Corporate PRO services in Dubai
A retained arrangement for companies that have outgrown transactional PRO work, built around a calendar, a service level and a monthly statement.
Corporate PRO services in Dubai are a retained arrangement under which a provider takes custody of a company's government-facing obligations across every entity it holds. That includes the renewal calendar, portal access, powers of attorney, document originals and the submission record, alongside the transactions themselves.
The distinction from transactional PRO work is ownership. A transactional agent acts when instructed. A corporate PRO service is responsible for knowing what falls due and acting before it is asked.
What the retainer covers
The scope is fixed at the outset and reviewed quarterly. Everything below sits inside the monthly fee, with government charges recharged separately at cost.
Custody and control
- Consolidated register of every entity, licence, establishment card, immigration file and visa with expiry dates
- Portal access held in the company's name, with our team as authorised users rather than as owners
- Powers of attorney drafted, notarised and renewed before they lapse
- Original document custody under a signed inventory, with scanned copies indexed and searchable
Running the calendar
- Renewals actioned from a dated schedule, with work starting at a fixed lead time before expiry rather than on receipt of a reminder
- Dependencies mapped, so tenancy, establishment card and licence are sequenced rather than discovered in the wrong order
- Quota position tracked against the hiring plan, not against the current offer letter
- Escalation to the client sponsor when a document the company controls is the thing holding a submission
Service levels by transaction
Measured in working days from the point where complete and correct documents are in our hands to the point of submission. Authority processing time sits outside our control and is shown separately so the two are never confused.
| Transaction | Our submission commitment | Typical authority processing | Who holds the risk of delay |
|---|---|---|---|
| New work permit and entry permit | 1 working day | 2–4 working days | Us, once documents are complete |
| Status change and medical booking | 1 working day | 2–3 working days | Us for scheduling, employee for attendance |
| Emirates ID registration and biometrics | 1 working day | 2–4 working days | Shared, appointment slots are authority controlled |
| Residence visa stamping | 1 working day | 1–3 working days | Us |
| Trade licence renewal | Submitted no later than 15 days days before expiry | 1–3 working days | Us, unless EJARI or approvals are outstanding |
| Licence amendment | 1 working days | 3–5 working days | Us, subject to notary and approval availability |
| Visa cancellation | 1 working days from instruction | 1–2 working days | Us |
How this compares with the two usual alternatives
| In-house PRO | Transactional PRO agent | Retained corporate PRO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost shape | Salary, visa, gratuity, vehicle, phone, cover during leave | Per transaction, quoted case by case | Fixed monthly retainer plus government fees at cost |
| Continuity | Single point of failure. Knowledge leaves with the person | None. Each instruction stands alone | Named lead and named backup, shared file |
| Who watches expiry dates | The PRO, if they maintain the spreadsheet | Nobody | The calendar, reviewed weekly |
| Fee transparency | Government receipts usually reconciled | Often bundled into an all-in price | Government fees at cost with receipts, service fee separate |
| Audit position | Depends on the individual's records | Fragmented across invoices | Monthly statement with authority references |
| Best suited to | Large single-site operations with steady volume | Companies with occasional one-off needs | Groups with multiple entities and continuous transaction flow |
Groups holding entities in more than one jurisdiction
This is where most PRO arrangements come apart. A mainland company, a free zone entity and a DIFC company do not share a licensing authority, an immigration file, a labour regime or a renewal cycle. Treating them as one portfolio requires holding four different rule sets at once.
| Entity type | Licensing authority | Employment regime | Practical consequence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dubai mainland | Department of Economy and Tourism | MOHRE, federal labour law | Quota tied to office space, EJARI is a renewal dependency |
| Free zone (DMCC, JAFZA, DAFZA and others) | The free zone authority | Free zone employment rules, own immigration file | Visa allocation tied to leased area or package, portal differs by zone |
| DIFC | DIFC Registrar of Companies | DIFC Employment Law No. 2 of 2019 as amended | Separate employee registration and workplace savings obligations |
| ADGM | ADGM Registration Authority | ADGM Employment Regulations | Abu Dhabi immigration channel, different service centres |
Our register holds all of them on one sheet, with the differences flagged rather than flattened. A CFO reviewing the group position should not have to remember which entity follows which rule.
Corporate PRO services: the detail
Is a corporate PRO service worth more than a per-transaction agent?
It depends entirely on volume and structure. A company running four transactions a year is better served by a transactional agent. A group running four a week, across three entities, spends more on the rework caused by missed sequencing than the retainer costs. The scoping call exists to establish which of those two situations applies, and we say so when it is the first.
Who holds the portal credentials?
The company does. Accounts are registered in the company's name with our team added as authorised users. This matters at the end of an engagement as much as during it, because a provider who owns the credentials owns the exit.
What happens when our lead PRO is on leave?
The named backup holds the same portal access and works from the same file, and is introduced at handover rather than at the point of absence. Continuity is a structural commitment, not a promise to try.
Can you work alongside our existing free zone agent?
Yes, and in some free zones the appointed agent arrangement makes that the only workable structure. In that case we hold the register and the calendar and instruct the agent, so the company still has one accountable point rather than several.
How is performance measured?
Against the submission commitments in the engagement letter. The monthly statement shows each transaction, the date documents were complete, the date of submission and whether the commitment was met. Missed commitments are shown as missed.
Do you provide the PRO for signature and collection at counters?
Yes. Physical attendance at typing centres, Tasheel, Amer, notary and immigration counters is part of the retainer. Where an employee must attend in person, such as biometrics or a medical, we schedule it and confirm attendance.
Talk to the PRO desk
A 20 minute scoping call covers entity count, headcount, renewal dates and the transactions falling due in the next 90 days.