UAE branch de-registration

Deregistration of a UAE branch

How to deregister a Dubai branch office?

Occasionally, our Clients need assistance with de-registering and closing their UAE branch and the associated corporate bank account. Our team in Dubai will manage this process, aiming to complete the deregistration within three months.

Deregistration is a cost-effective way to wind up a UAE branch. Points to note with UAE branch deregistration include:

The UAE branch is not liquidated but rather deregistered. Therefore, it is not necessary to appoint a company liquidator.
The branch deregistration steps described below apply to all types of branches registered in the UAE, including branches of a foreign company or a local mainland LLC.
Before the branch deregistration can commence, our Clients must ensure the UAE company has fulfilled all accounting and tax obligations and is in good standing with the government.

Steps to de-register a UAE branch

On behalf of our multi-national Clients, Healy Consultants Group will project manage the de-registration of the Dubai branch. The steps are as follows:

Step 1: Our Client settles Healy Consultants Group’s UAE branch deregistration invoice and signs the engagement letter

Step 2: Documentation preparation

Healy Consultants Group will draft a Board Resolution, a Power of Attorney, and a request letter to deregister the branch
Our Client will need to review, notarise and attest the above documents in the UAE embassy in their country of residence and courier them to Healy Consultants Group’s Dubai office
Healy Consultants Group will then i) attest the same at the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs ii) send to a legal translator for Arabic translation and iii) further attest the same at the UAE Ministry of Justice

Step 3: Termination of the service agreement with local service agent

Healy Consultants Group will draft the local service agent’s termination letter and uploads the same to the UAE notary system
Once approved, the local service agent will need to sign the agreement in front of a Dubai Notary Public

Step 4: Secure Dubai branch deregistration certificate from the DED

Healy Consultants Group will draft a UAE branch deregistration application to cancel the branch’s trade licence
Publish the deregistration application in English and Arabic for 35 days in the Government’s Gazette, enabling creditors to submit any claims against the branch before it is deregistered
Assuming no claims are made, the DED may then issue a deregistration approval letter

Step 5: Clearance from the Ministry of Labour (MOL) & Immigration Department

Cancel all employee visas and pay remaining salaries
Ensure the company does not have any pending processes, complaints, or fines with past employees
Upon completion of the above, Healy Consultants Group will prepare a ‘no employee report’ and submit it to the Immigration Department
After review and approval, the MOL will issue an Immigration Card Cancellation

Step 6: Obtain third-party clearance

Healy Consultants Group will assist our Client to cancel all services maintained with other third-party providers such as telephone providers, electricity and water, lease agreement and Dubai Municipality

Step 7: Ministry of Economy (MOE) deregistration certificate and release of AED50,000 bank guarantee

Healy Consultants Group will submit an application to close the branch account with MOE, which approves release of the bank guarantee

Step 8: Corporate bank account closure

Healy Consultants Group will communicate with the bank to i) release the bank guarantee deposit and ii) close all multi-currency accounts our Client may have with the bank
Our Client can then make plans to travel to the UAE to submit the above requests in person
Within seven working days, the bank guarantee can be refunded to our Client’s account. Our Client may then transfer the amount out issue the bank account closure application to the bank.