RAKEZ activity register
Freelance Permit activities in RAKEZ
Get my UAE setup planThe short answer
RAKEZ (Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone) issues its freelancer permit to one named individual, for one occupation chosen from its published professions list. The holder works in their own birth name, cannot appoint staff or open a corporate bank account, and is personally liable for debts from the work. Packages run for 1 or 2 years, and a UAE resident with another sponsor can skip RAKEZ visa sponsorship by supplying that sponsor's No Objection Certificate.
Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone ([RAKEZ](https://rakez.com/)) is a multi-purpose free zone in Ras Al Khaimah. Its company licences come in Commercial, Services, Professional, Industrial, Educational and Media families, and the freelancer permit sits outside them. RAKEZ describes the holder as an independent contractor and sole practitioner, so no Memorandum of Association, Certificate of Incorporation or partner list is issued.
RAKEZ draws the freelance permit from a dedicated professions list rather than the general activity register that its company licences use. RAKEZ's own page highlights media and education professionals as example categories, but the published list itself runs to several groupings: media occupations (titles such as actor, advertising editor, animator and announcer), education occupations, a group of IT occupations, and a separate group of analyst and business-planning occupations, among them analyst (strategy and policy planning). A holder can select only one occupation from the list per permit.
Compare the permit with a company licence on four points. RAKEZ allows no staff and no additional visa under the permit, no corporate bank account, and one activity only. The fourth is liability: the holder answers personally for debts and obligations from the work, because no company exists to carry them.
Take an Animator, a title listed under media professions. The permit would be issued in the animator's own birth name, not a studio name, and would cover animation only, not editing or consulting. The animator could not hire an assistant or open a corporate bank account to invoice through. Someone already resident through an employer or family sponsor can apply for the permit without RAKEZ's visa, supplying a copy of the valid residence visa and that sponsor's No Objection Certificate. A passport copy and a portfolio or qualification certificate are also required. Once the animator needs an assistant, a second activity or a company account, a RAKEZ company licence such as a Services licence fits better.
Velarozone is an advisory and company-formation firm, not RAKEZ, so RAKEZ itself takes the application and the payment. Its page lists Portal 360, a payment link on the invoice, bank transfer and UAE bank cheques. Our role is checking fit before you apply, as set out under [why clients work with Velarozone](/why-velarozone).
What the Freelance Permit classification covers
Entries here are individual professions, not company activities. The register names the practitioner, such as Actor, Advertising Editor, Animator or Analyst, and the licence is issued to a person working in their own name.
RAKEZ sets the eligibility rules itself. An applicant provides a passport copy and either a portfolio of work or a qualification certificate. Residency is a choice: take RAKEZ visa sponsorship, or bring a copy of a valid UAE residence visa with the existing sponsor's No Objection Certificate.
What a freelance Permit here is structured for
Suited to one person selling their own professional work. AFZ allows one shareholder and, per its FAQ, one employee, so it does not fit a business that needs partners or a team, or one that holds stock and trades goods.
Decide between the permit and a company licence on three facts: whether you will hire anyone, whether you need a corporate bank account, and whether you can accept personal liability for debts from the work. A yes to either of the first two, or a no to the third, points to a company licence.
From the register
Named Professions on RAKEZ's Freelance List
A sample of the 100 activities RAKEZ files under Freelance Permit, exactly as the register names them. Activity names are the authority's own wording and are shown in English in every language; register codes are not published.
- ACTOR
- ADVERTISING EDITOR
- ANALYST- STRATEGY & POLICY PLANNING
- ANIMATOR
- ANNOUNCER
- ART CRITIC
- ARTIST
- AUDIOLOGY TECHNICION
- BUSINESS ANALYST
- BUSINESS ASSURANCE ANALYST
- CAREER COUNSELLOR
- Career Development Specialist
- Career Ladder Advisor
- CHIEF EDITOR
- CHOREOGRAPHER
- COMPOSER
- COMPUTER INSTRUCTOR
- COMPUTER SCIENCES TRAINER
- COMPUTER SYSTEMS ANALYST
- CORRESPONDENT
- DATA ANALYST
- DATABASE ANALYST
- DIRECTOR
- DIRECTOR / THEATRE
- DIRECTOR CINEMA & TV
- E-Advisor: Career Ladder
- E-Advisor: Organizational Development
- E-Coach: Personal Development
- E-Counsellor: Career Counsellor
- E-Specialist: Career Development
What this page does not decide
Decision factors
How the Permit Differs from a Company Licence
RAKEZ publishes eight terms for the permit. These six decide whether it can replace a company licence for a given person.
- Issued to a named individual who works in their own birth name, not a company name. No Memorandum of Association, Certificate of Incorporation or partner list is issued.
- Limited to one occupation per permit, drawn from RAKEZ's own freelancer professions list (spanning media, education, IT and analyst/business-planning occupations, among a small number of others) rather than the general business-activity register.
- Holders are not eligible to appoint staff or sponsor additional employee visas.
- Holders are not eligible to open a corporate bank account and are personally liable for debts and obligations arising from the work.
- UAE residence visa sponsorship through RAKEZ is optional for UAE residents, GCC and non-GCC nationals alike. Anyone who declines it supplies a copy of a valid residence visa and the existing sponsor's No Objection Certificate.
- Offered as 1-year or 2-year packages, with access to RAKEZ's business centre facilities included.
Where the Permit Is a Good Fit
- An individual professional (actor, broadcaster, editor, analyst or a similar named occupation) who wants to trade under their own name rather than set up a company.
- Someone whose work fits a single eligible occupation and who does not need to hire staff.
- A professional who already holds UAE residency through another sponsor and can provide that sponsor's No Objection Certificate with a copy of the valid residence visa.
- Someone who accepts that the holder, not a company, answers for any debts and obligations from the work, since RAKEZ issues no Certificate of Incorporation under the permit.
- A professional who would otherwise take out a RAKEZ company licence, such as a Services licence, purely to work alone under one activity, with no plan to add staff or a second activity.
When to Choose a Company Licence Instead
- A team or partnership where more than one person needs to work under the same licence.
- A business that needs a corporate bank account or will invoice clients as a company.
- Anyone whose occupation does not appear on RAKEZ's freelancer professions list: that points toward one of RAKEZ's company-licence families instead.
- Anyone who needs more than one activity covered, since a single freelance permit carries only one.
- Someone planning to invoice as a company, take on partners or grow beyond one activity. A RAKEZ company licence, such as its Services licence, is built for that, and the permit is not.
About this listing
Questions
Frequently asked
- What happens if my occupation isn't on RAKEZ's freelancer professions list?
- RAKEZ issues the freelance permit only for occupations named on its freelancer professions list, which spans media, education, IT and analyst/business-planning occupations, among a small number of others. An occupation outside that list is not eligible for a freelance permit, and one of RAKEZ's company licences covering the relevant activity would need to be considered instead.
- How many occupations can one RAKEZ freelance permit cover?
- One. RAKEZ limits each freelance permit to a single occupation selected from its dedicated professions list.
- Does a RAKEZ freelance permit come with a UAE residence visa?
- It can, but it does not have to. RAKEZ presents the permit as eligible for a UAE residence visa, and taking RAKEZ sponsorship is optional for UAE residents. A holder with another sponsor applies without the visa and submits a copy of the valid residence visa and that sponsor's No Objection Certificate.
- Can a RAKEZ freelance permit holder employ staff?
- No. RAKEZ's terms bar a holder from appointing any staff or obtaining an additional visa under the permit. A freelancer who needs an assistant has to move to a company licence.
- What is the difference between a RAKEZ freelance permit and a company licence?
- A company licence produces corporate documents such as a Memorandum of Association and Certificate of Incorporation, and allows a corporate bank account and staff. The permit produces none of those. It is issued to one person in their own birth name for one activity, and that person is personally liable for debts and obligations from the work.
- How long does a RAKEZ freelance permit run before renewal?
- The permit runs for the package bought, either 1 year or 2 years. Work under it needs renewal when that term ends, and renewal terms and prices are confirmed with RAKEZ.
Check your job title against RAKEZ's freelancer list
Send Velarozone your job title and tell us whether you will need staff, a second activity or a corporate bank account. We check the title against RAKEZ's freelance professions list and tell you whether the permit or a company licence fits.
General information drawn from the CBUAE Rulebook, including the Retail Payment Services and Card Schemes Regulation (C 15/2021), and Cabinet Resolution No. (134) of 2025 as published, not legal or tax advice. Rules and guidance change, so confirm the current text and each institution's own requirements before you submit.