Table of Contents
How to Set up a Software House, IT Consultancy, or Technology Business with Meydan Free Zone
A technology business sells products and services built around computers and information technology. That covers software development, IT consultancy, infrastructure planning and system management, and the work itself comes down to helping organisations run better through custom software, secure networks and systems that grow with them.
Four activity codes sit under this umbrella, and they overlap enough that people pick the wrong one. This guide covers what each of 6200.00, 6201.00, 6202.00 and 6209.00 actually permits, what each specifically excludes, and how the license works through Meydan Free Zone.
Key Stats at a Glance
What This License Covers
Code 6200.00 is the umbrella. It covers services that provide expertise in information technology: writing, modifying, testing and supporting software, and planning and designing computer systems that bring together hardware, software and communication technologies. It also covers running clients computer systems and data processing facilities on site, along with other professional and technical computer-related work.
In practice, a client who needs software built and a client who needs advice on what to buy both sit inside this activity. No third party approvals are needed for it.
Computer Programming Under 6201.00
This code is the building work. It covers writing, modifying, testing and supporting software, which means designing and developing the code behind systems software including updates and patches, applications including their updates and patches, databases and web pages. Programming and customising software counts too, including modifying and configuring applications that already exist.
It stretches further than most people assume. Writing and publishing software for video game consoles sits here, as does producing software not tied to publishing and designing software for accounting systems.
What 6201.00 excludes
- Publishing packaged software, which falls under a different code and needs National Media Council permits
- Planning and designing computer systems that integrate hardware, software and communication technologies, which belongs to 6202.00 even when supplying software is part of the job
No third party approvals are needed for this code.
Consultancy and Facilities Management Under 6202.00
Code 6202.00 is the advice and the running of things. It covers planning and designing computer systems that integrate hardware, software and communication technologies. You can supply the hardware and software components yourself as part of an integrated service, or source them from third parties and vendors.
The code also covers installing the system, training the users and supporting them afterwards, plus running clients computer systems and data processing facilities on site with the related support services around that.
What 6202.00 excludes
- Selling computer hardware or software as a standalone service, which is wholesale of computers, peripherals and software
- Installing mainframes and similar computers as a standalone service, which is installation of industrial machinery and equipment
- Setting up personal computers as a standalone service, which sits under 6209.00
- Installing software as a standalone service, which also sits under 6209.00
No third party approvals are needed for this code either.
Other IT Services Under 6209.00
Code 6209.00 catches the computer-related services that do not fit anywhere else. That includes computer disaster recovery, meaning planning and running the measures that restore systems after something goes badly wrong. It also covers installing and setting up personal computers for clients, and software installation services.
The focus is complete system solutions, but it also serves clients who want one small piece done.
What 6209.00 excludes
- Installing mainframes and similar computers, which is installation of industrial machinery and equipment
- Computer programming, which is 6201.00
- Computer consultancy, which is 6202.00
- Computer facilities management for clients, which is also 6202.00
- Data processing and hosting services for clients, which sits under data processing, hosting and related activities
No third party approvals are needed here.
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Why Apply for Your Trade License with Meydan Free Zone
- Banking: A guaranteed bank account.
- Recognition: A business license recognised by MoFA and the Dubai Chamber of Commerce.
- Online selling: Open an online shop and choose from more than 30 marketplaces.
- Visas: Apply for unlimited visas.
- Logistics: Clearing, forwarding, shipping, storage and warehouse facilities.
- Trade: Apply for your import and export code directly with Meydan Free Zone.
Compliance and What You Need in Place
The license itself
To run a software house or tech business in Dubai you must hold a business license. Working without one risks legal consequences and penalties, and it is the simplest problem on this list to avoid.
Third party approvals
None of the four codes needs one. That is unusual and it is worth understanding what it buys you, which is a setup with one approval path instead of two running in parallel.
Anti-money laundering
Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions must comply with the law on anti-money laundering, combating the financing of terrorism and financing of illegal organisations, by meeting the Ministry of Economy needs. Existing licensees registered for goAML after the awareness campaign closed on 30 April 2021, and the Ministry fines those who missed the deadline. New licensees must comply after getting their license to avoid the same fines. Activities 6200.00, 6201.00, 6202.00 and 6209.00 do not need AML registration.
Picking the right code
The exclusions above are the real compliance risk in this sector. If you tell Meydan Free Zone you write software but your actual work is designing integrated systems for clients, you are licensed under 6201.00 and operating under 6202.00. Check your intended work against the exclusion lists before you apply, not after.
Market Opportunity
The commercial case here rests on how little stands between you and trading. None of the four codes needs a third party approval, and none of them needs AML registration, so the path from application to operating is short compared with most regulated activities.
What you get on top is reach. The license is recognised by MoFA and the Dubai Chamber of Commerce, which matters when a client or a bank checks who they are dealing with. You can open an online shop across more than 30 marketplaces, apply for unlimited visas as the team grows, and apply for your import and export code directly, with clearing, forwarding, shipping, storage and warehouse facilities alongside it.
For a software house, that combination means the constraint on growth is how fast you can hire and sell, not how long the paperwork takes.
Conclusion
Setting up a software house, IT consultancy or technology business in Dubai is one of the simpler routes into the market. Four codes cover the field, none needs third party approvals, and none carries an AML burden.
The one decision that deserves care is which code you apply under. The differences between 6201.00, 6202.00 and 6209.00 are drawn along the exclusions rather than the headline descriptions, and getting it wrong means holding a license that does not match what you actually sell. Read the exclusions, match them to your real work, and confirm the scope before you submit.
Talk to the Meydan Free Zone team to confirm your activity code and start your application.
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