The UAE has a complex regime for formation of legal persons and arrangements, with 39 corporate registrars across the Emirates, the Commercial Free Zones (CFZs), and the Financial Free Zones (FFZs). Historically, each registrar has its own processes, but following the passage of AML-CFT Decision, which institutes common basic standards for all registrars, these processes are being harmonized across the UAE.

Certain information on legal persons doing business in the UAE is publicly available through the National Economic Register. For entities with a UAE business license, the National Economic Register contains the entity’s license number, address, business activities, and the name of a manager. LFIs are encouraged to consult the Register when conducting CDD on legal persons, but should not rely on information contained in the Register without independently verifying it with the customer.