UAE Ranks First in the World for Entrepreneurship for the Fifth Year Running: Active SME Licences Up Over 900% Since 2000 and 140% Since 2020, SMEs Make Up 95% of Companies and 85% of Private-Sector Jobs, and the Council for Entrepreneurship Reviews the Startup Capital Campaign and an OECD-Backed National Strategy

2026-09-06

The number of active small and medium enterprise (SME) licences in the UAE is more than 900% higher than in 2000 and more than 140% higher than in 2020, Minister of Economy and Tourism Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri told a meeting of the UAE Council for Entrepreneurship, Gulf News reported on Sunday 6 September 2026. The same meeting reviewed the country’s position in the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) 2025/2026 report, published on 26 February 2026: first in the world for the fifth consecutive year with a National Entrepreneurship Context Index score of 7.0, and second in the world for entrepreneurial finance and for ease of access to it. SMEs make up about 95% of all companies operating in the UAE and provide more than 85% of private-sector jobs. The council also took stock of the first year of the national campaign “The Emirates: The Startup Capital of the World”, launched by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum on 21 September 2025 (more than 400 Emiratis trained, 41 government initiatives, AED 202 million of government procurement), and discussed a national entrepreneurship strategy built on recommendations prepared with the OECD. This article sets out the figures, explains who counts as an SME under UAE law, lists the support that exists for small businesses and shows what the numbers mean for founders who plan to open or grow a company in the UAE.

What the Council for Entrepreneurship reviewed: licences up 900% since 2000

The UAE Council for Entrepreneurship is the national platform that coordinates SME policy between federal ministries and the economic departments of the seven emirates. It is chaired by the Minister of Economy and Tourism, and the September meeting examined the national initiatives and targets that are meant to improve the competitiveness and long-term sustainability of the entrepreneurship ecosystem. Two comparisons were put on the table: the number of active SME licences is more than 140% higher than in 2020 and more than 900% higher than in 2000. Gulf News did not publish the absolute number behind the percentages, and the ministry has not released the meeting’s presentation, so the base of the calculation is not public.

Other ministry figures give the scale. Speaking at the National Forum for SMEs and Government Procurement in Dubai on 27 and 28 January 2026, bin Touq said the number of SMEs had reached 1.33 million, that they made up nearly 95% of the companies operating in the country, employed more than 85% of the private-sector workforce and contributed 63% of GDP. The ministry’s entrepreneurship page, which uses 2022 data, counted 558,000 companies: 395,000 micro-enterprises (70.9%), 150,000 small enterprises (26.8%) and 13,000 medium enterprises (2.3%). The two counts are not directly comparable, but the direction is the same: the small-business base has grown fast, and the National Agenda for Entrepreneurship and SMEs sets a target of one million startups by 2031.

GEM 2025/2026: first for the fifth year, second for access to finance

The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor is a research consortium that has published an annual global report since 1999; the 2025/2026 edition, titled “From Uncertainty to Opportunity”, is the 27th and covers 53 economies that together account for about 43% of the world’s population and 57% of global GDP. The findings rest on more than 160,000 adult population survey respondents and more than 2,000 national experts. The National Entrepreneurship Context Index (NECI) scores each economy on 13 framework conditions, from finance and government policy to education, infrastructure and market entry. The UAE topped the index for the fifth consecutive year with a score of 7.0; Taiwan was second with 6.5. According to the report, only four economies met or exceeded sufficiency on all 13 conditions: India, Lithuania, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

The Ministry of Economy and Tourism announced the ranking on 26 April 2026. Bin Touq said then that the result reflected the leadership’s decision to treat entrepreneurship and SMEs as a key pillar of growth driven by innovation and knowledge. The council’s September meeting used the same ranking as the benchmark for the next set of targets.

One year of “The Emirates: The Startup Capital of the World”

The campaign was launched on 21 September 2025 by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai. It is supervised by the Ministry of Economy and Tourism together with the UAE Government Media Office and the UAE Council for Entrepreneurship, and brings together more than 50 incubators and accelerators. Its published targets are to train and support 10,000 Emirati entrepreneurs and to create 30,000 new jobs by 2030, with sector goals of 250 Emirati real estate companies, 500 project management experts, 500 certified tax agents and 50 content creators specialising in economics and entrepreneurship. The council reviewed the results achieved so far.

The campaign is addressed to UAE nationals: its training, incubation and procurement lines are run through the National Programme for SMEs, which is open to Emirati entrepreneurs. Foreign-owned companies are not the target group, but they operate in the same licensing, banking and procurement environment that the campaign is improving.

What comes next: a national strategy, OECD recommendations and mobile accelerators

Three items on the council’s agenda point to what the next phase will look like. The first is a national entrepreneurship strategy prepared jointly by federal and local authorities. It is to include programmes that improve the competitiveness of the ecosystem, support the growth and sustainability of SMEs and create a more flexible business environment; the members also discussed governance, monitoring and how the impact of each initiative will be measured after launch.

The second is a set of recommendations for aligning UAE entrepreneurship and SME policies with the practice of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. They are built around four areas, access to finance, innovation, internationalisation and measurement, together with further development of the legislative and regulatory environment. The council discussed how to prioritise the recommendations, how to divide implementation between federal and local bodies and how to structure the roadmap for the next phase.

The third is the “Mobile Accelerators in Villages” initiative, which brings services to entrepreneurs in villages and other targeted areas. The proposed support includes simpler licensing procedures, business premises and financing, incubation programmes and connections to sales channels. It follows the National Strategy for Entrepreneurship and SMEs in the Emirates Villages, approved on 13 March 2026 by Sheikh Theyab bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of the Emirates Council for Balanced Development, together with an investment attraction strategy that aims to bring more than AED 1 billion to the villages.

These initiatives sit on an existing framework. Federal Law No. 2 of 2014 on SMEs created the National Programme for SMEs and the SME Council and requires federal authorities to place at least 10% of their contracts with SMEs, and companies in which the federal government holds 25% or more to place at least 5%. The National Agenda for Entrepreneurship and SMEs sets the goal of making the UAE “the entrepreneurial nation” by 2031 through 29 initiatives across seven pillars. The National Programme for SMEs has more than 9,000 members and offers more than 25 services and incentives, including an In-Country Value certificate for AED 500 and discounts of up to 90% on labour fees. Government contracts and tenders awarded to national SMEs reached AED 806 million in 2025, up 38% from AED 582 million in 2024, and the January 2026 forum put AED 2.445 billion of contracts and tenders from more than 90 entities in front of SMEs. Under Operation 300bn, the industrial strategy, Emirates Development Bank is to help finance 13,500 SMEs.

Who counts as an SME in the UAE

The unified definition is set by Cabinet Resolution No. 22 of 2016 and depends on the sector, the number of employees and annual revenue; an enterprise qualifies if it meets either the headcount or the revenue test. The thresholds below are as published on the UAE Government portal, updated on 11 August 2026.

By these thresholds almost every company that a foreign founder registers in a free zone or on the mainland starts as a micro or small enterprise. The definition matters for statistics and for the procurement preferences above; the tax thresholds that affect a new company are set separately and are listed in the checklist below.

What the figures mean for a founder planning a UAE company

The rankings and the licence growth describe the environment; the practical questions for a new business are the same as before, and the numbers below are the ones to plan with.

• Licence. The growth of 900% is the growth of the licence base a new company joins. The choice remains between a mainland licence from the economic department of an emirate and a free zone licence, and it is driven by the activity list, the need for a physical office and the customers you sell to. Our page on company setup in the UAE explains the routes and the documents.
• Finance. GEM ranks the UAE second in the world for access to entrepreneurial finance. In practice a new company first needs a corporate bank account, and banks still assess the business plan, the source of funds and the profile of the owners; see bank account opening for the documents and timing.
• Tax thresholds. VAT registration is mandatory once taxable supplies exceed AED 375,000 in 12 months and voluntary from AED 187,500. Corporate tax is 0% on taxable income up to AED 375,000 and 9% above it, and Small Business Relief is available to resident businesses with revenue of up to AED 3 million for tax periods ending on or before 31 December 2026. Companies with a 31 December 2025 year-end must file and pay by 30 September 2026, as set out in our note on the corporate tax return deadline.
• Government procurement. The 10% quota and the evaluation bonus under Federal Law No. 2 of 2014 apply to members of the National Programme for SMEs, which is open to Emirati entrepreneurs. Any licensed company can still register in the Federal Supplier Register and bid through the Digital Procurement Platform, and an In-Country Value certificate improves the score in tenders of government entities and national companies.
• Visas. An owner, a manager and staff need residence visas tied to the licence; the process and the medical, Emirates ID and stamping steps are described in work visa and residency.
• Programmes and events. Startup programmes that accept foreign founders include Hub71 in Abu Dhabi, which expanded its Initiate programme for idea-stage founders in August 2026, and the investment community meets at AIM Congress 2026 at Dubai World Trade Centre on 7 to 9 September.
• Payments and rating. SMEs that sell across the Gulf can use the single GCC acquiring integration launched by Network International, and the macro backdrop is a sovereign rating of AA with a stable outlook, affirmed by S&P on 5 September 2026.

How Atlant Capital can help

Atlant Capital registers companies on the mainland and in the UAE free zones, selects the jurisdiction and the activity list for trading, services, consulting, technology and e-commerce businesses and prepares the documents for the licence (company setup). We open corporate accounts with UAE banks and prepare the file that banks expect from a new SME (bank account opening) and handle work visas and residency for owners, managers and staff (work visa and residency). Accounting, VAT registration and corporate tax filing, including Small Business Relief elections, are provided by licensed accounting firms from our partner network.

Conclusion

The Council for Entrepreneurship’s September review adds two comparisons to the UAE’s SME record: more than 900% more active SME licences than in 2000 and more than 140% more than in 2020, on top of a first place in the GEM 2025/2026 report for the fifth year running and a second place for access to finance. SMEs are about 95% of companies and more than 85% of private-sector jobs, and the National Agenda targets one million startups by 2031. The next phase is a national strategy shared between federal and local authorities, OECD-aligned recommendations on finance, innovation, internationalisation and measurement, and mobile accelerators for the villages. For a founder the environment is the same one these figures describe: a licence base that keeps growing, a finance ranking that is second only to one economy, and tax thresholds of AED 375,000 for VAT and corporate tax and AED 3 million for Small Business Relief to plan around.

FAQ

How much has the number of SME licences in the UAE grown?

According to Minister of Economy and Tourism Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, speaking at a meeting of the UAE Council for Entrepreneurship reported on 6 September 2026, the number of active SME licences is more than 900% higher than in 2000 and more than 140% higher than in 2020. The absolute number was not published. In January 2026 the minister put the number of SMEs at 1.33 million, about 95% of all companies in the country, with more than 85% of private-sector jobs and 63% of GDP.

What is the UAE’s rank in the GEM 2025/2026 report?

The UAE is first of 53 economies in the National Entrepreneurship Context Index of the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2025/2026 report, for the fifth consecutive year, with a score of 7.0; Taiwan is second with 6.5. The UAE is also second in the world for entrepreneurial finance and for ease of access to it, first among high-income economies on eight indicators including government policy on taxes and bureaucracy and ease of market entry, and its early-stage entrepreneurial activity rate is 19.2% of adults.

Who counts as an SME in the UAE?

Cabinet Resolution No. 22 of 2016 defines SMEs by sector, headcount and annual revenue. In trade, a micro-enterprise has up to 5 employees or revenue up to AED 3 million, a small enterprise 6 to 50 employees or revenue up to AED 50 million, and a medium enterprise 51 to 200 employees or revenue up to AED 250 million. In services the revenue limits are AED 2 million, AED 20 million and AED 200 million, and in industry the headcount limits are 9, 100 and 250 employees with revenue limits of AED 3 million, AED 50 million and AED 250 million.

Can a foreign-owned company use the UAE’s SME support programmes?

The National Programme for SMEs, the Startup Capital of the World campaign and the procurement quota of Federal Law No. 2 of 2014 are addressed to Emirati entrepreneurs. A foreign-owned company benefits from the general environment: licensing on the mainland or in a free zone, access to finance ranked second in the world by GEM, registration in the Federal Supplier Register for government tenders, VAT registration only above AED 375,000 of taxable supplies, and Small Business Relief from corporate tax for revenue up to AED 3 million for tax periods ending on or before 31 December 2026.