Freelance is becoming an increasingly popular form of conducting work and self-organization of lives and working space around people. Of course, there are types of jobs that cannot be done outside the permanent workplace, but virtually all services can somehow be provided periodically, according to the schedule that a person determines for himself.

The United Arab Emirates traditionally attracts a large number of foreign citizens interested in finding a job. Many of them quite successfully master freelance as a form of doing business. In turn, this is very in demand among employers’ companies, which, in order to save operating expenses, are very interested in cooperation with freelancers of various profiles.

The practice of the UAE in the regulation of freelancе is quite advanced and greatly facilitates potential freelancers the process of legalizing their activities on the territory of the country.

First, you need to pay attention to the fact that a freelancer and a part-time employee are different categories of people. In the case of freelancе, a person forms for himself a separate company consisting of only one person, and the expression “working for oneself” acquires a clear meaning and quite specific content.

Being though small, but a company, a freelancer must undergo a procedure of legalization, which is not much different from the procedure provided for traditional companies doing business in the UAE. Legality for a freelancer is achieved by obtaining a license for a particular type of activity. The cost of a license and its type depend on what the freelancer plans to do.

In general, there are two ways of obtaining such a license – through the Department of Economic Development or within the free zone, which in the UAE is quite a lot. Needless to say, obtaining a license in a free zone implies an easier procedure and, accordingly, less stringent requirements for the applicant. First, it does not require the presence of a local partner, and secondly, it is allowable that a foreigner fully hold a freelancer-company. In addition, a freelance company is exempted from paying taxes for 50 years.

In some cases, if a resident visa is available, even a nominal office space is not required for a freelancer. However, most licensing bodies require that a freelancer have at least a virtual office or smart office. As a rule, services for the creation of such an office are included in the startup package of services that consulting firms offer within registration of companies in the United Arab Emirates.

In general, it can be noted that the freelance activity, carried out in accordance with the legislation of the UAE, allows representatives of many professions to work successfully after obtaining the necessary legal status.