quotation based on your chosen package and tenure."— ifza.com, retrieved June 2026

RAKEZ confirms renewals are quoted, not listed:

"The renewal quotation is generally emailed to your designated email address… 60 days prior to your license expiry date."— rakez.com FAQ (late penalty: AED 50/day)

SPC Free Zone describes the renewal process ("visit your customer portal… submit the required documents") and its own blog offers only an industry-wide range of "AED 10,000 to AED 20,000 per year" — no package figures. Masdar City prices every package as setup-only; its sole published recurring renewal figure is the AED 1,600/yr e-channel fee.

Why this matters for your budget

Year-1 prices are marketing; year-2 prices are your real run-rate. Promotions, bundled one-time fees and credits make year 1 look cheaper than the steady state.
Visas don't recur in year 2. Free-zone residence visas typically run two years — so your year-2 bill is mostly the licence renewal plus small recurring items (establishment card, e-channel). Budget visa renewals for year 3.
Late renewal is expensive. Published penalties range from AED 200/month (Meydan) to AED 50/day (RAKEZ) — plus knock-on immigration-file issues.

How Formenzo handles this: our calculator and app show a verified "Year-2 renewal" and "2-year true cost" wherever a zone publishes the figure — and an honest "TBC — ask us" where it doesn't. Before you commit to any zone, we get your year-2 number in writing. No surprises in month 13.

Check the live numbers

We snapshot every zone's published pricing daily and log every change on the UAE Free Zone Cost Index. For your specific setup, build an all-in quote in 30 seconds:

Get my all-in quote View the live Cost Index

Verified 12 June 2026 against each zone's official website; fees are set by the authorities and may change — always confirm the final figure in writing. This guide is information, not legal or tax advice. © 2026 Formenzo FZE · UAE-licensed (licence 20232).