The United Arab Emirates (UAE) capital, Abu Dhabi, is home to a financial free zone known as Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM). It functions as a separate jurisdiction with its own set of laws rooted in English common law. Financial service providers, such as those in banking, insurance, asset management, and capital markets, will find a welcoming atmosphere in ADGM. Legal, accounting, and consulting organizations all call this area home as well. ADGM complies with worldwide regulatory standards and provides a range of licensing services, such as the registration of charities, non-profit associations.

• The goal of ADGM’s non-profit associations is to facilitate communication amongst the region’s many industries and facilitate the sharing of best practices.
• Associations can help push policies that are good for business and the economy while also helping members network and gain new skills.
• In ADGM, a nonprofit organization’s ability to engage into contracts, acquire property, hire employees, and do business on its own is guaranteed by its “legal personality.”
• The most prevalent form of organization is a Limited Liability Company (LLC) in which all members have equal ownership.
• Associations under ADGM, however, take the form of Companies Limited by Guarantee (CLG), which are not required to have either share capital or shareholders. Instead, under CLGs, each founder promises to pay something to the company’s creditors if it ever goes bankrupt. To the degree that members’ guarantees are in place, their assets are safeguarded by this arrangement.

Organizations seeking to set up shop in ADGM must first submit a business application for pre-registration, detailing

• The organization’s name
• founding members
• expertise
• activities
• competitive landscape
• anticipated count of members
• financial sources.

Adherence to ADGM rules on company names and banking operations is required. The pre-registration business application form costs $300, and the operational license charge is $2,500.00, making the total cost of creating an association very reasonable. The use of a CSP is optional for association registration in contrast to company registration; nonetheless, CSPs can be helpful by granting a consent letter to utilize their office address throughout the registration process. 

Whether the founding member is an individual or a corporation determines which documentation is needed. Following are the general documents to be submitted

• A valid form of identification (passport, visa, or Emirates ID)
• A business license
• articles of incorporation
• a resolution authorizing the formation of the corporation

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