The Establishment Card UAE is an essential document for any foreign investor that wants to conduct business in this country. Learning about the stages for establishing your company is crucial, but you also need to know which other requirements you need to fulfill so you can offer your services or products without any trouble.
There are several steps you have to take further once you set up your company and one of this the Establishment card check. Before you can hire employees, as well as receive payments and many other activities, you need to obtain this important document.
In this article, you’re going to learn everything you need to know about how to get the establishment card for your business. In addition, you can gain some understanding of why it’s so important to get it. Let’s observe:
Establishment card UAE: All you need to know about it
Many entrepreneurs and foreign investors that look at the UAE as a promising place to conduct business may want to start their operations as soon as possible.
They may learn how to set up a company fast in the UAE, but it’s important to know that once you have carried out this process, you still need to fulfill certain requirements before starting operations.
Getting your trade license it’s crucial to conduct business, but if you’re planning on hiring employees or issuing invoices, you must have an Establishment card UAE to do it.
Why do you need to learn about the establishment card?
It’s essential to learn about the Labour establishment card UAE before you begin the incorporation process of your company because this will allow you to be prepared to anything you have to face once you have set up your business.
In addition, it will allow you to gather all the necessary documents so you can speed up the process and begin to offer your services as soon as possible.
If you already know how to get the Establishment card MoHRE but you want to get assistance in this matter, you can contact a business setup agency that can assist you in this process like Connect Freezone.
What is an establishment card?
Before starting to learn about how to carry out the process for obtaining the Establishment Card UAE, you need to know what it is.
The main thing you need to know is that it’s an essential document that’s usually issued as a plastic card. It’s the same size as your bank card, and in it it’s specified the information about your organization.
Here we can observe the content of an establishment card:
- Company’s name
- Card number
- Expiry date
The content is written both in English and Arabic, and on the back side of the card, you can find some instructions to the holder as well as the information to contact the AMER Service. The most important information in this document is the Establishment card number.
Is the Establishment Labour Card the same as the Establishment Immigration Card?
Another important fact you should know about this document is that it has several names. It can receive the following names:
- CEC or company establishment card
- CIC or company immigration card
- Establishment labor card
- Establishment immigration card
Therefore, whenever you see one of the previous name, you should know that it’s the same document.
Who issues the establishment card in UAE?
Before you establish your company, you must know who the authority responsible of issuing this crucial document is. It’s important to note that the registration authority isn’t in charge of it, since the immigration authority is in charge of issuing it instead.
The immigration authority is the General Directorate of Residency & Foreigners Affairs.
This may cause confusion to business owners because they may think that if they register the company in any Free Zone, said Free Zone will be in charge of issuing it. Thus, they may think that the issuing process could take 2 days and they choose a Free Zone for this reason. However, this isn’t the case and they may have to wait for 8 to 14 days after setting up the company because the immigration authority will process it and issue it.
So, once you establish your company, you must wait until the immigration authorities issue your establishment card. For this reason, you should be prepared to wait.
What is the validity of the establishment card?
When you get your establishment card you must know that is has a validity date and you must renew it before it expires.
Regarding validity, Free Zone companies receive a card with a 1-year validity, while local companies get a three-year validity card. In this case, you must carry out the Establishment card renewal so you don’t get fined.
Why do you need an establishment card?
Perhaps you may be wondering why your business needs to count on an Establishment card UAE.
This is an important document that allows you to do the following:
- Apply for the residence visa for you and your employees
- Obtain work permits for your employees
- Apply for partners’ and foreign investors’ visas
- Recruit staff from abroad
- It’s a requirement for some state service providers (internet, water and electricity for your office)
Why do you need the establishment card for obtaining visas?
If you don’t have your Establishment card check, you’re not going to be able to hire employees from abroad. When you submit the visa application for your employees you have to submit a copy of your company’s establishment card along with the other documents.
Since it’s a crucial document, you’re not able to obtain the necessary visas if you don’t have it.
How much is an establishment card in the UAE?
Another important aspect regarding the Establishment Card UAE is the fees you must pay to get it. As any other important document in the UAE, its cost may vary depending on the jurisdiction where you have set up your company.
Therefore it may range from AED 650 to AED 1500 per year from Free Zone to Free Zone. When it comes to mainland companies, the fee may range from AED 4940 to AED 5000 in Dubai for example.
As you can see, you must be prepared to pay the fees to obtain your Labour establishment card in UAE. In addition, you must take into consideration the renewal costs once the expiry is near.
What is the process to obtain the establishment card?
To obtain the Establishment Card UAE you must fulfill a prerequisite, gather the necessary documents, and carry out the procedure established by the authorities.
What are the prerequisites to obtain an establishment card?
The only prerequisite to obtaining the establishment card is that the company must have already obtained its trade license.
In this regard, you must carry out your company registration process and wait until you collect your trade license. Once you collect it, you can start the application to obtain your establishment card.
Which documents do you need for your establishment card in UAE?
Here we have the list with the necessary documents you must submit along with your application:
- Copy of your company’s trade license
- Partners list (for LLC Companies)
- Copy of Memorandum of Association (for LLC companies)
- Passport of local service agent or UAE national sponsor
- Copies of passports of partners (for LLC companies)
- Passport photos of partners and sponsors
- Location map in Arabic
- Copy of the tenancy contract
- E-signature card copy of the sponsor and authorized signatories (if any)
- Owner’s degree certificates (notarized and legalized)
What is the procedure to apply for the establishment card?
Once you have all the documents you need to apply for the establishment card. You must fill the application form and submit it to the relevant immigration authority.
You must follow the next steps:
- Visit the Tasheel typing center with your documents and get the application form. Fill it and get the form translated to Arabic
- Get your company seal and signature from your partners
- Collect your card
You can submit it to the Ministry of Labour too. Once you got your card, you must keep it safe to avoid losing it. In case you lose it you’ll have to pay for replacement charges and apply for a new one.
What is the renewal process for the establishment card?
It’s important to take care of the renewal for the Establishment card MoHRE because if your document expires you must face repercussions.
In addition, it’s important to carry out the process for renewal several weeks in advance before the expiry date, but after you have renewed the company’s registration.
Therefore, you must pay attention to these two dates so you can organize everything, gather your documents and begin the process. You can carry out the renewal process online or through AMER Service.
How to renew the establishment card online?
It’s pretty straightforward to renew your document online, you just have to follow the next steps:
- Fill out the online form
- Make the payments through Naqodi
- Attach the printed receipt along with the documents
- Submit immigration branch
- Get your card the same day if it’s urgent, otherwise, it could take 2 to 3 working days
How to renew the establishment card through AMER Service?
If your company doesn’t have an online facility, you can carry out the renewal through AMER Service by following the next steps:
- Get your online application typed at AMER Center
- Take the following documents with you:
- Original establishment card
- Copy of your trade license
- Location map in Arabic
- Valid tenancy contract
- Passport copies and copies of Emirates ID of Authorized signatory
How can Connect Freezone assist you with the establishment card?
Here in Connect Freezone, we want to help your business obtain its Establishment Card UAE. Our team of specialists is readily available to help you solve any inquiries you may have about the process.
We can assist you obtain your Establishment card number, and even if you need to carry out the Establishment card renewal process we can help you deal with the hassles of it. You just have to contact us to get a service adapted to your requirements.