UAE company formation consultant for Indian founders

A Dubai company formation consultant for Indian founders has to run two regimes at once. The UAE registrar licenses the company; the Reserve Bank of India’s overseas investment framework governs how a resident founder pays for and holds the shares. Infinilex sequences the engagement: activity and seat selection, the Schedule III screen, Form FC and the UIN before the remittance, the licence, UAE corporate tax registration and the APR calendar, with each filing signed by the professional it calls for.

Schedule A: who does what on a UAE company formation from India

Schedule A · Workstreams by party, RBI and UAE positions as at 19 September 2026
Workstream	Infinilex	UAE registrar	Designated AD bank in India
Activity, seat and eligibility	Maps the business to an activity, a seat and an Indian lane; runs the Schedule III screen	Licenses by activity: the DMCC Registrar, ADGM, DIEZ or DET	Checks equity pricing against an internationally accepted valuation methodology
Trade name, application and licence	Sequences documents and signing so the UAE and Indian files agree	Reserves the name, processes the application, issues the licence	No role
Form FC, the UIN and the remittance	Prepares Form FC with the founder; times the remittance after the UIN	No role under FEMA	Reports Form FC for the UIN; remits only after it is obtained; collects tax at source on LRS remittances
Corporate tax registration and beneficial owner record	Calendars the three-month deadline; prepares the record with the company	Outside the financial free zones, is the Registrar under Cabinet Decision No. 109 of 2023; the Federal Tax Authority handles tax registration	No role
Evidence of investment, APR and FLA	Holds the calendar and the evidence file; Infinilex’s chartered accountant certifies the APR	Issues the corporate documents the evidence file draws on	Receives the evidence within six months and the APR each year; is the channel for the late submission fee

Indian positions from the FEM (Overseas Investment) Directions 2022, the FEM (Overseas Investment) Regulations 2022 and the Master Direction on Reporting under FEMA (updated 24 June 2026).

UAE free zone company setup from India: the eight-step sequence to the first APR

Choose the activity, then the seat. The activity decides which registrar can license you and which Indian lane is open; the four UAE seats are compared here. DMCC companies are registered by the DMCC Registrar. ADGM is a financial free zone in Abu Dhabi. IFZA is a commercial operator inside Dubai Silicon Oasis, where the Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority (DIEZ) licenses and registers the company. A Dubai mainland company is licensed by the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism (DET).
Run the Schedule III screen. A resident individual invests under Schedule III of the OI Rules 2022 into an operating foreign entity with a bona fide business, not engaged in financial services activity and, where the individual has control, with no subsidiary or step-down subsidiary. Under paragraph 6(1) of the Directions, an NPA account, a wilful-defaulter classification or an open investigation means a no-objection certificate first. If the company will invest back into India, read the two-layer rule.
Reserve the trade name and clear pre-approval. DET sets out three steps: explore the options, reserve a trade name matching the activity, receive the licence. DMCC states around 10 working days for its own process (as at 18 September 2026). That excludes the Indian leg and the bank account.
File Form FC and obtain the UIN before money moves. Form FC goes to the designated AD bank on or before the initial ODI. Under regulation 9(2) the UIN is obtained before the outward remittance or the acquisition of equity capital, whichever is earlier.
Remit the capital. A resident individual remits within the LRS ceiling of USD 250,000 per financial year. The authorised dealer collects tax at source on the amount above Rs 10 lakh (Income Tax Department TCS rates page, as at 19 September 2026); the rate is in the questions below.
Take the licence and, where a founder moves, the Emirates ID. The Emirates ID is mandatory for UAE residents. Moving changes the Indian analysis: see founder relocation to Dubai.
Register for corporate tax and create the beneficial owner record. Under Article 3(3) of FTA Decision No. 3 of 2024, a juridical person incorporated on or after 1 March 2024, including a Free Zone Person, applies within three months of incorporation. Late registration with the Federal Tax Authority carries an AED 10,000 penalty, waived where the first return is filed within seven months of the end of the first tax period (as at 19 September 2026). Cabinet Decision No. 109 of 2023 has a licensed legal person, commercial free zones included, record whoever owns or controls 25% or more of its capital or voting rights within 60 days of coming into existence, and update changes within 15 days. The decision does not apply in Financial Free Zones such as ADGM; what an ADGM company must record is confirmed by Infinilex counsel qualified for ADGM on the scope note.
Close the Indian loop: evidence, APR, FLA. Evidence reaches the AD bank within six months, failing which the funds are repatriated. The APR is due by 31 December; an Indian entity holding the investment files the FLA return by 15 July. A late APR, FLA or evidence filing costs Rs 7,500 per return (OI Directions para 18(2), as at 19 September 2026), and the facility closes three years from the due date. The filings themselves sit with FEMA, ODI and LRS compliance; if any are already late, start with the ODI regularisation checklist.

What UAE company formation for Indian founders covers

Activity selection that survives both regimes. An activity that would need an Indian financial sector regulator’s registration counts as financial services, outside a resident individual’s lane. Virtual-asset licensing is its own engagement: start with VARA vs ADGM vs DIFC.
The right investor on the Indian side. A founder investing personally and an Indian company investing are different lanes. The route decision is in LRS vs ODI for Indian founders.
Mainland, where it fits. Foreign investors may fully own mainland companies except in some activities with a strategic impact.
Form FC, the UIN and the remittance plan. Including the valuation support the AD bank asks for.
The first-year compliance set. Corporate tax registration, the beneficial owner record, and the tax itself: 0% on taxable income up to AED 375,000 and 9% above it (u.ae, updated 30 March 2026), with the return due within nine months of the end of the tax period.

Where the company is managed from decides how it is taxed

A licence does not settle tax residence. Under Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022, a Qualifying Free Zone Person pays 0% on Qualifying Income only while it keeps adequate substance in the free zone, complies with transfer pricing and prepares audited financial statements, among other conditions. Separately, India treats a foreign company as resident where its place of effective management is in India, under section 6(10) of the Income-tax Act 2025. The analysis is in a UAE company run from India: POEM and QFZP.

How a UAE company formation engagement is staged

Fixed-scope stages, mapped on a free 30-minute discovery call. Stage one is the design note: activity, seat, the investor on the Indian side, the Schedule III screen and the order of filings. Stage two is execution: the UAE application to licence, Form FC and the UIN, the remittance, corporate tax registration and the beneficial owner record. The APR, the FLA return and the UAE calendar can then run on the fractional general counsel retainer. The scope note shows the plan and the cost before any commitment: see how engagements work.

Who signs what on a UAE set-up from India

Infinilex is a consultancy, and Infinilex counsel qualified in India and the UAE sign those legs of the work. The founder signs Form FC and submits it to the designated AD bank, which reports it for UIN allotment; the Reserve Bank allots the UIN. Infinilex’s chartered accountant certifies the APR; other Indian filings are signed by Infinilex counsel enrolled as advocates in India, or by Infinilex’s company secretary or chartered accountant where the statute names that professional. Infinilex counsel qualified for the relevant UAE regulator sign the UAE leg, a financial free zone leg in ADGM or the DIFC included, and the corporate tax position. The scope note names who signs each filing before work starts.

Frequently asked questions

Who can help an Indian founder open a UAE company?

Three parties, each with a different job. The UAE licensing authority for the seat registers and licenses the company. Your designated authorised dealer bank in India takes Form FC, reports it for the unique identification number and facilitates the remittance. A consultant such as Infinilex runs the sequence between them, from activity and seat selection through Form FC and the licence to the Annual Performance Report calendar.

Do I file Form FC before or after the UAE company is licensed?

The licence date is not the trigger: Form FC is filed before the money moves or the shares are acquired, whichever comes first. Under regulation 9(2) of the Overseas Investment Regulations 2022 the unique identification number is obtained through the designated authorised dealer bank before the outward remittance or the acquisition of equity capital, whichever is earlier. Paragraph 16(3) of the Overseas Investment Directions 2022 adds that allotment of the number is not RBI approval of the investment.

Is tax collected at source when I remit share capital to my UAE company under LRS?

The authorised dealer collects tax at source on remittances under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme. On the Income Tax Department's TCS rates page, read on 19 September 2026, nothing is collected where the remittance does not exceed Rs 10 lakh, and for purposes other than education or medical treatment the rate is 20 percent of the amount remitted in excess of Rs 10 lakh.

What ODI filing support does a UAE company owned from India need after it is licensed?

Two calendars, one at each end. On the UAE side, a company incorporated on or after 1 March 2024, free zone companies included, applies for corporate tax registration within three months of incorporation, and a company within Cabinet Decision No. 109 of 2023 creates its beneficial owner record within 60 days of the company coming into existence. On the Indian side, evidence of the investment goes to the authorised dealer bank within six months, the Annual Performance Report is due every 31 December, and an Indian entity holding the investment files the FLA return by 15 July.

Next step

Tell us what the UAE company is for.

Send one paragraph: what the company will do, who will own it from India, and whether anyone is moving. We will tell you which seats and Indian lanes are open, and the order of filings, before you pay a registrar anything.

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UAE company formation for Indian founders, from activity selection to Form FC.