RAK ICC Re-Domiciliation: Transfer Your Company to the UAE

RAK ICC re-domiciliation — also known as transfer of domicile or company continuation — lets an existing company incorporated in another country move its registration to the RAK International Corporate Centre (RAK ICC) in Ras Al Khaimah without being wound up and set up again. Because it is a continuation rather than a fresh incorporation, the same legal entity carries on with its assets, contracts, bank accounts and trading history intact. This guide walks through the questions a Registered Agent is asked most about the process — what happens if your company name is taken, which documents need notarising, what to do when the Memorandum has no listed activity, which activities are not accepted, and how long approval takes. If you would rather hand the whole thing over, our company incorporation service in the UAE handles RAK ICC continuations end to end.

What is RAK ICC re-domiciliation (transfer of domicile)?

RAK ICC re-domiciliation is the legal process of transferring a company from its original jurisdiction to RAK ICC so that it continues as a RAK ICC company. Instead of dissolving the foreign entity and incorporating a brand-new company, the existing company is “continued” into RAK ICC: it adopts a new continued Memorandum & Articles of Association, receives a certificate of continuation, and thereafter is governed by the RAK ICC Regulations — but it remains the same legal person throughout.

That distinction matters. Because the entity is preserved, its contracts, intellectual property, bank relationships, credit history and date of original incorporation all carry over. Nothing has to be re-assigned or novated simply because the company moved. Re-domiciliation is only possible where the company's original jurisdiction also permits companies to continue out to another country; most established offshore and many onshore jurisdictions do, but this should always be confirmed before you start [VERIFY].

Why re-domicile your company into RAK ICC?

Founders choose continuation over closing and re-opening when the entity itself is valuable — for example, when it holds long-standing supplier or customer contracts, owns intellectual property or shares in subsidiaries, has an established banking relationship, or simply benefits from years of trading history. Moving to RAK ICC brings that entity into a well-regulated UAE offshore regime with 100% foreign ownership, no requirement for a physical office, and strong confidentiality — while letting it keep everything it already has.

A continued RAK ICC company is commonly used as an international holding vehicle, for cross-border invoicing, or for asset-protection and succession planning. It is not a UAE trading licence and does not by itself grant residence visas; if you need to trade inside the UAE market or sponsor staff, a free-zone or mainland entity is the right structure — see our guide to company incorporation in Dubai. Either way, remember that a RAK ICC company is a UAE taxable person, a point we return to in the Corporate Tax section below.

What if your company name is unavailable or restricted at RAK ICC?

Before a transfer of domicile can proceed, your RAK ICC Registered Agent runs a name-availability check. If the proposed name already exists at RAK ICC, or falls under a restriction in the RAK ICC Regulations, the cleanest path is to change the name in the original (foreign) jurisdiction first and then apply for the continuation under the new, cleared name. If, however, the foreign jurisdiction has already processed the transfer application by the time the issue is picked up, the agent can instead apply for a name change with RAK ICC once the continuation is complete.

Which documents must be notarised for RAK ICC re-domiciliation? Is UAE embassy attestation required?

This is the question that causes the most confusion, so it is worth being precise. For RAK ICC re-domiciliation, UAE embassy attestation is not required at all. Notarisation is only needed in specific cases, and it depends on whether the shareholder is an individual or a corporate body.

In short: if you sign in front of your agent, even the specimen-signature form can be avoided; if a company owns the shares, only the resolution that approves the move needs a notary. Everything else — the directors' and secretaries' acceptance resolutions — can be provided as ordinary signed documents.

What if your MOA has no activity or no supporting documents?

Some companies being migrated have a Memorandum of Association that lists no specific business activity, and no supporting document to prove one. RAK ICC does not treat this as an obstacle. In that situation no additional documents are required — the new continued Memorandum of Association can simply be drafted with a generic activity clause, which keeps the company's permitted scope broad without forcing you to produce evidence of a historic activity that was never recorded.

What if your activity is restricted under RAK ICC Regulations?

There is one situation where re-domiciliation cannot go ahead as-is. If the company to be migrated carries on an activity that is restricted under the RAK ICC Regulations or any underlying RAK ICC policy, the application will not be accepted. The activity has to be amended to a permitted one before the transfer-of-domicile application is submitted — you cannot continue the company into RAK ICC first and regularise the activity afterwards.

How long does RAK ICC re-domiciliation take?

On the RAK ICC side, the timeline is short: once submitted, the continuation application is reviewed and approved within about 4–5 working days. In practice, though, you should budget for more than that end to end, because re-domiciliation has two halves. Before RAK ICC can continue your company in, your original jurisdiction has to let it continue out — usually by issuing a certificate of good standing and recording a resolution authorising the transfer. That outbound step is controlled by the foreign registrar, not RAK ICC, and how long it takes varies significantly from one jurisdiction to another [VERIFY]. Getting your documents notarised and your name and activity cleared up front is the best way to keep the whole process close to that 4–5 day core.

RAK ICC re-domiciliation: the step-by-step process

Here is how a typical RAK ICC re-domiciliation runs from first contact to a company that is fully continued and registered for UAE Corporate Tax:

1. Engage a RAK ICC Registered Agent and run a name check — You cannot approach RAK ICC directly. A licensed Registered Agent such as Fastlane performs your KYC and checks that your existing company name is available and not restricted at RAK ICC before anything is filed.
2. Confirm your activity is permitted — amend it if it is not — Check the company's activities against the RAK ICC Regulations and policy. If an activity is restricted it must be amended in the original jurisdiction before you apply; if there is no activity in the MOA, a generic activity clause is used in the continued MOA.
3. Prepare and notarise the required documents — Collect the certificate of incorporation, current MoA/AoA, registers of directors and shareholders and a certificate of good standing. For a corporate shareholder, notarise the resolution approving the transfer; for individuals, provide a notarised specimen-signature form where signing is not witnessed by the agent. No UAE embassy attestation is needed.
4. Obtain consent to leave the original jurisdiction — Apply in your home jurisdiction for permission to continue out — usually evidenced by a certificate of good standing and a resolution authorising the transfer of domicile. Timelines here vary by country [VERIFY].
5. Submit the continuation application to RAK ICC — The Registered Agent files the transfer-of-domicile (continuation) application with the RAK ICC Registrar. It is reviewed and approved in about 4–5 working days.
6. Receive the certificate of continuation and register for Corporate Tax — RAK ICC issues the certificate of continuation and the new continued MoA/AoA. Because the company is now a UAE Taxable Person, register it for UAE Corporate Tax within the FTA deadline [VERIFY] and keep IFRS-compliant books.

What documents do you need to re-domicile into RAK ICC?

The exact list is confirmed by your Registered Agent once they have reviewed your entity, but a continuation application typically draws on the documents below. Items marked [VERIFY] are commonly requested in practice — confirm the final checklist with your agent before you start collecting.

Does a re-domiciled company pay UAE Corporate Tax?

Yes — re-domiciling into RAK ICC brings the company squarely within the UAE tax system. Once it has been continued, it is a UAE-incorporated juridical person, and the Federal Tax Authority treats such companies as Resident Taxable Persons. That means the continued company generally has to register for UAE Corporate Tax and obtain a Corporate Tax registration, then file annual returns. Whether it actually pays tax is a separate question that depends on its income, its structure and any reliefs it qualifies for — registration is required regardless.

If your continued company will need to demonstrate UAE tax residency to access double-tax treaty benefits, you may also want a UAE Tax Residency Certificate, and ongoing accounting and bookkeeping to keep it filing-ready. Our team can set all of this up alongside the continuation itself.