Activity 7011 · ADGM · permitted-activities register
Single Family Office
Activity description
Coordinates services for one family and its related entities, rather than offering those services to outside clients.
CASE 68 · ADVISORY USE CASE
Family Offices
Advisory use case: a family wants a UAE coordination base and a separate plan for owning assets, investment decisions and succession.
Holding & Ownership
Activities & licensing scope
ADGM single-family-office reference. DIFC and DMCC routes require their own activity selection and eligibility review.
YOUR SETUP ROADMAP / DIFC / ADGMA clear route.
ROUTE OVERVIEWA clear route.
From first call to first sale.
Four phases, 11 checkpoints. See the route at a glance, then open a checkpoint for the work, owner and timing. Daily updates continue during active work.
01 Plan
Confirm the route and open your file.
CHECKPOINT 01Choose the routeDay 1
Activity, legal form and DIFC / ADGM
Owner / You and VantablackCHECKPOINT 02Your file opensWithin 1 working day of payment
Named team, checklist and your project timeline
Owner / Vantablack
02 Prepare
Documents and activity checks.
CHECKPOINT 03Documents and checksBefore submission
Passports, KYC and anything the activity needs
Owner / You, checked by VantablackCHECKPOINT 04Name and initial approvalWithin 2 working days of complete documents
Submitted to DIFC / ADGM registrar
Owner / Vantablack, then the authorityCHECKPOINT 05Activity approval: DFSAAuthority time
Required before you can operate this activity
Owner / DFSACHECKPOINT 06Activity approval: FSRAAuthority time
Required before you can operate this activity
Owner / FSRA
03 Launch
Premises and the licence decision.
CHECKPOINT 07PremisesBefore the licence
Registered address with the registrar
Owner / You and VantablackCHECKPOINT 08Licence issuedThe authority sets the date
Your company exists; documents in your workspace
Owner / The authority
04 Operate
Follow-on work in your agreed scope.
CHECKPOINT 09Establishment card, visas, Emirates IDAfter the licence
Immigration file for you and your team
Owner / Vantablack PRO teamCHECKPOINT 10Bank account and taxAfter the licence
Bank application, VAT and Corporate Tax registration
Owner / Vantablack and the bankCHECKPOINT 11Start sellingFrom the first week after the licence
List your services on the Ecosystem and receive requests
Owner / You, on Vantablack
Time markers are our service standards; authority steps follow the authority’s own timeline, and approvals are the authority’s decision. Your accepted quote confirms which post-licence services are included. Sales depend on licensing, approvals and demand.
The decision in one sentence
Separate the family’s coordination team from the structures that own its wealth.
One family’s private affairs, asset ownership and services to outside clients require different checks.
Setup requirementFamily coordination and succession
Clients servedOne family; no outside clients
DIFC asset eligibilityUSD 50 million; confirm current rules
ADGM SFO asset eligibilityUSD 10 million; confirm current rules
- Family goalsDefine the family, assets and decisions.
- Coordination branchThe family office organises records, people and decisions. Separately authorised advisers handle services that require their permission.
- Ownership branchA suitable ownership and succession structure holds the businesses and assets, after transfer and tax checks.
- Clear responsibilitiesThe coordination office and asset owners have different jobs. Serving outside clients triggers a fresh review.
FAMILY GOALS
Define the family and objectives
Distinct roles and responsibilitiesThe family office is the coordination team. It does not automatically become the owner of every asset or gain permission to manage outside clients.
The request
This advisory example considers a family with overseas businesses, property and investments seeking a UAE coordination base. It illustrates the decisions to investigate; it does not describe a verified incorporation, bank-account opening or asset transfer.
Challenge 1: one family or outside clients?
Define the family, beneficiaries and services first. DIFC permits service to additional families subject to Registrar approval; restricted services provided by way of business to more than one family require DFSA authorisation. ADGM distinguishes a single-family controlled activity from a multi-family office requiring FSRA permission.
DIFC Family Arrangements Regulations, regulations 4.1-4.3 and 7.5 - checked 20 October 2026. Read the official publication.
ADGM: Family Offices - checked 20 October 2026. Read the official publication.
Challenge 2: coordination and ownership
Map who coordinates the family and who legally owns each asset. ADGM identifies foundations, SPVs and trusts as structuring options. Assess their roles alongside the family office; incorporating an office does not itself transfer ownership or settle succession.
ADGM: Family Offices - checked 20 October 2026. Read the official publication.
Challenge 3: compare the eligibility measures
DIFC requires aggregate family net assets of USD 50 million under its Family Arrangements Regulations. ADGM publishes minimum family net assets of USD 10 million for its single-family office. These are eligibility measures, not money paid as a setup fee. The family definition, evidence and permitted service scope must also fit.
DIFC Family Arrangements Regulations, regulations 4.1-4.3 and 7.5 - checked 20 October 2026. Read the official publication.
ADGM: Family Offices - checked 20 October 2026. Read the official publication.
Third option: DMCC single family office
DMCC rule 3.2.2 requires the applicant to hold at least USD 1 million in investible or liquid assets. Shareholders, ultimate beneficiaries and directors must satisfy its family-member conditions. This is a different test from family-wide net assets; it is not simply the same route with a lower price.
DMCC Family Office Rules, rule 3.2.2 - checked 20 October 2026. Read the official publication.
Challenge 4: moving existing assets
List each asset, legal owner, lender, intended beneficiary and required consent. Ask qualified advisers to assess transfer restrictions, succession and tax consequences in each relevant jurisdiction before deciding what moves. This is a planning checklist, not a conclusion that a transfer is permitted or beneficial.
Challenge 5: evidence and decision-making
Prepare the family relationships, ownership chart, source-of-wealth and funds evidence, service scope and proposed decision powers. Check the selected registry requirements for the application and ongoing filings. DIFC also requires annual confirmation that the family continues to meet its net-asset requirement.
DIFC Family Arrangements Regulations, regulations 4.1-4.3 and 7.5 - checked 20 October 2026. Read the official publication.
The recommended setup
Prepare a role and ownership map, a jurisdiction comparison and a staged application plan. State the unresolved conditions and who owns each next step. Licensing, bank-account opening and asset transfers remain separate approval processes. No client result, timeline or saving is claimed.
Holding structure basics
Use the selected registry’s beneficial-ownership rules. Corporate-tax exemptions depend on conditions, not the holding label. ESR reporting was cancelled for financial years ending after 31 December 2022; earlier duties remain. Compare the detailed holding-structure checks in Case 58.
MoET: beneficial-ownership guidance - checked 20 October 2026. Read the official publication.
FTA: holding-company corporate tax FAQ - checked 20 October 2026. Read the official publication.
Ministry of Finance: economic-substance reporting amendment - checked 20 October 2026. Read the official publication.
Premises & indicative budget
Premises follow the selected route
Dubai mainland, free-zone and specialist routes have different premises requirements. A free-zone flexi-desk, an eligible mainland virtual-office arrangement and a dedicated operating site are not interchangeable. Residency-only cases do not carry a company-formation budget.
Get the right premises budget
We confirm the activity, jurisdiction, operating location and any inspection requirements before recommending premises. The Dubai mainland planning example on our pricing page is not a fee estimate for this case or a published free-zone tariff. Provider charges are confirmed separately in your quotation.
Planning guidance for a new enquiry, not a statement of this client’s costs or completed approvals. Basic and Advanced Setup include virtual-office sourcing and coordination where eligible; office-provider charges are separate.
Compare premises options and request current pricing
Apply this to your business
Does the family need coordination, ownership structures or services to outside clients?
Why this matters
A family office, a holding company and a regulated investment business have different roles. Check the family served before choosing a jurisdiction.
What could change the answer?
A corporate shareholder, parent-company branch or different asset objective changes the documents and structural questions.
Check these details first
- One family or outside clients
- Who owns the assets and who makes decisions
- The proposed investment and administration services
- DIFC or ADGM eligibility and supporting evidence
