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When you see “freelance permit from AED 5,500” in a Google ad, that price is usually for the permit alone. It does not include the establishment card you need to apply for any visa. It does not include the 2-year residence visa issuance. It does not include the medical fitness test, the Emirates ID, or health insurance.
Add those items together and the number moves a long way. At GoFreelance, the one Dubai programme that publishes every setup line, the permit is AED 7,500 a year, the establishment card AED 2,000 and a two-year visa AED 5,042 — AED 14,542 in the first year, before the medical test, Emirates ID and insurance. If a quote with residency comes in far below the zone’s own published lines, ask in writing what it leaves out.
Before the comparison table, here are the six cost lines to check in any quote.
The actual permission to operate as a freelancer in your chosen activity.
Issued by the free zone authority; required before any visa application.
The entry permit, status change, and residence visa issuance processed through GDRFA or ICP.
A blood test and chest X-ray. Emirates Health Services lists AED 250 plus the centre’s printing fees for the standard category (employees, companies, workers), with the result in 24 hours. In Dubai, Dubai Health’s price list gives AED 270 for the standard service (result within 24 working hours), AED 700 for the premium service (6 working hours) or for the Salem Innovative Center (30 minutes), and AED 1,020 for the VIP service (2 working hours).
Issued by the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs & Port Security (ICP). The fee is charged per year of residence: ICP’s service cards for a new card and for a renewal both list AED 100 for each year of residence plus a AED 100 smart service fee — AED 300 for a two-year card. Urgent issue of a new card, at ICP centres only, is another AED 150.
The rules differ by emirate and by who sponsors you. The Cabinet decision in force since 1 January 2025 extended mandatory cover to private-sector employees and domestic workers in Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah, paid for by the employer, with a basic package at AED 320 a year. MOHRE’s page on the scheme does not mention freelancers. In Dubai, GoFreelance lists “valid medical insurance” among its visa requirements, so budget for a policy there; for any other zone, ask in writing whether a policy is a condition of your visa and who buys it.
The permit, establishment card and residence visa issuance in this breakdown are typing-centre and portal work — the same document chain a PRO handles for companies. Sarmat trains and certifies those people in Dubai: the Certified PRO Officer Program is KHDA-certified, runs three days and 15+ hours in person in Deira, and costs AED 2,890.
Don’t want to figure this out alone? Sarmat is a KHDA-certified training provider and registered typing centre in Deira, Dubai. Message us on WhatsApp — we answer questions like this every day.
Here are the five names freelancers most often compare. Every figure in the table comes from the authority’s or provider’s own website, as checked in September 2026. Where a zone does not publish a price, the table says so — we have not filled the gap with an estimate.
| Cost component | GoFreelance (TECOM/DDA) | SHAMS (Sharjah) | Fujairah Creative City | Ajman Free Zone | RAKEZ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freelance permit | AED 7,500 per year | No freelance permit listed on its site | Not published | Not published (the calculator emails a quote) | From AED 6,100 (1- and 2-year packages) |
| Establishment card | AED 2,000 | — | Not published | Not published | Not published |
| Residence visa | AED 5,042 for two years (AED 4,600 for one) | — | Not published | Not published | Not published |
| Medical fitness test | AED 270 standard (24 working hours) or AED 700 at Smart Salem (30 minutes) — Dubai Health price list | — | AED 250 + printing fees at EHS centres | AED 250 + printing fees at EHS centres | AED 250 + printing fees at EHS centres |
| Emirates ID (2-year) | AED 300 (ICP service card) | — | AED 300 (ICP service card) | AED 300 (ICP service card) | AED 300 (ICP service card) |
| Health insurance | Insurer’s quote | — | Insurer’s quote | Insurer’s quote | Insurer’s quote |
| Published setup lines added up | AED 14,542 in year one (permit + card + two-year visa); the permit is due again at AED 7,500 in year two | — | Written quote needed | Written quote needed | From AED 6,100 — ask what the package includes |
Read the table for what it is: GoFreelance is the only one of the five that publishes every setup line, and RAKEZ publishes a starting price. The medical and Emirates ID figures are the providers’ own list prices, and insurance depends on your age and plan. For the zones that publish nothing, use their calculators and ask for a written, itemised quote. Check the live figure for your specific activity at gofreelance.ae, shams.ae, creativecity.gov.ae, afz.gov.ae, and rakez.com.
GoFreelance is the freelance permit programme for four Dubai business communities: Dubai Media City, Dubai Internet City, Dubai Design District and Dubai Knowledge Park. It covers four activity groups — tech, media, education and design — and the licence is renewable every year. The programme is run by TECOM Group and the licence itself is issued by the Dubai Development Authority (DDA). The AED 7,500 headline price carries a “conditions apply” note: DDA’s service card lists the AED 7,500 permit fee plus a AED 10 Knowledge dirham and a AED 10 Innovation dirham, and the Dubai Design District page quotes the package at AED 7,520. Visa and establishment card fees are marked as subject to change. The activity list is kept on the GoFreelance site, so check it before you commit.
The GoFreelance proposition is a Dubai address. A permit from a Dubai free zone community can read better on invoices to Dubai clients than a permit from another emirate, particularly for media, education, tech and design freelancers. The trade-off is price: its published lines add up to AED 14,542 in the first year with a two-year visa — AED 7,500 permit, AED 2,000 establishment card, AED 5,042 visa — and the permit is due again at AED 7,500 in year two.
If your clients are large Dubai-based agencies, government contractors, or DIFC firms, GoFreelance pays for itself in credibility. If your clients are international or remote, the cheaper zones do the same job.
SHAMS turns up in a lot of freelance-visa ads. When we checked in September 2026, its setup site offered company licences — registration as a Limited Liability Company, priced through a cost calculator — and no freelance permit. SHAMS’s own blog describes the freelance permit as something issued by “selected free zones” and, in Dubai, by TECOM Group.
So a “SHAMS freelance visa” quote is, on the evidence of SHAMS’s own site, a quote for a company licence with a visa. That can be a perfectly good product, but it is a different one: a company, not a personal permit. Ask the agent in writing which licence you are actually getting.
If you still want SHAMS, build the price in its own calculator with the licence term and number of visas you need, and compare that total with the GoFreelance lines above.
Fujairah Creative City does not show a freelancer price on its website: the home page we checked in September 2026 offers a cost calculator and company-setup services, with no figures on the page. Any all-in number you see for it comes from an agent, not from the authority.
Before you compare it with the others, ask Creative City or its agent for a written quote that itemises the licence, the establishment card and the visa, and says whether any visit in person is required.
Consider Fujairah Creative City if your activity is not on the GoFreelance or RAKEZ lists — and only once you have that quote in hand.
Ajman Free Zone lists a Freelancer Package (a sole professional licence) and a Freelancer & Pioneers Hub, where it says members are eligible for two residence visas and family sponsorship. It does not show a price on those pages. Its cost calculator at afz.gov.ae takes your activity, visa and office needs and sends the result by email, so you can get the authority’s own figure before you talk to an agent.
Ajman may well turn out cheapest for you, but we cannot confirm that from published prices. Get the calculator result and compare it line by line with GoFreelance and RAKEZ. It is the wrong call if you need a Dubai address to win business.
If you have not yet decided how a freelance visa fits into your wider business plan, our deeper breakdown in the Sarmat freelance visa pillar guide walks through eligibility, alternative visa categories, and how the freelance route compares to a full company licence.
RAKEZ (Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone) publishes its Freelancer Permit as starting from AED 6,100, in 1- and 2-year packages. It is open to media professionals and education professionals only.
It is not a multi-activity permit. RAKEZ’s own terms say the freelancer can select only one activity per permit, cannot appoint staff or obtain an additional visa under it, works under their own birth name rather than a company name, and is not eligible to open a corporate bank account.
If you apply for the permit without a visa, RAKEZ asks for a copy of your valid UAE residence visa and your sponsor’s no-objection certificate. Ask RAKEZ what the “from AED 6,100” package covers before you compare it with GoFreelance.
Renewal is where the headline price misleads most. GoFreelance states that its licence is renewable on an annual basis, so the AED 7,500 permit fee comes round every year, whatever the length of your visa. The other zones do not publish renewal prices on the pages we checked. What is published:
So when you compare the freelance route against an employee package or a full company licence, compare year two as well as year one — and get the renewal lines in writing before you pay for the first year.
| Your situation | Best zone |
|---|---|
| Price-only solo freelancer with remote clients | Whichever of RAKEZ, Ajman Free Zone or Fujairah Creative City gives the lowest written quote for your activity |
| Creative pro (designer, content creator, photographer) | GoFreelance (media, design) or RAKEZ (media) |
| E-commerce or import-export freelancer | Neither GoFreelance nor RAKEZ — their lists do not include trading; ask about a company licence |
| Consultant working with Dubai mainland firms | GoFreelance, if your activity is on its tech, media, education or design list |
| Multi-permit freelancer doing two unrelated activities | Not RAKEZ (one activity per permit) — ask each zone what a second activity costs |
| Activity not on the GoFreelance or RAKEZ lists | Ask Ajman Free Zone or Fujairah Creative City for a written quote |
If you are still weighing whether a freelance permit is even the right route — versus the Green Visa, which for the self-employed needs a freelance permit from MOHRE, a bachelor’s degree or specialised diploma, and self-employment income of at least AED 360,000 a year for the two previous years or proof of financial solvency — read our companion guide on Green Visa vs freelance permit before you commit dirhams to a permit.
It depends on the zone, and only some zones publish prices. GoFreelance lists AED 7,500 a year for the permit, AED 2,000 for the establishment card and AED 5,042 for a two-year visa (AED 4,600 for one year) — AED 14,542 in the first year before the medical test, Emirates ID and health insurance. RAKEZ lists its Freelancer Permit from AED 6,100. For any other zone, ask for a written, itemised quote.
Of the prices the zones publish on their own websites, RAKEZ has the lowest starting figure: a Freelancer Permit from AED 6,100, in 1- and 2-year packages, for media and education professionals only. GoFreelance lists AED 7,500 a year for the permit alone. Ajman Free Zone and Fujairah Creative City do not show a freelancer price on their sites, so compare written quotes before deciding.
A complete setup covers the freelance permit, the establishment card, the residence visa, the medical fitness test and the Emirates ID. Ask whether health insurance is included or has to be bought separately. Also budget for the permit renewal (GoFreelance renews its licence every year), document attestation if you are sponsoring a family member, and translation fees for non-English documents.
At GoFreelance the licence renews annually at the AED 7,500 permit price, and a new two-year visa is listed at AED 5,042. The other zones do not publish renewal prices on the pages we checked — ask for the renewal lines in the same written quote as the first-year price.
On the visa line, yes, at GoFreelance’s published prices: a one-year visa is AED 4,600 and a two-year visa AED 5,042. The permit itself is still paid every year. RAKEZ sells 1- and 2-year packages — ask for both prices.
Check with your free zone before you budget. The Cabinet decision in force since 1 January 2025 made cover mandatory for private-sector employees and domestic workers in Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah, bought by the employer, with a basic package at AED 320 a year. MOHRE’s page on the scheme does not mention freelancers. GoFreelance in Dubai lists “valid medical insurance” among its visa requirements. For any other zone, ask in writing whether a policy is a condition of your visa, and get the price from an insurer.
There is no single best — it depends on your activity, client base, and budget. GoFreelance for a Dubai address in tech, media, education or design; RAKEZ for a published low starting price in media or education; Ajman Free Zone or Fujairah Creative City if a written quote beats both for your activity.
You can spend three weeks reading consultancy blogs, calling every free zone, and still end up paying for a package you didn’t need. Or you can hand the whole file to a team that has processed 500+ visas and completed 100+ company setups, with 12+ years of UAE government services experience and 5,000+ clients served across Dubai. Sarmat’s Business Setup Service handles the zone selection, paperwork, MOHRE-adjacent approvals, ICP application, and Emirates ID booking end-to-end.
If you want to handle the visa paperwork yourself — or you are planning to run visas for clients as a service — our KHDA-certified Visa Course walks you through the actual GDRFA workflow on real cases. Both routes get you to an issued residence visa; one saves you time, the other gives you a transferable skill.
Need a straight answer on your specific case? Message Sarmat on WhatsApp with your activity and target zone, and we will quote the real all-in number — no “from AED 5,500” games.
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