Dubai Healthcare

Dubai Healthcare City (DHCC): Free Zone Setup, Licensing and Fees (2026)

Note: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax, or professional advice. Please consult official government websites or professionals for reliable information.

Dubai Healthcare City (DHCC) is the free zone in Dubai dedicated to healthcare, medical education and wellness. It gives you 100 percent ownership of your company, a purpose-built clinical address in Oud Metha or Al Jaddaf, and a single online system for company setup. The point most investors miss in 2026 is the split of responsibility: Dubai Healthcare City Authority (DHCA) issues the commercial license and the lease, while all healthcare regulation and all professional licensing inside the free zone is handled by the Dubai Health Authority (DHA). This guide covers what DHCC is, who regulates what, which licenses you need, the documents, the fees and the timeline, and how DHCC compares with a mainland clinic.

What is Dubai Healthcare City?

Dubai Healthcare City is a free zone created as an initiative of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum and governed by Dubai Healthcare City Authority. It describes itself as the world’s first free zone ecosystem built around healthcare and wellness. After two decades it is home to more than 400 business partners, five hospitals and 168 clinical facilities, alongside the pharmacies, retail, hospitality and education that support them.

For a healthcare investor that matters for one practical reason. In a general free zone you are a tenant among trading and logistics companies. In DHCC your neighbours, your landlord and your service infrastructure are all built around clinical activity, and the free zone authority is used to reviewing clinical business plans.

Who regulates Dubai Healthcare City: DHCA and DHA

This is the single most important point on this page, because older guides still describe a separate DHCC health regulator. That is no longer how it works.

Dubai Healthcare City Authority states plainly that all healthcare regulation in the DHCC free zone is managed by the Dubai Health Authority, and that all healthcare professional licensing in the free zone is managed by the Dubai Health Authority as well. DHCA remains the free zone authority: company registration, the commercial license, the lease or land, visas and the community infrastructure.

What you need	Who issues it
Company registration and commercial license	DHCA, through the Masaar e-services system
Lease, office, clinical unit or land	DHCA
Residence visas for your staff	DHCA government services
Health facility license for the clinic itself	DHA
Professional license for every doctor, dentist, nurse and pharmacist	DHA
Clinical standards, inspections and complaints	DHA

The practical consequence: your clinicians go through the same DHA route as anyone in Dubai. That means DataFlow primary source verification, the professional qualification requirements, an eligibility decision, the DHA exam where it applies, and activation of the license. Being inside a free zone does not create a separate, easier licensing path for your staff.

DHCC Phase 1 and Phase 2

DHCC is two locations, and the choice between them changes what you can build.

	Phase 1	Phase 2
Location	Oud Metha Road, Bur Dubai	Al Jaddaf, on the Dubai Creek
Size	4.1 million sq ft	More than 19 million sq ft
Focus	Healthcare and medical education	Wellness, healthy living, sustainable design
Typical use	Hospitals, clinics, day surgery, pharmacies, medical education	Wellness concepts and serviced land for development

Phase 1 is the established clinical cluster and the usual answer for a clinic or a day surgery centre. Phase 2 is aimed at wellness operators and at investors who want to develop land rather than lease a fitted unit.

Which licenses do you need in DHCC?

A clinical operation in DHCC needs three separate approvals, in this order:

A commercial license from DHCA. This registers the legal entity and permits the listed activities inside the free zone.
A health facility license from DHA. This permits the premises to deliver care. Requirements follow the facility category, for example a clinic, a day surgery centre, a pharmacy or a home healthcare provider.
A DHA professional license for every clinician. No clinician may work under the facility license alone.

Non-clinical businesses, for example a healthcare consultancy, a medical equipment distributor or a pharmaceutical office, need only the first of the three.

The DHCC commercial license: company types, documents and fees

DHCA offers three legal forms inside the free zone:

Free Zone Limited Liability Company (FZ-LLC). An independent legal entity with individual or corporate shareholders. Minimum one shareholder and one director.
Branch of a UAE company or establishment. A legally dependent branch of a parent licensed elsewhere in the UAE, fully owned by that parent.
Branch of a foreign company. A legally dependent branch of a parent outside the UAE.

Before you can apply you need a lease reservation, a lease agreement, a purchase agreement or a title deed. Space comes first, licence second.

Documents DHCA asks for

A business plan, required only for clinical activity
The incorporation resolution for the FZ-LLC, or the resolution establishing the branch
Passport copies for the proposed director, manager, legal representative and shareholders, including residence permit or visit visa pages where the person is in the UAE
Emirates ID copies where the person resides in the UAE, optional
A no objection certificate for the manager from the current UAE sponsor, where applicable
For a corporate shareholder or a parent company: incorporation certificate, memorandum and articles of association, certificate of good standing or continuity, and ultimate beneficial ownership details. For a UAE parent, the DED trade license and commercial register instead of the incorporation certificate

DHCC license fees and timeline

Item	Amount
Initial application fee, one time	AED 1,550
Registration fee, one time	AED 3,500
Commercial license fee	Per the DHCA price list, by activity
Innovation fee, per transaction	AED 10
Knowledge fee, per transaction	AED 10
Initial approval	3 to 10 working days

All fees are non-refundable, and DHCA notes that the initial approval timeline depends on the list of activities applied for. These are the free zone fees only. The DHA facility license, the professional licenses and the fit-out of the premises are separate budgets.

How to set up a business in DHCC step by step

DHCA runs the process online through Masaar, its e-services system. The published sequence is:

Sign up as an investor
Submit the initial application
Pay the initial application fee
Obtain provisional approval
Submit the commercial license application
Pay the commercial license fee
Submit the original legal documents, as applicable
Collect the commercial license

Only after that does the clinical track start: the DHA facility license application for the premises, and in parallel the DHA professional licenses for the clinicians you intend to employ. Clinician licensing is the long pole. Start the DataFlow verification for your first hires while the fit-out is still running.

Clinic and office space in DHCC

DHCA leases fitted units and shell and core space, sells freehold land, and considers joint ventures. Published unit sizes:

Unit type	Approximate size
Clinical	1,500 to 6,000 sq ft
Commercial	1,500 to 17,000 sq ft
Offices	1,500 to 17,000 sq ft
Retail	1,300 to 3,500 sq ft
Executive desks and offices	200 sq ft

For long-term development DHCA offers plots with an average gross floor area of about 100,000 sq ft and a suggested height of up to seven storeys. Note the smallest clinical unit: 1,500 sq ft. A single-room practice is not what this free zone is built for.

Ownership, visas and tax in DHCC

Ownership. As a free zone, DHCC allows you to own your business outright, clinical or non-clinical, with no local partner requirement.
Visas. DHCA issues residence visas for the company. Specialists in medical, scientific, research and technical fields can apply for a ten-year residency visa.
Regulatory obligations. DHCC companies fall under the Economic Substance Regulations and under DHCA company regulations, alongside the UAE corporate tax rules that apply to free zone entities.

DHCC or mainland Dubai: which is right for a clinic?

The short version. DHCC gives you full ownership, a clinical address and a landlord that understands healthcare, at the cost of a limited property market and a minimum unit size. A mainland setup gives you free choice of location anywhere in Dubai and unrestricted access to the local market, and since the ownership reforms it no longer requires a local partner for most activities. Other free zones are cheaper but are not built around clinical activity.

In every case the health facility license comes from DHA, so the decision is about property, cost and market access rather than about which health regulator you answer to.

Common mistakes when setting up in DHCC

Assuming DHCC licenses your doctors. It does not. DHA does, on the same terms as the rest of Dubai.
Applying for the license before securing space. A lease reservation or title deed is a prerequisite, not a later step.
Budgeting only the free zone fees. The DHA facility license, the professional licenses, the fit-out and the medical equipment approvals sit outside the AED 1,550 and AED 3,500 above.
Leaving clinician licensing until the clinic is ready. Primary source verification and the DHA exam route take months, not weeks.
Ignoring the IT obligations. Dubai facilities have to connect to the health information exchange, see NABIDH.

Frequently asked questions about DHCC

Is a DHCC license the same as a DHA license?

No. The DHCC commercial license is a free zone trade license from DHCA. The health facility license and every professional license come from DHA, whether you are inside the free zone or on the mainland.

Can a doctor licensed in DHCC work elsewhere in Dubai?

Since professional licensing in the free zone is handled by DHA, a clinician holds a DHA license. Where that license may be used follows DHA rules on the facility named on it and on additional workplaces, not the free zone boundary.

How long does it take to open a clinic in DHCC?

Initial approval for the commercial license is quoted at 3 to 10 working days. The realistic path to opening is set by three slower items: securing and fitting out the unit, the DHA facility license including inspection, and the professional licensing of your first clinicians.

Do I need a business plan for a DHCC license?

Only for clinical activity. Non-clinical activities do not require one.

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Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is intended for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax, or professional advice. While we strive to ensure accuracy, regulations may change. Readers are encouraged to verify information with official government sources or consult qualified professionals for personalized advice. Happich Consulting assumes no liability for decisions made based on this content.