Dubai issues 1,882 instant licences

The instant licence enables businessmen to obtain their commercial licence in one step within five minutes.

The Business Registration and Licensing (BRL) sector in the Department of Economic Development (DED) in Dubai reported that 1,882 instant licences, which are issued within five minutes, were issued after the service was launched in July 2017 until the end of 2018. Among the instant licences issued, 1,641 were commercial (87 per cent) and 241 in the professional (13 per cent) category.

The instant licence enables businessmen to obtain their commercial licences in one step within five minutes without having a company's lease or location for the first year only. They only have to present these documents for renewal. The initiative reduces the time required for business registration procedures and licence issuance by 90 per cent.

The initiative has recently won the first rank in the Global Continual Improvement & Innovation Competition & Award organised by the Dubai Quality Group in the category of Kaizen (services).

The number of instant licence owners reached 6,100 as of today, with men accounting for 88 per cent and women 12 per cent of the total instant licence holders. Indian businessmen hold the largest number of instant licences issued so far, followed by the nationals of Egypt, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, China, Britain, Sudan, Jordan, Bangladesh and Canada.

All business activities can benefit from the service, except public and private shareholding companies, through the various outsourced service centres in Dubai, and the Happiness and Smart Lounges 24x7. Holders of general trade licences can only use electronic services.

All business partners or one of them must be present while applying through the outsourced service centres or the happiness lounges and must provide a valid passport copy to all parties (partner and manager), residence visa copy and no-objection letter from the sponsor to the foreign parties.

The instant license also offers the option of an electronic contract, in addition to obtaining the licence and entry in the DED's commercial registry. Furthermore, the licensee is given membership in the Dubai Chamber instantly as well as establishment cards of the Ministry of Human Resources & Emiratisation and the General Directorate of Residency & Foreigners Affairs.

An instant licence includes four legal forms; Limited Liability Company, One Person L.L.C, Sole Proprietorship and Civil Company.

"The instant licence service is in line with BRL's vital role in promoting the sustainable economic development and competitiveness of Dubai through targeted initiatives and the application of best practices in areas such as ease of starting business, company registration, smart services and providing value-added services to licence owners, and thereby creating a world-class business environment," said Abdulaziz bin Hathboor, director of customer relation division, BRL sector.

- business@khaleejtimes.com