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A Dubai mainland trade licence needs an office lease registered in Ejari. u.ae lists the location and a lease registered in Ejari among the steps before a mainland licence is issued, and DED guidance says renewal works against a valid registered lease. The same certificate is what MOHRE asks for when it opens the company's labour file. Get the office Ejari right and the licence, renewal and staff visas follow.
Three files that hang on one lease
| File | Office | What the Ejari does there |
|---|---|---|
| Trade licence issue | DET | Proves the premises before the licence is paid and collected |
| Trade licence renewal | DET | DED guidance: a licence is renewed against a valid registered lease |
| Labour file and establishment card | MOHRE | A valid approved rental contract is a listed document, except for instant licences |
Sources: u.ae mainland business steps; MOHRE Issuance of Establishment Card service; DED renewal guidance, checked .
Free zone companies are a different case. Their licence and office come from the free zone, under its own rules.
Licence issue: where the Ejari sits
The u.ae mainland steps run in this order: choose the activity, legal form, licence type and trade name; get initial approval; sign the MOA; secure the location and lease, with Ejari in Dubai; get any extra approvals; then pay and collect the licence. So the lease, and its Ejari, come before the licence is paid for.
That creates a timing knot for new companies. DLD wants a valid licence in the company's name when a commercial Ejari is registered, while the mainland steps put the lease before the licence is collected. Plan the lease and the licence application together, and ask DET at the initial approval stage what it needs on file, so neither side waits on the other.
The business setup paperwork page shows the rest of the mainland sequence.
Licence renewal: line up the dates
A renewal often stalls on dates, not paperwork: the lease ends before the licence, nobody renews the Ejari, and the DET renewal has no current lease to work from. Three habits avoid it:
- Put the lease end date and licence expiry on the same calendar.
- Renew the lease and its Ejari before you open the licence renewal.
- If the landlord allows, match the lease term to the licence year so you register once, not twice.
The renewal itself, fees and the late fine question are on trade licence renewal.
Visa quota and the establishment card
There are two "establishment cards" in Dubai, and people mix them up. GDRFA issues one for immigration. MOHRE has its own, which is the company's labour file. It is the MOHRE one that lists a valid approved rental contract among its documents.
That matters for hiring. A new work permit needs an available electronic quota in the company's MOHRE file, and the file needs that rental contract. MOHRE does not publish how quota is set, so we don't promise a number. What we do is check which term your licence or visa file needs before you commit to an office. The company labour file and establishment card pages cover both cards.
Office Ejari renewal for companies
Renewing a company's office Ejari is the same DLD service as registering it, Register / Renew Tenancy Contract, at the same fee: AED 177.75 online or AED 220 at a DLD trustee center. The tenant must still be the licensed company, and the licence must be valid on the day. If the licence has lapsed, renew it in the right order with the lease, or the Ejari will be refused.
Office Ejari cancellation for companies
A company cannot simply walk away from its office Ejari. DLD allows early cancellation of a commercial contract only when:
- the contract has expired,
- the trade licence is cancelled,
- the company relocates,
- the licence is frozen, or
- the Rental Disputes Center orders it.
Online cancellation is free, and a trustee center charges AED 40 plus VAT. When you close the company, market guides put the Ejari cancellation after the staff visas and VAT deregistration and before the DET cancellation application. See trade licence cancellation for the full order. When you move office, cancel the old Ejari as you register the new one, then update the licence address through a licence amendment.
Office Ejari and licence renewal through the partner team
Send your licence details: the licence number, its expiry and whether you already have a lease. If you do, the partner team checks the tenant name against the licence, renews or registers the Ejari, chases the landlord's approval, then runs the DET renewal and updates the MOHRE file in the right order.
If you don't have an office, the partner team can arrange an Ejari-registered office contract for your company in any area of Dubai, on a 1 month, 6 month or 1 year term. We check which term your licence or visa file needs and confirm the options with one total price, government fees and our service charge listed separately. Ask on WhatsApp or send the form on this page. How the registration itself works is on commercial Ejari. It can be a desk, a flexi desk or a full office from a provider registered with the Dubai Land Department, and the price depends on the location and the term.
