How to start a day care business in Dubai

Day care is an essential service. Dubai proudly offers some of the best baby care and day care services to look after your children and shape their young minds. With many parents working in the UAE, nannies provide crucial childcare services to these support working families. If you’re considering opening a day care business in Dubai, now’s the right time.

In this article, we’ll cover:

  • Why start a day care business in Dubai?
  • Steps to start a day care business in Dubai
  • Things to remember before starting a day care business in Dubai
  • Cost of starting a day care business in Dubai
  • Working with Trade License Zone

Why start a day care business in Dubai?

Baby care and day care services are in great demand across the United Arab Emirates. In Dubai, day care centres do more than support working families: they provide a vital service in assisting the school system in cultivating curious young minds. For those considering starting a day care business in Dubai, the UAE government has recently streamlined the company formation process, overhauled the visa system, and offers entrepreneurs a 0% personal and corporate tax environment. Foreign nationals make up 90% of Dubai’s population figures, and day care centres offer a British curriculum and convenient working hours to provide the best day care services.

Steps to start a day care business in Dubai

Before starting your day care business in Dubai, you’ll need to take these nine steps.

Step #1: Partner with Trade License Zone

The first step in starting a day care business in Dubai is to partner with Trade License Zone. Our expert team will manage all aspects of your company registration, trade license application, and setup process to guide you through the various procedures.

Step #2: Choose a company name

Trade License Zone will help you choose and register your business name with the UAE’s Registry Office. You can use your name in the company’s trade name, but you must use it in full instead of just your surname or initials. The business name must adhere to the UAE’s naming policies, including that it cannot include offensive or profane language or references to Allah or Islam.

Step #3: Select your business activity

It is essential to outline your day care service’s business activities for your trade license application. Your business license enables you to carry out several activities – but only those listed on your trade license. Failure to list all your business activities on your trade license application may result in penalties. That’s why it is best to partner with a company formation expert such as Trade License Zone to ensure that your day care business license application and business activities are aligned.

Step #4: Select a business jurisdiction

There are two main business jurisdiction types in the United Arab Emirates: Free Zone Companies and Mainland Companies. Each has specific benefits, regulations and requirements.

Free Zone companies are the most popular and cost-effective of the two types. While it offers foreign nationals 100% ownership of the companies, a Free Zone company must take additional steps (such as opening a branch or a distributor) to trade within the UAE legally.

A Mainland company setup allows you to trade within the UAE market without extra steps, but it means that a local sponsor must hold 51% of the company’s shares.

Selecting the correct business setup for your day care business in Dubai might seem complicated. When you contact the highly experienced consultants at Trade License Zone, we will help you to choose the best company setup formation for your business needs and help you get set up quickly and efficiently.

Step #5: Choose a location

As part of the steps to open a day care business, you’ll need to find a suitable location. An ideal location will be close to business areas so that it isn’t inconvenient for parents to drop their children off before working hours.

Step #6: Documents required

The documents required for your trade license application and government approvals are listed below:

  • A business plan
  • A completed business license application
  • Certified degree or relevant education certificate
  • Copy of your passport (and any shareholders of the business)
  • A Dubai Police Clearance Certificate
  • Tenancy agreement and location’s floorplan
  • Approvals from the Dubai Municipality, Public Health Department, Civil Defence agency and the Department of Economic Development.


Step #7: Apply for a trading license


All business owners in the United Arab Emirates must legally hold a valid trading license to operate in Dubai. You’ll need to apply for a day care business license from Dubai’s Public Health Department, Civil Defence, and the Department of Economic Development. The various government agencies will conduct background checks for your day care business approvals. Contact Trade License Zone‘s expert team to help you with this critical step.

Step #8: Hire qualified staff and teachers

Qualified staff and teachers with experienced assistants must provide day care services. Hiring the right staff can be a tricky process. The experienced team at Trade License Zone can help you with navigating this step. Recruitment agencies and staffing solutions companies can be engaged for this step to make it a more effortless and less complex one for you.

Step #9: Open your corporate bank account and apply for a visa

After applying for your company’s trade license in Dubai to start your day care business, you can apply for your visa and open your corporate bank account. Your visa may enable you to sponsor the visas of family and staff, depending on your license’s conditions. Contact Trade License Zone‘s expert team to help you with this critical step.

Things to remember before starting a day care business in Dubai

These are some aspects to consider before opening a day care business in Dubai. Taking care of children and their specific needs requires qualified, trained and experienced staff. If your day care business includes a nursery, you will need the correct equipment for the little ones to be comfortable and safe while in your care. Safety and security are uppermost in the minds of parents. All equipment will need to be baby-proof and safe for children of all ages. As part of being a day care business operator, you will require business insurance cover, too.

Cost of starting a day care business in Dubai

The cost of starting a day care business in Dubai ranges between AED 12,000 and AED 20,000. This cost depends on many factors, such as the day care’s location and facilities, qualified staff, teachers and other staff, insurance cover, nurseries, security and safety features, play facilities, and other non-essential day care centre expenses. For a free, accurate quote, please get in touch with our consultants.

Working with Trade License Zone

Business setup in the UAE is straightforward when you partner with a team of experts, such as Trade License Zone. Starting a day care business in Dubai can be tricky when it comes to applying for a trade license, business setup, and more. When you partner with Trade License Zone, we will save you from unnecessary delays or rejections and streamline the entire process.

The specialists at Trade License Zone can get started once you provide us with some basic documentation and a little information about the nature of your company and business activities. Then, please sit back and let our team take care of the rest. We’ll manage your trading license and visa applications, communicate with all relevant local departments and authorities and report when you’re ready to trade. It really is that simple.

Contact us to get a personalized quotation based on your business activity

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