Abu Dhabi Global Market announced reductions of 50 per cent for obtaining non-financial and retail licences, effective from January 1

Reductions of at least fifty percent are now in effect for non-financial and retail licenses obtained under the jurisdiction of the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM). The updated licensing fee schedule is a component of the transitional arrangements for firms operating on Al Reem Island, and it will take effect on January 1, 2025. Al Maryah and Al Reem Island are under the jurisdiction of the ADGM, which is the capital of the United Arab Emirates and the worldwide financial hub.

The fees for new registrations in the non-financial category of firms will be lowered from $10,000 to $5,000 under the amended structure. For the same category, the yearly license renewal costs will drop from $8,000 to $5,000. The retail category's fees have also been drastically lowered, with the new registration price being lowered from $6,000 to $2,000. A fifty percent reduction in the renewal cost will also be applied to retail category licenses, bringing the total down to $2,000. 

Since the present licensing fees expire on December 31, the updated licensing fees will go into effect on January 1 of the following year.

Retail and non-financial qualifying enterprises on Al Reem Island were previously excluded from paying any fees to obtain ADGM commercial licenses through October 31, 2024. 

The structure within the financial category has changed, with a rise from $15,000 to $20,000, and fee revisions for other categories as well. It will now cost $15,000 instead of $13,000 for renewals. For both new and existing license renewals, the rates for fintech and IT businesses have shifted from $1,000 to $1,500. $1,900 is the same as the current fee for the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) category.

The ADGM claims that a focus group of Al Reem Island enterprises undertook a "series of consultations" in 2023, which led to the revisions in costs.