Stop Press: Impact of the New UAE Companies Law on Foreign Investment
Type
E-journal
Date
27 Apr 2015
Jurisdiction
United Arab Emirates
Taxonomy
General Commercial Law, Companies & Corporate Bodies
Copyright
LexisNexis
Relevant company
Clyde & Co
Legal reference
Federal Law No. 2/2015, Federal Law No. 8/1984
Analysis
The issue of the new Commercial Companies Law, Federal Law No 2/2015, was announced by the UAE Government on 1 April 2015 and will come into effect three months after the date of publication in the Official Gazette. The new law introduces changes which will affect some of the structures used by foreign investors to establish businesses in the UAE. This article looks at some of the key changes and where the UAE government has left the previous position unaltered.
Foreign ownership restrictions
The nature and extent of the UAE foreign ownership restrictions has been the subject of political debate for a number of years. This is against a backdrop of increasing economic liberalisation in other GCC countries, at least on the face of the law. For example, in 2010, the Qatari government introduced the possibility of foreign investors owning more than a minority stake in Qatari companies in certain specified business sectors, such as tourism, health and education.