RAK’s Sheikh Saud orders exemption of renewal fees for select commercial activities to counter Covid-19

Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, UAE Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, has instructed that select commercial activities which were hard hit by Covid-19-induced lockdowns and secondary precautionary measures are to benefit from reduced trade licence renewal fees.

Certain businesses are also to be exempted from penalties incurred during the lockdown. The new directives add to a slew of measures undertaken by Sheikh Saud to ensure business continuity in vital economic sectors and ease the burden brought about by the pandemic.

Sheikh Saud directed Ras Al Khaimah Department of Economic Development (RAKDED) to offer nurseries a 50 per cent exemption from their annual trade licence renewal fees.

Additionally, establishments that closed to allow their facilities to be used for quarantine purposes will benefit from a 25 per cent exemption. Meanwhile, facilities located at Ras Al Khaimah International Airport, that had no alternative locations to divert operations, to will benefit from a 50 per cent exemption on licence renewal fees.

These exemptions will be in place for a year, in addition to full exemptions being granted from penalties for violations incurred during the lockdown.

The directives to bolster the emirate’s business environment and help stabilise its economic outlook, will also serve to drive additional foreign investment into the market.

In March this year, the UAE Central Bank announced a Dhs100bn stimulus package – the Targeted Economic Support Scheme (TESS) which included Dhs50bn of zero-interest, collateralised loans for UAE-based banks and also Dhs50bn funds freed up from banks’ capital buffers.

Read: UAE Central Bank announces Dhs100bn package to counter Covid-19

Also in March, DP World, the owner of the Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza), slashed its fees for new licence registrations and administration fees for businesses already operating in the free zone by 50-70 per cent.

Read more: Dubai’s Jebel Ali Free Zone slashes business licence fees by up to 70%

Dubai South Free Zone, meanwhile, offered a 20 per cent reduction on licence fee renewals and waivers of penalties on late renewals as part of an economic stimulus package.

Read also: Dubai South waives first-year licence fees for new customers