Twelve recent matters in summary form. Each one ran into something specific. Each one closed.
Africa → UAE · Holdco
Family office Lagos to DIFC holdco
SituationUSD-denominated investment vehicle. NGN to USD bank friction destroying treasury yield. CBN remittance rules slow.
ApproachDIFC Foundation as holdco, two operating Nigerian subsidiaries below. NBD Private banking with USD multi-currency.
NGN to USD friction reduced 40% via DIFC treasury netting. Closed Feb 2026.
EU → UAE · Solo
German consultant Berlin to IFZA with Golden Visa
SituationSolo strategy consultant, €240k revenue, 47% effective German tax. Wanted EU client servicing without German PE.
ApproachIFZA solo licence. Berlin exit certificate filed with Finanzamt. Salary self-pay AED 30k/month for Golden Visa.
€42,000 personal tax saved year one. Banked in Wio day 6, ENBD day 28.
US → UAE · FEIE
US founder New York to DMCC, FEIE preserved
SituationUS citizen, fintech founder, wanted UAE entity but anchored to US tax filing for life. FEIE eligibility was the wire.
ApproachDMCC FZ-LLC, 330-day physical presence calendar built with US CPA. Form 2555 prep coordinated. US passport retained.
FEIE maintained year one (US$126,500 excluded). US tax filing still clean. UAE banked.
Africa → UAE · SaaS
Kenyan SaaS Nairobi to IFZA in 18 days
SituationBootstrapped SaaS, USD 800k ARR, wanted UAE entity for Gulf client invoicing and KES-USD treasury.
ApproachIFZA package, Wio fintech first to unblock invoicing, ENBD traditional account second. CBK exit documentation handled.
Banked in 14 days via fintech ladder. First AED invoice day 21. KES treasury normalised.
UK → UAE · CGT
UK landlord exiting via UAE residency
SituationUK property portfolio (£4.2M GDV), wanted to dispose post-relocation. CGT exposure was the wire. Non-resident CGT applies but at lower effective rate.
ApproachRAKEZ entity for residency anchor. SRT exit plan, 5-year non-resident window mapped against disposal schedule. UK accountant co-signed.
CGT mitigation £290k vs UK-resident sale. Compliant under temporary non-residence rule.
Asia → UAE · E-commerce
Indian e-commerce Bangalore to Meydan
SituationD2C brand, INR 18 Cr revenue, wanted UAE entity for GCC fulfilment and FEMA-compliant outbound investment.
ApproachMeydan Free Zone for 60-minute issuance. ODI route via RBI for parent company equity. Mashreq Neo banking via fintech ladder.
Licence issued in 60 minutes. Operational AED revenue day 21. FEMA-compliant ODI.
EU → UAE · Agency
French agency Paris to Shams Media
SituationCreative agency, €1.1M revenue, 28% corporate plus 30% PFU on dividend extraction. GCC client pipeline justified UAE move.
ApproachShams (Sharjah Media City) for media-activity fit and AED 5,750 starting license cost (0-visa, Media Package). French exit return coordinated. EOR for remaining Paris staff.
€28,000 corporate and dividend tax saved year one. 4 new GCC clients in first 6 months.
Asia → UAE · Multi-entity
Pakistani group Karachi to RAKEZ and AFZ
SituationTrading group, USD 12M revenue, wanted UAE holdco plus operational free zone, banking access blocked at three prior firms.
ApproachRAKEZ holdco, AFZ operating entity, layered substance. ENBD documentation via founder's existing UK-qualified accountant records to clear KYC.
Multi-entity structure live. Banking opened in 30 days after 8 months of prior rejections.
Middle East → UAE · Commodities
Saudi family business to DMCC gold trading
SituationRiyadh-based trading family wanted regulated gold trading platform. ZATCA cross-border friction. Wanted KSA-friendly structure.
ApproachDMCC gold and diamond licence (specialist DMCC vertical). DGCX trading membership. ENBD Tadawul-aware private banking.
Gold trading licence live month 2. First trade settled month 3. Annual volume target USD 40M.
EU → UAE · Pillar Two
Dutch SaaS Amsterdam to DIFC, Pillar Two
SituationGroup consolidated revenue €890M (above Pillar Two threshold). Worried UAE benefit would be neutralised by 15% DMTT.
ApproachDIFC for substance-heavy holdco. Pillar Two modelling against UAE DMTT regime. NL parent retained with profit-shift carefully scoped.
Confirmed UAE benefit holds even with DMTT. Net effective rate 15.4% vs NL 25.8%.
Middle East → UAE · Capital
Lebanese tech Beirut to IFZA, capital escape
SituationBeirut-based tech founder, USD trapped in Lebanese banking system since 2019 controls. Wanted UAE entity to receive USD from European clients.
ApproachIFZA solo. Funding via family in UAE (compliant capital intro). Mashreq Neo with thin-file KYC support package.
Capital control workaround clean. Banked in 30 days. USD receipts restored within 6 weeks.
UK → UAE · Migration
UK Ltd to UAE FZE, 9-month workout
SituationUK Ltd, £1.4M turnover, founder wanted clean migration (not topco). Complex due to retained UK clients and SRT cliff edges.
Approach9-month phased: UAE FZE day 0, parallel run months 1 to 6, UK Ltd strike-off month 8. Final accounts and CT600 filed clean.
£45,000 UK CT saved year one. Clean strike-off. Zero HMRC enquiries to date.
