KIZAD Under KEZAD Group: What the Zone Is Today
Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi, widely known by its acronym KIZAD, remains one of the largest and most active industrial and logistics hubs in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. Investors researching the zone today should understand one structural change first: in September 2022, KIZAD merged with ZonesCorp to form KEZAD Group (Khalifa Economic Zones Abu Dhabi), which now operates under AD Ports Group’s Economic Cities and Free Zones cluster. KEZAD Group today manages a network of economic zones across Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, and Al Dhafra, with a combined footprint of roughly 570 square kilometres and, as of 2025, more than 2,300 registered businesses across sectors including logistics, manufacturing, automotive, pharmaceuticals, metals, food processing, and clean energy.
The term “KIZAD” is still used commercially and in search, and the underlying free zone area formerly branded as KIZAD continues to operate as part of KEZAD Group’s free zone offering. In practice, this means an investor setting up a company today applies through KEZAD Group’s registration channels, even where the original industrial land, warehousing, and port-adjacent infrastructure are still referred to as the KIZAD area. This is a meaningful point for due diligence: license applications, renewals, and regulatory correspondence should reference the current KEZAD Group registration authority rather than assuming the older KIZAD-only structure still applies.
Why Businesses Choose the Zone
The zone’s core advantage is location and infrastructure rather than marketing. It sits adjacent to Khalifa Port, one of the deepest seaports in the region, and within reach of Zayed International Airport and the E11 highway corridor linking Abu Dhabi to Dubai and the Northern Emirates. This makes it a practical base for businesses with physical supply chains: manufacturers importing raw materials and exporting finished goods, distributors and re-exporters serving GCC and wider Middle East markets, and logistics operators needing bonded warehousing close to port infrastructure. Free zone facilities include serviced industrial land plots for custom development, pre-built warehouse units through the zone’s logistics park, build-to-suit facilities for larger industrial requirements, and standard offices for smaller trading or service companies.
License Types Available
Company formation in the zone is organized around three principal license categories:
- Industrial License: covers importing raw materials, manufacturing, processing, assembling, packaging, and exporting intermediate or finished products. This is the category most industrial and manufacturing investors will need, and it typically requires physical premises suited to the declared activity.
- Trading License: covers import, export, distribution, stocking, and warehousing of a defined list of products. Where a company’s product range exceeds the standard item limit, a General Trading License is required instead, which permits a broader and less restricted product scope.
- Service License: covers non-physical activities such as management and economic consulting, marketing services, logistics support and freight forwarding, and other published service categories.
Each license is tied to a specific, published activity list, and the activity selected at application stage determines both the facility requirements and, in many cases, the ownership and substance conditions that follow later for tax purposes. Getting the activity classification right at the outset avoids costly amendments later, and this is an area where PRO services support is genuinely useful, since activity codes and facility requirements are periodically updated by the authority.
Free Zone Versus Mainland (Dual License) Options
KEZAD Group offers both a free zone structure and a mainland structure, sometimes described as a Domestic Economic Zone option, within the same jurisdiction. A standard free zone company benefits from 100 percent foreign ownership, full repatriation of capital and profits, and no requirement for a local Emirati partner, but its ability to trade directly on the UAE mainland without a distributor or local agent is restricted. A dual license arrangement, issued in coordination with Abu Dhabi’s Department of Economic Development (ADDED), allows a free zone company to also operate within mainland Abu Dhabi from the same free zone premises, without needing to lease a second mainland office. This is a relevant option for manufacturers or distributors whose customer base includes buyers based outside the free zone, and it is worth evaluating against a standalone UAE mainland company structure depending on where the bulk of revenue will be generated.
For companies weighing the zone against other UAE free zones for reasons unrelated to Abu Dhabi’s industrial base, for example lower-cost trading or e-commerce setups, a general comparison against options such as a standard UAE free zone company is a reasonable starting point before narrowing down to KEZAD specifically.
Ownership, Shareholders, and Governance
Free zone companies in the zone can be held by individuals, other companies, or a combination of both, with up to 50 shareholders permitted for a private company structure. Foreign individuals and foreign corporate entities may hold shares without requiring a UAE national partner, which is standard across UAE free zones following the wider shift to majority and full foreign ownership. Every company must appoint at least one director, and while a resident nominee director is not always mandatory, having a locally based point of contact simplifies dealings with the authority and with banks. A corporate secretary or equivalent officer is also required to maintain statutory records, track changes to shareholding or activity, and handle reporting obligations to the free zone authority.
A registered address is mandatory for every entity, whether a leased warehouse, an office, or a flexi-desk or mailbox arrangement offered by the zone for smaller service and trading companies that do not need physical premises.
Step-by-Step Formation Process
- Reserve a trade name. The proposed name is checked against existing registrations to avoid duplication, and generic descriptive terms alone are usually not accepted as a distinguishing name. Where the trading name differs from the legal name, or where brand protection matters to the business, a separate trademark registration should be considered early rather than after the company is already trading under the name.
- Select the business activity and license type. The declared activity determines whether an Industrial, Trading, General Trading, or Service license applies, and feeds directly into facility, staffing, and (for mainland dual licensing) ADDED requirements.
- Submit shareholder and management details. This includes passport copies, proof of address, and, for corporate shareholders, attested incorporation documents and board resolutions authorizing the UAE entity.
- Secure premises. Depending on the license type, this ranges from a flexi-desk for a service company to a leased warehouse or serviced industrial plot for manufacturing and logistics operations.
- Obtain initial approval and pay license fees. Once activity, shareholding, and premises are confirmed, the authority issues initial approval, followed by the trade license upon submission of the signed lease agreement and payment of applicable fees.
- Apply for establishment card and visas. With the license issued, the company can apply for an establishment card and process employee and investor visas through the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Security (ICP), which governs entry permits and residency across the Emirates outside Dubai.
- Open a corporate bank account. UAE banks apply their own due diligence on free zone entities, and requirements vary by activity and expected transaction volume; specialist support through corporate bank account opening services can shorten this step considerably for industrial and trading companies with more complex ownership structures.
Documents Typically Required
While exact document checklists vary by activity and shareholder type, applicants should generally prepare passport copies of all shareholders and directors, proof of residential address, a business plan or activity description for industrial and manufacturing applications, board resolutions and a certificate of incorporation for corporate shareholders (attested and, where required, translated), and a signed lease agreement once premises are secured. Manufacturing and industrial applicants should expect additional technical documentation covering equipment, processes, and environmental or safety compliance, given the nature of the activities permitted under an Industrial License.
Corporate Tax and VAT Treatment
Two separate federal tax frameworks apply to companies in the zone, and they are frequently confused.
Under UAE Corporate Tax, a free zone company can qualify as a Qualifying Free Zone Person and pay 0 percent corporate tax on qualifying income, but only where it meets a defined set of conditions: it must earn qualifying income (broadly, income from transactions with other free zone persons, or income from qualifying activities such as manufacturing, distribution from a designated zone, or logistics), maintain adequate substance in the free zone with real staff and decision-making located there, keep audited financial statements, and not have elected to be taxed at the standard rate. A de minimis rule allows a limited amount of non-qualifying income, capped at the lower of 5 percent of total revenue or AED 5,000,000, before the company loses Qualifying Free Zone Person status for that tax period entirely. Income that falls outside the qualifying definition, or that exceeds the de minimis threshold, is taxed at the standard 9 percent corporate tax rate. Because the qualifying/non-qualifying distinction depends heavily on the specific activity and customer base, this is an area where professional corporate tax advice at the point of activity selection, not after the first tax return is due, materially reduces risk.
Separately, under UAE VAT law, the zone is recognized as a Designated Zone. This gives it special VAT treatment for the movement of goods, where transfers of goods between Designated Zones, or within a single Designated Zone, generally fall outside the scope of VAT subject to specific conditions being met. Designated Zone status applies to goods; most services supplied within or from the zone remain subject to standard VAT treatment in the same way as anywhere else in the UAE. Companies should not assume that Designated Zone status means blanket VAT exemption, and ongoing bookkeeping, VAT filing, and audit support through dedicated accounting services and periodic audit services remains necessary regardless of Designated Zone status, particularly since audited financials are also a condition for maintaining Qualifying Free Zone Person status.
Workforce and Recruitment
The zone’s industrial and logistics focus means staffing needs often differ from a typical Dubai trading or services setup, with higher demand for warehouse operatives, technicians, and production staff alongside standard administrative and management roles. Recruitment is generally handled through specialist agencies or online platforms, and companies scaling headcount quickly, particularly manufacturing operations ramping up production, often find it more efficient to route recruitment, visa processing, and monthly payroll through dedicated HR outsourcing and payroll providers rather than building an in-house function from day one. Employee visas and Emirates ID applications for staff based in the zone are processed through the ICP, and companies should build realistic lead times for these into their operational planning, since industrial and manufacturing visas can carry additional labor quota and facility inspection requirements not present for a simple service license.
Choosing Between the Zone and a Branch Structure
Not every foreign company setting up in the zone needs a new standalone entity. A parent company that already operates elsewhere and wants a physical, licensed presence at the zone purely to service UAE customers or manage regional logistics may find a branch of a foreign company structure more efficient than incorporating a new free zone entity, since a branch operates under the parent’s existing legal identity rather than requiring separate share capital and governance. This is a decision worth making deliberately rather than defaulting to a new company simply because that is the more commonly advertised route.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is KIZAD the same as KEZAD?
KIZAD is the original industrial zone brand. Since 2022, it operates under KEZAD Group, formed from the merger of KIZAD and ZonesCorp under AD Ports Group. New applications are processed through KEZAD Group, even though the KIZAD name is still widely used to describe the industrial area itself.
Can a foreign investor own 100 percent of a company in the zone?
Yes. Free zone companies allow full foreign ownership without a UAE national shareholder, consistent with free zone structures across the UAE.
Is it possible to recruit staff for an industrial or manufacturing operation in the zone?
Yes. The UAE has an established pool of local and international labor for industrial and logistics roles, typically accessed through recruitment agencies or online hiring platforms, though larger workforce ramp-ups benefit from dedicated HR support to manage visa and quota timelines.
Can I rent premises without committing to a long industrial lease?
Service and trading license holders can generally use flexi-desk or shared office arrangements, while industrial and manufacturing activities require dedicated warehouse or land plot facilities suited to the declared activity.
Does Designated Zone status mean my company pays no VAT at all?
No. Designated Zone status affects the VAT treatment of goods moved between or within Designated Zones under specific conditions. Most services, and many goods transactions outside those specific conditions, remain subject to standard UAE VAT rules.
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