Dubai Business 2025: Why Fortune 500s Move

You know, at first people look at it and say it's too good to be true. I hear that. It cannot be an environment where there's, how does the government make money if there are no taxes? I've been here for 20 years and I'm always surprised by the quality of the service. The service is too much. So it makes you spoiled. You go to Europe and you have the shock of your life. So you have to look at Dubai as a business enabler, right? It's a platform. It's the best place to live. So the quality of life is very good. Your salary is tax free and you can service the region from Dubai and grow the economy. Dubai has clearly set itself up as a global business hub. But why and how can you as a corporation get in on the benefits of setting yourself up here in Dubai? Well, I'm going to have the answer for you in this welcome to a very special episode of The Dubai Connect podcast. My name is Ghada Benitez. I'm a certified international property specialist and a licensed realtor connecting global real estate investors and business investors with opportunities here in Dubai. And today we're going to answer questions by multinational global corporations about how and why to set up headquarters here in Dubai with an expert on the topic, Mr. Michael Corbawi, an attorney who does this as a living, right? Hi, Michael. Hi, Ghada. Nice seeing you again. Nice seeing you. You came. You were one of my first guests. Yes, on the first season, when we're talking about just when I was starting to do Dubai real estate. But now I have this interest from European companies and US companies to talk about okay Ghada. Great. We know that we're going to invest in real estate, but how do we get in on what's happening with business in Dubai? And there's no one I can think of better to talk about that than you. So thank you. May you share a little bit about who you are, your expertise, etc. So I'm a corporate lawyer. I set up one of the largest law firms in the region, headquartered in the DIFC. I myself have been in Dubai for the past 20 years. So I came here in 2004. So I saw it develop and grow into what it is today. And we have indeed helped a lot of corporations and a lot of businesses set up in the region and use Dubai as a hub to service the region and do business. What? Share with me what is the attraction that we're seeing? I believe it's over a hundred Fortune 500 companies right now. At least, at least. So I mean I know, but I want you to share what is attracting these companies from all over the world to set up here in Dubai. So you have to look at Dubai as a business enabler, right? As a platform connecting the region, not just the UAE, the region. I.e., the GCC, seven GCC countries, the Indian subcontinent, Asia, China, everyone connects in Dubai. So when you have a company and you're set up in Dubai, you're basically doing business with the whole of that region and you are taking advantage of being here and of the amazing infrastructure that Dubai has to offer to service all of these countries while paying a very, very reduced corporate tax. Ding ding ding ding ding. If you compare it to, if you compare it to the rest of the world, and while also having access to an amazing pool of talent, because everyone who has talent wants to work in Dubai. It's the best place to live. So the quality of life is very good. Your salary is tax free and you can service the region from Dubai and grow the economy. Fantastic. And you know I want to dive into a few things that you just said. First of all, there was kind of a big news when they started to implement the corporate tax, but as an American, it's 9%, right? Yes. How does that compare for America? It's less, but how does it compare to other major markets? So there are very few places in the world where the corporate tax is this low. And UAE has imposed the corporate tax just to be within the norm of international standards, not because they want to tax people. And this tax only starts to apply if your profit is over 50 thousand, 50 or 60 thousand dollars a year. So below that you pay zero. And in addition to that, it's a new regime. So for the past, I would say, 18 years, we didn't have any corporate tax. It just kicked in this year. And it has not affected the business in reality because you can still expense the company as you wish and 9% is not a detriment for people to consider setting up or not setting up in Dubai. Correct. So when we talk about the whole region, clarify this. Dubai is the business hub for anyone that's doing business in all of the region. It's not another city. It is Dubai. It is. Yes. You should not consider Dubai as a city. Dubai is a big office, a big business platform that enables you to access all of the region. So you're based in Dubai, but in reality you're servicing the region. So I have for instance a client, a big architecture firm. Their main office is in Dubai, but 80% of their business is in Qatar, in Bahrain, in Saudi Arabia, of course, and around the region. So their staff is happy to be in Dubai. Happier to be in Dubai. Why? Because the quality of life, the best restaurants, the best nightlife, very nice family environment. And then they fly in and out to the region to do the business. But the headquarter is in Dubai because Dubai is the first choice in terms of quality of life, but also accessibility to talent pool. Yes, and to network and to infrastructure. Such an important point when you make also about the talent pool, because so many of my real estate investors, let's say from Canada, for example, they're looking to come here for job opportunities and job growth. Yes, because of the quality of life, right? Which we know there's a quality of life initiative even. But because mainly, especially when you compare to Canada and the US and the UK, taxes and how much income taxes eat into someone's ability to provide for themselves and their family and to create a generational wealth and to be able to live a quality of life. And so now these corporations have these talent pools to pull from because you have some of the highest educated people. Even now, college kids from around the world are thinking, where are they going to move when they graduate? They want to come here. They know the opportunities here. I mean, I can tell you in my law firm I have every week I have five or six applications of graduates who want to just come and train in our law firm from around the world. From around the world. So I get them from Canada, from France, from the US, from the UK, and from the region as well. And they all want, Dubai is now on the map. They want to have to build a career here because they know that this is a hub to service the region. And they know that if they're here, they're going to have access to the best clients, to the best lawyers, but also to a good quality of life where they pay zero taxes on their income, which is amazing. Very rare. And where they can also enjoy their day-to-day living. And you know, for the new generation, this is very important. They have to have their routine. They have to go to the gym. They have to have good gyms, good restaurants, good food. Everything has to be perfect. You know how they think? And Dubai offers all of this. Yes, it does. Another unique benefit I would say is for tech people, people in tech because now we have the AI campus that's here. And I see that there are initiatives to pull these people in tech, and tech companies are starting to come, big huge tech companies are starting to come into Dubai. What can you tell us about that? So obviously, since they set up Internet City long long time ago, and that was back in 2000, okay, the Sheikh had in mind to always be on the forefront of the tech world and to attract the best. And this was a small initiative. If you look at Internet City today and what it has become and how big Dubai has grown, it's tiny. But they've then added to that lots of initiatives, lots of creative hubs, lots of tech hubs, and also huge initiatives with crypto to attract the best crypto players and have them set up here and offer their services in the region so that they're always always innovating. Absolutely. It's such a city of the future when we say that. These are the type of things that we're referring to, you know? And like you just said, they just announced a creators hub. They have digital nomad visa opportunities here. They have the golden visa of course, but they have digital nomad. And the golden visa can even apply to people of great talent in their industries. So you have this whole fresh young blood that wants to be part. It used to be San Francisco, right? It used to be Silicon Valley in California where I'm from and where I also have a real estate license. But now you're hearing it's Dubai, it's Dubai, it's Dubai. So Michael, walk us through the process if you may of how one of these corporations can set up headquarters here in Dubai. So in the past, before 2020, there used to be a mandatory requirement for you to have 51% owned by a local UAE national. But then with the evolution of the law, they took an initiative to remove that, to open the market, which is amazing because it used to stress a lot of people to have to have a nominee shareholder with them owning 51% of the company. So now you can own 100% of your business and you can set it up either in a free zone or onshore. And I'll explain a little bit about the free zones because I'm sure like it looks a little bit strange for a lot of people. So free zones are business hubs that are activity tailored, and they enable you to set up and have a business license and carry out that business in the free zone and outside the free zone depending on the free zone. So we have state-of-the-art financial free zones like the DIFC and ADGM. And then we have trading free zones, which is Jabel Ali free zone, which is one of the oldest in the region and maybe in the world. And we have then DMCC, the multi commodity center. We have Internet City, we have Media City. There are many flavors to choose from. And you basically end up choosing the free zone based on the geographical location but also on your business activity. So if you're doing tech, you want to be in Internet City. If you're doing media, you want to be in Media City. If you're a financial company, you're a hedge fund looking to incorporate in the region, you're going to want to be either in Abu Dhabi to access the Abu Dhabi funds and Abu Dhabi money, or in Dubai to be within that business environment and close to all the nice restaurants of course, so that you can have a nice lunch. So this is how it is. And the regulated free zones are not easy to get into. Okay, there's an application process that takes time. They vet you based on who you are, which jurisdiction you come from. But US companies usually have a good reputation. They understand the laws, the data protection and the compliance and the KYC. So it's easy for them to get a license when they want one. And DIFC is the best of the best. I mean, they've launched it in 2006 and it has attracted the best names in banking and reinsurance and hedge funds and you name it. And when I have lunch there, which I love. Your offices are there. Yes, indeed. When I have lunch there, all you hear is British English and American English. There are so many Americans and Brits that are working in DIFC, right? Indeed. Yes. Yes. And the free zone is growing. So they add new buildings every year. And it's a free zone in the sense that it has its own court based on common law and it has its own rules and regulations. So what applies in a free zone, even in terms of rent, even if you buy real estate, the rent law in the DIFC is different than the rent law outside the DIFC. And this is to give more comfort to foreign investors that they will have their own set of rules, their own court system within that free zone. So it's very interesting. It is really interesting. I mean, I'm still learning about all of this myself actually about free zones. So that's very interesting. So how would you say, because we also see right now where we're discussing America, but we're also seeing a huge amount of people coming from the UK, setting up their businesses, moving here. May you share some of the comparisons of having a corporation or a company here to the US and to UK and any other top market that you're seeing? I guess Singapore would be another one where people are coming here. Dubai is competing with the best. The UK landscape has changed when they amended the non-dom regulations and they imposed everyone on their international income. And that has prompted a lot of UK nationals to leave the UK. And a lot of them came to Dubai because, a, they feel at home here, and b, there's 0% income tax. As far as corporations, if you're a US corporation and you want to do business in this side of the world, first you struggle with the time zone because you have huge time zone differences which will not really enable you to connect with your clients. So it makes sense to set up here. First, you create a cost center which enables you to get taxed at a lower rate of 9% from the business that you do in the region, which is amazing. Then you recruit local staff who are in the region and who can connect better with your clients. Third, you have access to the amazing pool of talent that we talked about. Lots of them are multilingual. They can speak Arabic, they can speak English, they can speak Urdu. They can connect to the clients because here the clients are also multi-international, global. And most importantly, you get to access local government work because if you don't have a license set up here, the governments don't take you seriously. So if you're going to go and do business with the big names in Abu Dhabi, the big funds, say Mubadala or ADQ, they're going to ask you, are you here? Do you have a setup in Abu Dhabi? You have a setup in Dubai. Where are you based? You tell them, okay, you know what? I'm in Washington DC. Oh, that's amazing. But you're not here. Yes. So maybe you don't take the region seriously. Yes. Maybe you're not willing to invest time. You invested in it here. Exactly. In the region to be here with us because they're very welcoming. You know, this is Arabic tradition. It is. So they want you to be here and this is a show of good faith that you're willing to invest a small amount, which is setup cost of 50, 60 thousand dirhams, whatever it is, to be here and to access that market and to be permanently present because if they want to call you, if they want to send you an email and they want an answer within a couple of hours, they cannot wait for the time zone difference of 12 hours to get an email. This delay works but also this gives them a different perspective of how serious you are about the region. Yeah, very good. Very good. And let me ask you another really important factor that we didn't talk about, the new trade agreements that are happening right now. Can you dive into that and how that affects business as well? So Dubai has always been a trading hub. And when the Sheikh opened the creek to enable trade with the subcontinent, and then they incorporated in the 80s Jabel Ali free zone, which is large trading free zone to enable trade and to remove any taxes from the trading route. And Dubai always has been on the trading route. So the trading agreements are natural and they have them with China, with a lot of the European countries, with India of course, with the US. And it enables Dubai to be used as a business hub. And be careful, if you're importing goods into Dubai, you pay 5% import tax. Import tax. Okay? But if you're importing them to a free zone, say you have a container of cars, okay? You send them to Jabel Ali port. They stay in Jabel Ali port. And then guess what? You sell them to Africa, okay? You don't pay the 5%. Because they never came into the country to pay the 5%. That's another benefit of understanding how free zones work and working with that as a trade route. And then aren't you opening new trade routes right now? I believe in South America or Latin America as well. Every year, every year Dubai is working on new initiatives, new routes of trade to enable trade to grow. And Africa is very important because Dubai is also considered as the trading hub and the service hub for Africa. So I have a lot of African clients, a lot of African government who come to Dubai to do business because, a, personally they love Dubai. They like to come here. Everyone loves Dubai and they have a good time. Yes. And that's very important. And second, Dubai is very efficient. You have all the brands here. It's easy for you to get access to whatever you want. There's no capital control. If you have money in the bank, you can send it to the US without any control, without any restriction. Very important point that you just make, no capital control, because that's a misconception that I actually had to overcome from people when I first started doing this in the US. They say, well, that's a Middle Eastern country. Can they confiscate and they can, you know, my bank accounts this and that? And I said, no, no capital control. So in other countries, I'm not going to name them, if you send money in, it's impossible to take it out. Yeah, I know what you're talking about because I'm having those issues right now with those people trying to sell their properties and get the profits out to come invest in Dubai real estate and they're having a very hard time. So that is another huge benefit of Dubai. And with these consistently new trade agreements that are being formed, that obviously positively impacts the flow of business in Dubai. And that ultimately impacts the need for more homes and that ultimately helps investors with opportunity to provide those homes because we're seeing that population is expanding exponentially. Yes, yes. Of course. I mean when we have requests, I had requests from a company in LA two weeks ago. They want to relocate 100 people to Dubai, okay? So their model, they're working on a self-driving car, okay? But they want to build it out of Dubai because the government welcomes them. The funds will invest with them if they're building it here. And eventually their need is find us office space for 100 people. And that's very difficult these days because the office market is saturated. So I really recommend buying office space. That's a very good investment. But also, 100 people means 100 needs for new school, needs for new accommodation and needs for new services. So this is how the communities are built. Exactly. And you know that goes back to again another misconception, that Dubai is built on oil, which we know it's not at all. And actually it's not dependent on any one sector. You have all of these, but this is all that's needed when you have a growing population of people that are working, that are bringing, you know, their families as well. It's not what it used to be a couple years ago where it was just a single person coming. They're bringing their families to raise them here because they love the safety and the diversity and the harmony. And there's just a good vibe when you're going to Dubai. I mean, I stay at my best friend's house a lot of times when I come here and her kids will come home from school, okay Michael? And I feel like the United Nations is in her family room. You have from every country, you have all these people. And I sit and I'm like, wait, well, what brought your family here? And what brought your family here? And there's just this harmonious respect for different cultures. And all these people have such interesting stories that bring them all to Dubai because Dubai really is the city of the future. And not just for real estate but as we are talking about, for business. And with the Fortune 500 companies that are setting up their headquarters and so many corporations that are finally understanding the benefits and advantages of doing business and setting up your headquarters right here in Dubai. Absolutely. And the safety as well, the tax-free regime, the quality of life. So Dubai has a lot that plays in its favor. And I think it has become without doubt the capital of the region, the business capital of the region for sure. Absolutely. But also the leisure capital of the region because of the number of new restaurants and new entertainment spots that have just opened in the past year. They can't even keep up. 2024. I'm sure you didn't even have time to visit them all. So the best brands in the world, the best brands in the world are now setting up shop in Dubai as far as food and beverage and entertainment. You're absolutely correct because I'll be in Miami and I'll see like let's say, Amos, for example, or you know the Nubo or whatever it is, wherever they are in these hot spots, Monte Carlo, Miami, Marbella, they're in Dubai. They're in Dubai. They're in Dubai. And their biggest probably money maker, money-making restaurant is in Dubai. Yeah. So you would have like five times the income in Dubai. Why? Because there's one rule in Dubai. People like expensive things. They like to spend money. They like to enjoy their time. This is a Middle Eastern culture. But also the culture of the Indian population that lives here and the Russians. We have lots of Russians. Everyone likes to enjoy the finer things in life. It is a very luxurious and exciting experience, all around, all the way around. It's funny because my son loves a couple of restaurants. Like I was just mentioning Milos. And I said, Gabriel, you don't understand, when you come to Dubai and go to a restaurant, it's all those brands, the food and beverage brands, but it's Dubai style. So it's Dubai's flavor on everything. It's elevated. It's all about experience. And by the way, I just saw an article that just came out that said Dubai is shifting from just materialistic, let's say the bag you wear, the car you drive, to experiences. And that's where the restaurants and the hotels, I mean, even when you walk into the Address hotel, which is the Emaar branded residence, how every one of those lobbies have their own distinct, unbelievable oud scent. It's the experience all the way around, the cleanliness, the efficiency, that anything you want. You know, we used to say that in Las Vegas, in Las Vegas, it's whatever you want any time of day. But that's Dubai. Whatever you want any time of day. You run out of gas, the gas truck will come to you and fill your car up with gas. You don't have eggs in the morning and you want to make breakfast, within five minutes, you have the little. Yeah, the service is incredible. I mean, I cannot have this anywhere in the world. I'm always, even I've been here for 20 years, I'm always surprised by the quality of the service because it's combining the Asian service with the Middle Eastern flavor and it's international. So it's crazy. It's crazy. Like I had a car, I had a car problem yesterday on a Sunday, okay? They came in the morning. By night they had repaired it already and I didn't even move the car. And I cannot even tell you how much I paid. It's ridiculous. It's ridiculous. It's very very cheap. And my husband was with me. He came for the first time two weeks ago and I rented a car and he goes, you drive here? And I said, yes, the only thing is use Waze. Don't use Google Maps because you get lost. But wherever you are, the rental company brings the car. If you're sitting at a restaurant, you decide you want to rent the car, they bring it to you right there. And if you want to turn it in 3 days later and you're at the coffee shop, they come and pick it up. I mean, it's convenience and luxury. The service is too much. So it makes you spoiled. You go to Europe and you have the shock of your life. But because the quality of the service is amazing here and people are helpful, like you can find people even that you don't know who will help you doing whatever it is that you're doing for free, just because everyone's happy. But you are spoiled and the kids here are spoiled. The kids here have no idea what real life is like because they are so incredibly spoiled. But with that, Michael, I love the fact that we have established this great relationship over the past couple years since the beginning of my journey discovering Dubai. And that you have been such a great resource for my clients and investors and golden visas and you know questions about opening up bank accounts, about starting companies here. And you'll continue I know to help. I mean, you need legal here because you're in a foreign country. Some people, we spend a lot of time trying to remove the misconception that people have about the region and about Dubai and about the laws and about how the system works. So that takes a lot of time to clear. Correct. And then they're comfortable and then they start to do business. And then they realize that everything we said was true. That there is no wolf. No. Like you can actually do business and the government will protect you and will safeguard you and the laws are there and the banks are friendly and everything works well. Yes. Because you know, at first people look at it and say it's too good to be true. I hear that. It cannot be an environment where there's, how does the government make money if there are no taxes? How do they have the money? Yes. Like it cannot be, like I cannot be making 10% return on my property investment. It cannot happen and then the government takes zero. But this is how it is. This is how it is. And because of that, there's a vibe that when you walk around here and you're amongst the people and you're sitting around, there isn't this tension. Have you been to America? Yeah, of course. Okay, I don't know if you feel it because maybe you're visiting as a visitor. But there's this underlying tension in the United States that we unfortunately feel, because you know, we have competing government entities. There are so many issues with taxes being significantly high. People are really priced out of the real estate market. There are so many issues that our country has. And I love Europe, but a lot of European cities and countries unfortunately also have underlying tension. And obviously a lot of instability. When there's a tough economy, that sprinkles down to people's quality of life and happiness, right? They can't put food on the table and pay for their housing. When you come to Dubai though, not only do you feel people are working hard, it's a very hardworking, hustle environment. I compare it to New York when it comes to that. But there's not this underlying tension. Other than in traffic. Because people know that the government is working for the people. And that's a refreshing feeling that we don't necessarily in the US feel. That there's just this, they'll figure it out. If there's God forbid the floods happen, they'll figure it out. COVID happened, they'll figure it out. Traffic right now every day, RTA is announcing, you know, because they didn't know there was going to be this type of population explosion. So it's so refreshing to be in a place where you see the people love their government. And they love. Very unique indeed. Usually people are slashing the government. But here, because you have this system where it's very wise government and very very business friendly. Very, very business friendly. So I saw them get out of their way to enable business. Yes. They can change the rules and the laws overnight just to make something happen. Exactly. And they do. And I have to tell you, one of the proudest moments I've ever had in my life is that I am enamored with the vision of Sheikh Muhammad bin Maktoum bin Rashid al-Maktoum. It's such a long name. I've been enamored. And actually I have billboards in the United States that talk about invest in Dubai. And I have a real on my Instagram that has his voice where he says, I want Dubai to be the best city in the world. And because I replay that in my head all the time, I listen to him and his story and what his vision is for Dubai. And as the ruler, I got to see him last week and I got to walk up to him. He probably thought, what does this crazy lady want from me? And I said, may I show you something? And I showed him on my phone the video of the reel of his voice over saying, I want Dubai to be the best city in the world, next to the billboards that I have. And he said, in America. I said, yes. He patted me on the back. It was such. Yeah. And so friendly and very cool. And for as a matter of fact, when we first saw him in his entourage walking around, I told my husband, that's the Sheikh. And he said, no, it's not. I said, yes, it is. He goes, babe, the Sheikh would be walking around with armed militia. That's how. I said, not in Dubai, Habibi. He doesn't need it. He doesn't need protected. Dubai's so safe. And also, everyone loves him. So he doesn't need protection. He's so loved. So I'm sure you've heard the stories where he walks into a restaurant and pays the bill for everyone. I didn't know that. Yeah, that's pretty amazing, huh? He's just a, he's a kind man. This is a great city. I love the vibe. This is. So it's like 1001 nights, right? So it's like you have these tales where they only happen in Dubai. And they make it very unique. It's very friendly. It is, in all matters and especially in business. And with that, I will say thank you for your time and expertise. I look forward to continuously educating our audience around the globe, including in the United States and Canada, about the opportunities here in Dubai. And I have. Thank you for having me. And I hope that we managed to shed some light onto how to do business. You do. You always do. In Dubai. And by the way, I'm going to link also our first episode where you talked about the regulations of investing in Dubai because that's always a question. So I'll link that to this video. But this one, we got to dive into business. And I hope you enjoyed the information. Please make sure to like, subscribe, follow The Dubai Connect, and stay tuned for the next episode. Thank you.