Local Sponsorship

Many entrepreneurs who are planning to start their business in Dubai or anywhere across the UAE face issues that they come across due to the lack of knowledge in local policies, norms, and regulatory functions of the area. Therefore to tackle the issue, the UAE government has made it compulsory that an ex-pat who is planning to carry out commercial, industrial, or trading activities inside the UAE mainland requires a local sponsor as a mandatory regulation.

'Local sponsor' is a general term used in the UAE to refer to local service agents and nominee shareholders (sleeping partners) in mainland companies with foreign investment. A sponsor has to be an Emirati (UAE national) with a family membership card (Gincia). Operating a business in the Dubai mainland area requires a local sponsor to be mandatorily appointed.