Dubai is an economic space which comes across tremendous changes over the past few years. They have strategically started to explore other avenues to generate income for the economy other than the export of fuel. This venture has opened opportunities to the tourism sector and given the foundational base for nationals and expats to look into developing their products and services and eventually contribute to the economic stability of the Emirate.
The Dubai Government or relevant authorities have formulated the intelaq licence to support home entrepreneurs that are nationals of Dubai and business enthusiasts from GCC countries. The authorities have issued over 1700 active intelaq licences in Dubai. The activities that can be carried out after taking the intelaq licence range from consultancy services, training services, fashion and apparel design, real estate brokerage, entertainment events, public announcements etc. There is a list of restricted services like contracting activities, hair and beauty salons, and other activities related to health, environment and industrial activities.
Conditions before Applying for the Intelaq Licence
- The company or the enterprise should be fully owned by an individual who operated from Dubai or from GCC countries.
- The applicant will be permitted only two intelaq licences.
- He or she should be located in Dubai.
- The licenced individual under the intelaq licence can appoint up to three employees.
- The applicant should have more than five trade licences including the ones he or she fully owns or partially manages.
- The only legal form that is applicable to carry forward under an intelaq licence is a sole proprietorship and therefore partnerships or company formation is not possible.
Documents Required for Applying for an Intelaq Licence:
- A copy of the passport
- A copy of the lease agreement or premises ownership deed/ premises map
- A copy of the national identity card
- A NOC or no objection certificate from the landlord
Process of Applying for the Intelaq Licence
The applicant has to first apply to the Dubai SME portal’s email address [email protected]
Get an in-depth understanding and review the terms and conditions concerning the intelaq licence and then fill out the service request form.
The next step is to submit all the required documents prescribed above to proceed with the application procedure for obtaining the intelaq licence.
The representatives of the Dubai SME initiative connect with the applicant and analyse and understand in detail the business idea they have applied the intelaq licence for.
Once they are satisfied with the business idea, they approve the application for the intelaq licence. On behalf of this, the applicant receives an approval letter on the issuance of the intelaq licence.
Outsourcing the rest of the work to an external consultancy service will help in the completion of registration and licensing procedures.
The approval letter for the intelaq licence is valid for six months from the date of issue.
The service is estimated to be completed within one working day.
Features of the Intelaq Licence
- A structured strategy to help residents to come up with business ideas and provide the needed assistance.
- Intelaq licence provides administrative and logistics support.
- Equity free funding for startups
- The chance of being a member of the intelaq community opens the door to discovering and meeting successful entrepreneurs.
Additional Service Added to the Intelaq Licence List
The Dubai government has extended the intelaq licensing to 19 food trading services and 7 others which are related with food preparation. The 19 permitted trading activities are dates, food and beverages, baby food, snacks, dairy products, sugar, tea, coffee,bread and bakery products, canned and preserved foods, nuts, salt, drinks, juices, ice, spices, sweets and chocolate, mineral water, and honey and bee products. The seven related services with food preparation are candies and confectionery; pies and pastries; desserts and traditional sweets; juice, as well as selling snacks, sandwiches, and ice cream.
The licence is valid for a period of five years and after which it has to be converted into a commercial licence and then renewed every year. The authorities specifically consider small and medium-scale businesses which are founded in Dubai or other GCC countries. The businesses who take up the intelaq licensing are supposed to only take up the business listed for what they have acquired for the licence. Authorised employees of the Dubai SME, Dubai Economy, and Dubai Municipality can come for inspection and have the right and liberty to enter the premises for inspection and verification. The intelaq licensees should make sure that the repackaged foodstuff should meet the labelling requirements. The repackaging of food items should be done under the accredited institutions in Dubai. Transportation and delivery of the food items should be through the means approved by the relevant authorities under the government.
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