- A DMCC licence supports recruitment consultancy for free zone clients. Supplying workers to mainland employers needs a MOHRE licence.
- DMCC's annual licence fee is AED 20,285, within AED 34,185 of standard setup fees.
- Advisers report MOHRE guarantees of AED 300,000 for brokerage and AED 1,000,000 for temporary employment. Figures vary, so confirm with MOHRE.
- Advisers report that recruitment costs cannot be passed on to workers.
- Recruitment may not qualify for the 0% free zone tax rate, so check Corporate Tax before you price your fees.
A DMCC licence lets you run a recruitment consultancy for free zone clients, but it does not let you supply workers to mainland UAE employers. That needs a separate MOHRE licence, which advisers report comes with a bank guarantee of AED 300,000 for brokerage and AED 1,000,000 for temporary employment.
The DMCC side starts with a service licence at AED 20,285 a year on DMCC’s published schedule. One adviser puts a realistic first-year total near AED 50,165 with a flexi-desk, and about AED 59,262 for a team of three recruiters, before medical tests, bank minimums and audit.
Founders searching for a “DMCC recruitment licence” usually find two different things under one name. One is a consultancy that screens candidates for the hiring company. The other is a manpower business that employs workers and places them with clients. The licences, guarantees and regulators are not the same. This guide separates them, sets out the figures advisers report, and shows where the DMCC route stops.
| Model | What it is | Where it is licensed |
|---|---|---|
| Recruitment consultancy or brokerage | Introduces candidates; the client employs the worker; earns a success fee | DMCC service licence for free zone clients; MOHRE approval for mainland brokerage |
| Temporary recruitment or manpower supply | The firm employs workers and assigns them to clients | MOHRE, with a much larger guarantee |
| HR consultancy | Workforce planning and advice; recruitment is not permitted under it | A free zone service licence with the activity added |
“A free zone licence gets you the company. It does not get you the right to place workers with mainland employers.”
What a DMCC recruitment licence allows
DMCC groups consultancy work under its service licence. DMCC’s guide to its licence types describes service licences for professional or consultancy work and says you should match the activity to the licence category and check whether external approvals apply.
Advisers add two practical limits:
- The licence supports consultancy and brokerage for free zone clients. Supplying labour to mainland employers requires a MOHRE licence, which a free zone licence cannot replace.
- Serving mainland clients from a free zone may be restricted or need extra structuring, depending on the authority and the licence activity.
Advisers do not agree on whether a free zone consultancy needs MOHRE approval at all. One guide says approval may not be needed in some free zones and tells you to check against your specific activity. Another says a free zone licence cannot satisfy the mainland requirement. Get the position in writing from DMCC and MOHRE for your exact activity before you take a client.
What the DMCC side costs
DMCC publishes five standard government fees for setup: AED 1,035 for the application, AED 9,020 for registration, AED 2,020 for the Articles of Association, AED 20,285 for the annual licence and AED 1,825 for the establishment card. Together they come to AED 34,185.
| Cost item (adviser-reported) | Amount |
|---|---|
| Flexi-desk, a mandatory workspace | About AED 16,000 to AED 19,000 a year |
| First-year total, one person, flexi-desk, low end | About AED 50,165 |
| Three-recruiter scenario | About AED 59,262, before medical tests, Emirates ID, bank minimums, audit and professional indemnity insurance |
| Share capital | Typically AED 50,000 depending on activity, per DMCC |
These adviser figures come from a setup vendor and exclude VAT. DMCC reportedly does not license against a virtual address, so budget for real workspace. A flexi-desk supports up to three residence visas, and beyond that roughly one visa per nine square metres of leased space. For what each workspace choice means, read how flexi-desk and office choices affect your visa quota, and for the fee schedule see the DMCC fee schedule behind these totals.
When MOHRE enters the picture
Recruitment is regulated at federal level. If you want to place workers with mainland employers, advisers report that a MOHRE licence is required, issued only after initial approval from a Department of Economy, which a free zone licence cannot provide.
| MOHRE licence (adviser-reported, 2026) | Government fee | Bank guarantee |
|---|---|---|
| Mediation or brokerage | AED 25,000 | AED 300,000 |
| Temporary employment or outsourcing | AED 50,000 | AED 1,000,000 |
| Both combined | AED 75,000 | AED 1,000,000 |
The guarantee must stay in force for the licence term, and higher amounts may apply case by case. One adviser quotes a much lower AED 50,000 guarantee for a new agency, which looks out of line with the other sources. MOHRE updated its licensing conditions in 2025, which may explain some of the spread. No official fee schedule appeared in the sources reviewed, so ask MOHRE for the current numbers.
Advisers also report that applicants provide credit reports, a police clearance certificate, a financial solvency certificate and a property report, and that a decision takes about ten working days once the file is complete. Treat those as indications, not guarantees.
Consider a former corporate recruiter who opens a DMCC service company to place senior hires with technology firms that are also DMCC members. The model works: clients are inside the free zone, fees are a percentage of salary, and the staff are three consultants on one flexi-desk quota.
When a Dubai mainland retailer asks her to supply forty shop-floor workers on her payroll, the answer changes. That is temporary employment, it needs MOHRE, and the guarantee alone is a multiple of her whole first-year budget. She declines and refers the client, rather than stretching a free zone licence beyond what it allows.
Rules that apply to recruiters wherever they are licensed
- Do not charge workers. Advisers report that recruitment costs cannot be passed on to workers, so the fee has to come from the employer.
- Emiratisation affects your clients and you. Companies with 50 or more employees face annual increases in skilled roles, and the minimum Emirati salary in the private sector is AED 6,000 a month from 1 January 2026. See the AED 6,000 minimum for Emirati hires and what changed in the Emiratisation quotas for the detail.
- Keep the activity accurate. Recruitment and HR consultancy are different activities, so check the wording on your licence against what you invoice. how to choose the right trade licence activity code explains why.
A tax point to check before you price your fees
One adviser warns that recruitment and HR services are not on the FTA’s list of qualifying activities for the 0% free zone rate, so 9% Corporate Tax would generally apply to placement revenue. Others may read the rules differently. The test is explained in the test for the 0% free zone rate, and a tax adviser should confirm your own position. DMCC also requires an annual audit, which adds a cost every year.
Step by step
- Decide the model: consultancy for free zone clients, or placement into the mainland.
- Check whether your activity needs MOHRE approval, and get that answer in writing.
- Choose the service licence and the exact recruitment or HR consultancy activity through DMCC’s setup process.
- Pay the setup fees, sign the documents and take the workspace.
- If you need MOHRE, apply through the mainland route with the guarantee and the supporting reports.
- Open the bank account and register for Corporate Tax and, when you reach the threshold, VAT.
- Build recruiter contracts, client terms and a no-fee-to-workers policy before the first placement.
DMCC consultancy versus a mainland recruitment licence
| Question | DMCC consultancy | Mainland recruitment (MOHRE route) |
|---|---|---|
| Who the clients are | Free zone clients | UAE mainland employers |
| Regulators involved | DMCC; check the MOHRE position for your activity | MOHRE plus Department of Economy approval |
| Upfront guarantee | None reported for the DMCC licence itself | AED 300,000 for brokerage and AED 1,000,000 for temporary employment, adviser-reported |
| Best fit | Executive search with a small team | Volume placement or workforce supply |
Fees, contracts and records
Placement fees are commonly a percentage of the candidate’s first-year salary, either retained up front or paid on success. Many agencies add a replacement period if a hire leaves early. These are industry habits, not legal requirements, so write them into the client contract and apply them consistently. The fee comes from the employer and never from the candidate.
Recruiters also hold personal data on candidates, including CVs and ID documents. Limit access, keep a record of why you hold each file and delete what you no longer need. the UAE data protection duties for businesses covers the basics. Clean candidate records also help if a placement is questioned later.
A year-one checklist before the first placement
- Confirm in writing whether your activity needs MOHRE approval.
- Fix the licensed activity wording so it says recruitment or search, not general HR advice.
- Take the workspace and check the visa quota against your hiring plan.
- Write the client contract with the fee, the replacement period and the rule that candidates pay nothing.
- Set the candidate data policy: who can see a CV, how long you keep it, how you delete it.
- Open the bank account and keep the first invoices clean, with the client and the placement named.
- Register for Corporate Tax, and watch the VAT threshold from the first month.
- Book the annual audit early, with a firm DMCC accepts, instead of after the year-end.
Most of these cost little in money and a lot in rework if skipped. A recruiter who learns about the audit in month eleven pays more for a rushed file than one who plans it in month two.
Common mistakes
- Opening a DMCC consultancy and then supplying staff to a mainland client.
- Budgeting the licence fee and forgetting workspace, audit and visas.
- Assuming the AED 50,000 guarantee figure some adviser pages quote.
- Taking placement fees from candidates.
- Using an HR consultancy activity for a business that actually recruits.
- Ignoring Corporate Tax because the company sits in a free zone.
Related guides
For the other DMCC categories and how an activity is matched to a licence, see which DMCC licence type fits a service business. Your first hires carry their own costs, covered in what hiring your first employee really costs.
When professional help is worth it
A consultancy that serves free zone clients can usually be set up directly. Help is worth paying for as soon as MOHRE is involved, because the guarantee, the reports and the Department of Economy approval run in a fixed order and a missed document restarts the clock.
E.zone, which sets up DMCC and mainland companies for service businesses, can map the licence route for your model. Its guide to the recruitment agency licence in the UAE covers the same ground.
This is general information and not legal advice. Fees, guarantees and MOHRE conditions change, and adviser figures differ, so confirm every number with DMCC and MOHRE before you commit capital.
Frequently asked questions
Can a DMCC licence let me supply workers to mainland companies?
Advisers report it cannot. Supplying labour to mainland employers needs a MOHRE licence, which requires approval from a Department of Economy.
How much does a DMCC recruitment consultancy licence cost?
DMCC's published annual licence fee is AED 20,285, within standard government setup fees of AED 34,185. One adviser puts a realistic first-year total near AED 50,165 with a flexi-desk.
What bank guarantee does MOHRE require for recruitment?
Advisers report AED 300,000 for brokerage and AED 1,000,000 for temporary employment, though one adviser quotes AED 50,000. Confirm with MOHRE, since conditions were updated in 2025.
Can a recruiter charge fees to job seekers?
Advisers report that recruitment costs cannot be passed on to workers, so fees should come from the employer.
Does recruitment income qualify for the 0% free zone tax rate?
One adviser reports that recruitment and HR services are not on the qualifying activities list, so 9% Corporate Tax would generally apply. Confirm with a tax adviser.
Does a DMCC recruitment company need a flexi-desk?
Advisers report that DMCC does not license against a virtual address, so a workspace such as a flexi-desk is needed, at roughly AED 16,000 to AED 19,000 a year.
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