RAKEZ activity register
Media licence activities in RAKEZ
Get my UAE setup planThe short answer
RAKEZ, the Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone, issues its Media licence to companies whose work is content, creative or media-related. Its register, as captured on 25 August 2026, files 130 named activities under Media out of 3,618 in total. Fit usually turns on whether the content touches broadcast, news or paid advertising, where the UAE Media Council can set conditions activity by activity.
RAKEZ is the licensing authority for Ras Al Khaimah and runs [its own multi-purpose free zone](/setup/free-zones/rakez). Under Media it files 130 named activities. Advertising & Communication Agency, Casting Agency, Digital and Interactive Game Development, Content Rights Management and Dubbing/subtitling are register entries, and the licence is built from the one that matches how the business earns.
Other RAKEZ classifications are drawn differently. Commercial covers trading in services and goods, Services covers consultancy across any industry, and Professional is for individuals providing professional services. Media is for a business whose output is content itself, such as a creative agency, a casting house, an e-sports league operator or a game studio. Closely related models sit on separate register lines, so the activity chosen has to match how the business earns, not just the craft behind it.
Content reaching into broadcast, news or paid advertising can carry conditions from the UAE Media Council, checked activity by activity. RAKEZ's Media Zone page lists flexi facilities for media start-ups, offices, warehouses for production companies and land for development aimed at large TV and radio stations. Licence renewal, the immigration file and corporate tax registration are separate processes, and tax sits with the Federal Tax Authority, not RAKEZ. Velarozone advises on which entries describe the business and prepares the application; RAKEZ reviews and issues it, as [how Velarozone works](/why-velarozone) sets out.
What the Media classification covers
RAKEZ's own Media Zone page names media production, TV and radio broadcasting, event management, animation, music and entertainment, and publishing. The register adds agency, game development, e-sports, dubbing and rights-management entries.
Entries name business models narrowly: a content portal, a digital media library and a publisher are different lines. The activity printed on the licence is what advertisers, platforms and banks see when they ask what the company sells.
What a media licence here is structured for
A company licence from this family suits studios, agencies, publishers and digital-media platforms. A sole content creator should also look at RAKEZ's separate Freelancer Permit, which RAKEZ lists for media, education, IT and analyst professionals.
Content that touches broadcast, journalism or other supervised areas can carry conditions from the UAE Media Council. Whether they apply depends on the specific activity, and it is checked before the application is filed.
From the register
Named Professions on RAKEZ's Freelance List
A sample of the 130 activities RAKEZ files under Media, 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.
- Advertising & Communication Agency
- Artificial Intelligence Developer
- Books
- Branding and Corporate Identity
- Broadcasting Consultants
- Business Events Management
- Casting Agency
- Content portal - Classifieds/Listings Aggregator
- Content Portal - Content app/website
- Content portal - Online booking platform
- Content portal - Online comparison platform
- Content Rights Management
- Content sale and distribution
- Corporate Content Provider
- Corporate Publishing
- Costume Design
- Creative Agency
- Data Management and Cyber Security Services
- Design, Scenery, Motion Graphics and Lighting
- Destination Management
- Digital and Interactive Game Development
- Digital Content Creation
- Digital Media Library, Distribution and Management
- Digital Signage Development and Management
- Directories, Guides, Manuals and Catalogues
- Distribution / DVD Authoring
- Dubbing/subtitling
- E-sports Data & Analytics
- E-sports League Operator
- E-sports Online Publication
What this page does not decide
Decision factors
How the Permit Differs from a Company Licence
Two things move the answer for a RAKEZ Media licence: which register entry matches how the business earns, and whether the content needs another regulator's sign-off.
- Content touching broadcast, news or paid advertising can carry conditions from the UAE Media Council. RAKEZ names TV and radio broadcasting among its media segments, so a RAKEZ licence and the regulator's conditions are separate questions.
- RAKEZ offers its licence types as Free Zone or Non-Free Zone, and its activity list filters the same way. The choice decides whether the company is set up to trade inside the free zone or on the mainland, so settle it before picking activities.
- A content portal, a digital media library and a corporate content provider are separate register lines. The entry that fits is the one that matches how the business earns, so read RAKEZ's wording for each before choosing.
- RAKEZ's Media Zone page says residence visas are open to owners, managers, partners, employees and labourers. Ask RAKEZ how many visas the flexi facility or office you choose supports before you commit to either.
Where the Permit Is a Good Fit
- Creative, advertising and branding agencies billing for content or campaigns rather than for goods.
- Casting agencies, dubbing and subtitling studios, and production-support businesses working against entries such as Costume Design.
- Digital game developers, content-portal operators and e-sports businesses earning from platforms and content rather than physical products.
- Corporate publishers and content-rights managers whose business is producing or licensing content on behalf of others.
When to Choose a Company Licence Instead
- The business is really a software product, and the content is only how it is marketed: that points to Services or Commercial, not Media.
- The work touches news or broadcast, and the plan treats the RAKEZ Media licence as the editorial permission to publish it. Any conditions on that content come from the UAE Media Council, not from RAKEZ's activity list.
- Rights to the content have not been settled between the business and the people who made it.
- The activity chosen matches the craft rather than how the business invoices, such as a studio filed under a production entry while it earns by managing content rights for clients.
About this listing
Questions
Frequently asked
- How many Media activities does RAKEZ have?
- As captured on 25 August 2026, RAKEZ's register files 130 activities under Media, out of 3,618 in total. The live activity list on RAKEZ's site, filtered to the Media licence type, holds the current count.
- Is my activity covered if it is not in the sample list above?
- Possibly. This page shows a sample of the 130 activities, not the full list. RAKEZ also publishes its Business Activity List as a download, and an adviser checks your activity against the live register and whether an outside regulator must approve it.
- Does a RAKEZ Media licence cover news or broadcast work?
- RAKEZ names TV and radio broadcasting among the media segments it serves, so broadcast is not excluded from the family. Conditions from the UAE Media Council on broadcast, news or advertising are decided activity by activity, so check the specific entry before assuming the licence is enough.
- Can one RAKEZ Media licence carry more than one of these activities?
- It depends on the licence form. RAKEZ's Individual / Professional licence is one owner with one activity, and its Dual Licence pairs commercial and professional activities. How many Media activities one company licence carries is confirmed in writing for your specific set.
Sources
Official sources
Check your job title against RAKEZ's freelancer list
Tell us how the content business earns, whether from campaigns, licensing, a platform or a game. An adviser matches it to an entry on RAKEZ's live Media list, flags anything for the UAE Media Council, and says whether Media or another classification 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.