Hamriyah Free Zone

Overview of Hamriyah Free Zone

Hamriyah Free Zone is governed by the Emirate of Sharjah and is the second largest Free Zone of the UAE after JAFZA. It was founded in 1987 and is rapidly growing, expanding its size and number of companies.

Some large national and international companies have their representative offices in Hamriyah.

This free zone has several logistical advantages. Thanks to the unique location of Sharjah, which is the only emirate with access to both Arabian Gulf and Gulf of Oman, Hamriyah Port is very convenient. In addition, the emirate is located in the center of the road network connecting it to all other 6 emirates and the adjacent GCC states, while Sharjah International Airport grants it flight access to 230 cities.

Wide range of offices, warehouses and lands

Al Hamriyah free zone is one of a few zones that enjoy their own 14 meter deep sea port, 7 meter deep inner harbor, huge territory of 26 mln sq meters, warehouses and office facilities.

The zone is a preferred location of many industrial companies due to low rates for electricity and rent.

Hamriyah has all the additional facilities to help your business operate: its own customs office, logistics companies, storage solutions, banks, medical fitness center and Emirates Identity Authority.

Hamriyah free zone authority has recently amended and improved its activities list by adding many highly demanded activities such as:

• Insurance consultancies
• Fashion designing
• Sport research and consultancies
• Science and technology consultancy
• Investment of own resources and others

It is also offering a Marine service license, vessels, freight broker, which allows full operations in the sea port. Not every business setup company in Dubai can find such activities in other free zones.

The activities are grouped in a usual way as in any other free zone:

• Commercial
• Service
• Industrial

Even the most basic license allows you to have up to 3 business activities without additional fees.

If you are specialized in a business related to IT, you might need to be located in Dubai and one of the most cost-efficient options in this case would be DTEC zone in SIlicon Oasis.

Hamriyah free zone license costs

Hamriyah free zone company registration starts from 11,000 AED as license fee. It has a provision to apply for 1 resident visa. On top of that, you need to rent a P.O. box for about 1,000 AED per year.

Warehousing prices start from 70,000 AED for 200 sq. meters. The fee can be paid by installments. This does not include the license cost, deposit, and other additional fees.

The cheapest fees in Hamriyah include (AED):

Hamriyah free zone company setup

Hamriyah Free Zone setup can be conducted in 1 working day. Warehousing registration will take a bit longer, because you need to provide a business plan for approval.

For some activities it’s required to get a third party approval, for example Ministry of Health approval for Medical goods trading. It will also take additional time.

Required documents

The documents you need for company registration are:

• Passport copy
• Passport size photo
• Copy of previous entry stamp to UAE
• Business plan only for certain activities
• No Objection Letter (NOC) in case your visa is issued by another company/sponsor

The documents you get after company registration are electronic. Only Memorandum and Lease agreement will be handed over to you as hard copies.

Hamriyah free zone visa

Hamriyah is flexible in terms of visas. You can open a company eligible for from 1 up to 7 visas without renting an executive office. It beats many other ways to get a UAE residence visa due to high visa numbers.

A warehouse facility allows you to open up to 50 visas.

The visa of an investor or partner is valid for 2 years, an employee visa – for 2 years as well.

Hamriyah Free Zone visa costs in AED:

Medical checkup and Emirates ID application have to be conducted in the free zone itself. The Emirates ID will be received after about 2 weeks from the day of visa stamping. It will be delivered to the Emirates Post Office on the territory of the free zone.

License renewal

Any company in Al Hamriyah Free Zone must be renewed on a yearly basis. There is a government requirement to provide an audit report at the time of renewal. You need to start auditing after the 2nd year of operations.

There is an option to sign a waiver letter and pay a fee of 1,000 AED if you cannot submit the audit report.

By the way, renewal can be done without the personal presence of the shareholder.

Company amendments

Company amendments usually can be applied by the business owner or a person holding a Power of Attorney.

Usual amendments of the company include:

• Change of corporate name
• Change of activity
• Shares transfer
• Change of Director/Manager

Business liquidation

Hamriyah Free Zone company liquidation is a step-by-step process:

• Visas liquidation
• Immigration (establishment) card cancellation
• Lease cancellation if you had any
• Customs clearance for commercial licenses
• License deregistration

The timeframe of liquidation depends on the facility you are renting. Flexi-offices take 1 day. If you have a warehouse, you need to submit a 3-month notice, for a plot of land – a 6-month notice.

The cost of liquidation is 5,999 AED for the license.

The deposits you have paid under the visas and office or warehouse facilities will be returned once the company is closed.

Expert opinion

Hamriyah is becoming a more customer-friendly zone, suitable for both SMEs and large companies. If you need an office or a warehouse for a reasonable price in a logistically advantageous location with great connectivity, Al Hamriyah Free Zone Authority in the Emirate of Sharjah can be your option.

If you want to find a low cost free zone in Dubai for your company registration, you may be interested in DTEC. It is a subsidiary zone of Dubai Silicon Oasis and offers IT-related service activities for good prices.