How Do I Choose An Appropriate Name For My UAE Business?

Business plans, investor visa processing, and company incorporation; these might be the main aspects that you instinctively focus on before setting up a business in the UAE, but the truth is, there is one particular requirement that you have to clear first – your business name.

Choosing a suitable name that will reflect your business perfect is crucial to hook your customers. It is a powerful aspect that you need to put your thought into and quite frankly, it is not easy to choose a name that resonates with you and one that is not already registered. You might think: it’s my business so I should be able to call it whatever I want, however, in reality, getting clearance for your business’ name is a strenuous task.

The UAE doesn’t allow you to name your business anything you want, but that being said, the restrictions are not unreasonable and you only need to use your common sense to figure out which names are acceptable and which are not.

To give you a broader picture, here are the general guidelines for business names in the UAE:

Business Name Rules

Like many other countries, the general business name rules in the UAE are fairly straightforward. For instance, using vulgar or offensive language is not permitted, no names that resemble existing business names (i.e. McDonald’s, Apple, or Gucci) should be used, and lastly, your company name should be free from any religious references.

Moreover, it is important to note that there are slight differences in name rules depending on whether your business is registered on a free zone, as a mainland company, or as an offshore business. Perhaps, offshore businesses have the most lenient rules, followed by free zone, and then mainland companies – which has the strictest rules of the bunch.

Ensuring that you follow these rules properly will not only make your set-up process smoother, it will also help you avoid any hefty fines if you are seen misusing your name. To avoid any of these, we’ve listed down some points to consider while choosing your business name:

1. Does your business activities match the name of your business? Not only will this ensure that your name does not contradict your operations/brand, it will also allow your customers to remember you better.
2. Do not use vulgar or obscene words – this might be quite self-explanatory but you need to make sure the name you choose does not have any unintentional meanings (even if it’s a person’s name!). Be sure to get your friends and family’s opinion before finalizing your business name.
3. You cannot use countries, cities, and districts – Using words like UAE, Dubai, Ras Al Khaimah, and other countries and cities in the world are restricted. However, you are permitted to use nationalities; i.e. African, Asian, European, etc. Just keep in mind that you cannot start your business name with the words ‘International’, ‘Global’, or ‘Middle East’.
4. Are you certain that your chosen name is not already protected by copyright elsewhere? A quick Google search will allow you to double-check if your chosen business name has already been claimed by another identity in the world.
5. Do not use God’s name or any of his divine attributes – this applies to both English and Arabic; this means you are not permitted to use names like Al Qader, Al Aleem, Jesus, Holy Trinity, etc.
6. Ensure that your business name does not resemble or sound similar to another existing establishment in the UAE – for instance, you will not be allowed to use ‘Amak’, as it is too similar to our name ‘Ammak’.
7. No political organizations, religious or sectarian groups are allowed to be mentioned in your business name – i.e. Vatican, FBI, etc.

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