UAE Grants Starlink a 10-Year Licence: Satellite Internet for Homes, Business, Ships and Aircraft From AED 300 a Month

Published: 2026-08-28

On 2026-08-28 the UAE Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA) granted Starlink a 10-year General Satellite Services Licence. The licence allows the SpaceX subsidiary to establish, operate and manage a public satellite telecommunications network across the UAE and to sell satellite broadband to individuals, businesses and government entities, plus connectivity for ships and aircraft. The UAE Government Media Office describes the decision as adding “a satellite layer” to the national digital infrastructure alongside fibre-optic and 5G networks. For a resident the entry point today is a package advertised from AED 300 a month with a standard kit at AED 1,465, typical download speeds of 45 to 280 Mbps and latency of 25 to 60 milliseconds, although the Starlink site currently lists Dubai and Abu Dhabi as “at capacity” with a waiting list.

What TDRA granted on 2026-08-28

According to the announcement of the UAE Government Media Office, reported the same day by Emirates 24|7, Khaleej Times, Gulf News and The National, the licence is issued for ten years and covers four things:

• the right to establish, operate and manage a public satellite telecommunications network in the UAE, subject to the approved regulatory and technical frameworks and the fulfilment of the necessary requirements;
• satellite broadband internet for individuals, businesses and government entities;
• satellite connectivity for the maritime and aviation sectors;
• an obligation to meet the UAE standards on security, reliability and consumer rights protection.

TDRA Director General Eng Majed Sultan Al Mesmar called the licence “a significant addition to the UAE’s telecommunications sector” and linked it to the UAE Digital Agenda and the “We the UAE 2031” vision. Deputy Director General Eng Mohammed Yousif Al Ramsi told The National that Starlink will operate “within the UAE’s established regulatory and technical frameworks” and that the aim is a balance between connectivity and network security. The regulator expects the satellite layer to improve service continuity, support vital sectors such as energy and logistics and strengthen emergency response when terrestrial networks are disrupted.

One note on naming: the Government Media Office, Emirates 24|7 and Khaleej Times call the document a General Satellite Services Licence, while Gulf News reports it as a General Space Services Licence. The substance in all reports is identical. The fees, the exact start and expiry dates of the new term and Starlink’s business tariffs for the UAE have not been published.

From a maritime-only permit to a nationwide network: the timeline

The 2026 licence is the third regulatory step, not the first. The sequence, based on TDRA documents and the UAE press, looks like this:

1. 2024-06-12. TDRA issues Licence No (2) of 2024, a Satellite Internet Services Licence, to Starlink Satellite Communications Services L.L.C for ten years, until 2034-06-11. Article 4.2 of that document restricts the licensed services to “Maritime Satellite Internet Services” only, and Article 5 sets an acquisition fee of AED 100,000 and an annual licence fee of AED 100,000. Elcome, a Dubai marine electronics company, had already been the first UAE-authorised seller of Starlink terminals since 2023.
2. 2026-03-18. Starlink’s website starts advertising residential availability in the UAE at about AED 230 a month with a standard kit at around AED 1,545 including shipping. On 2026-03-23 TDRA confirms the approval but keeps the “in-motion on land” mode prohibited under the national telecommunications rules.
3. 2026-08-28. The General Satellite Services Licence extends the scope to individuals, businesses, government entities, maritime and aviation customers across the country and formally places Starlink under the same TDRA oversight as the terrestrial operators e& and du.

The company-level lesson from this timeline is simple: a foreign technology provider entered the UAE market through a locally incorporated entity, a narrow sector licence and a staged expansion of scope over two years. The same logic applies to smaller regulated businesses that open a company in the UAE: the licence activity list defines what you may sell, and widening it is a separate application.

Starlink in the UAE in numbers

For context, fibre packages from e& and du in built-up parts of Dubai and Abu Dhabi already reach multi-gigabit speeds, with some plans marketed at 10 Gbps. Rayad Kamal Ayub, managing director of The Rayad Group, told The National that Starlink is “a third national broadband infrastructure option, rather than a third conventional mobile operator”: it does not replace fibre where fibre is excellent, it adds coverage where laying cable is slow, expensive or impossible.

What changes for a business in the UAE

The licence does not turn Starlink into a mobile operator. It does not carry UAE mobile numbers, voice plans or SIM cards; those remain with e& and du under the national numbering and spectrum framework. What a company gains is a regulated, contractable satellite broadband option with four practical uses:

• Backup connectivity. A second, physically independent link for offices, warehouses and retail sites where a fibre cut or a 5G outage would stop payments, CCTV and cloud systems. TDRA itself frames the licence around “service continuity” and emergency response.
• Remote and temporary sites. Construction camps, desert and mountain projects, oil and gas facilities, farms and event venues where terrestrial networks are thin or arrive months after the project starts.
• Maritime. Yachts, workboats, offshore supply vessels and charter fleets operating from Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Fujairah and Ras Al Khaimah. This has been permitted since the 2024 maritime licence and is now part of the general framework.
• Aviation. Connectivity for aircraft is now explicitly within the licence scope; the commercial product for UAE operators has not been announced yet.

Two caveats before you budget for it. First, the “in-motion on land” mode (using a terminal on a moving vehicle) was prohibited in March 2026 and no source reports that this restriction has been lifted. Second, capacity in Dubai and Abu Dhabi is limited: new residential orders currently go to a waiting list against a deposit of AED 285.71. Business tariffs for the UAE have not been published, so a company that wants to plan a rollout should request a quote directly and treat the AED 300 figure as the consumer benchmark only.

Telecom is not the only sector where the UAE is building a space layer. In July the UAE Space Agency gave space companies 90 days to obtain licences, and in August the UAE-built AI satellite Altair-1 was shipped for an October 2026 launch. The regulator’s message across all three stories is the same: space services are welcome in the UAE, but only inside a licence.

Checklist: adding satellite broadband to a UAE company

• Decide the role of the link: primary connection for a remote site or backup for a fibre-connected office. The cost logic is different.
• Check whether your site is in Dubai or Abu Dhabi, where Starlink currently reports “at capacity”, or in another emirate.
• Budget the consumer benchmark: AED 300 a month plus AED 1,465 for the standard kit; ask Starlink for business pricing separately.
• Confirm the use case is permitted: fixed sites and vessels yes, terminals on moving land vehicles no (as of March 2026).
• Register the subscription in the company name and pay from the corporate bank account so the expense is deductible for corporate tax and the VAT invoice is in the right name.
• Keep the terminal’s installation address in line with your Ejari or free zone lease: telecom providers in the UAE verify the service address.
• For vessels, coordinate with the port or marina operator and check that the maritime terminal is on the authorised list.

How Atlant Capital can help

Atlant Capital does not sell connectivity. What we do is set up the company that will sign the contract: free zone or mainland registration with the right activity list, the corporate bank account from which the subscription is paid, and the residence visas for the team that will run a remote site, a vessel or a project office. If your business itself is in telecom, IoT, marine or aviation services and needs a UAE entity to work with regulated operators, we map the licence route before the first payment is made.

Conclusion

The 10-year licence issued on 2026-08-28 makes Starlink a regulated part of the UAE telecom market rather than a grey-zone import. For households it means a package from AED 300 a month once capacity opens; for companies it means a legal, contractable satellite link for backup, remote sites, ships and, in the near future, aircraft. The terrestrial operators keep their core: fibre, 5G, mobile numbers and voice. What the UAE gets is a third infrastructure layer that keeps working when the first two do not.

FAQ

Is Starlink officially available in the UAE?

Yes. TDRA granted Starlink a 10-year General Satellite Services Licence on 2026-08-28 for individuals, businesses, government entities, ships and aircraft. Residential sales had already started in March 2026 under a TDRA approval, and a maritime-only licence has been in force since 2024-06-12. As of 2026-08-28 the Starlink website lists Dubai and Abu Dhabi as “at capacity” with a waiting list.

How much does Starlink cost in the UAE?

The residential package advertised on the UAE site starts at AED 300 a month, the standard kit costs AED 1,465, and joining the waiting list in Dubai or Abu Dhabi requires a deposit of AED 285.71. At the March 2026 launch the price was about AED 230 a month with a kit at around AED 1,545 including shipping. Business tariffs for the UAE have not been published.

Can a UAE company use Starlink instead of e& or du?

For internet access at a fixed site or on a vessel, yes: the licence covers businesses and the maritime sector. Starlink is not a mobile operator in the UAE, so it does not provide mobile numbers, SIM cards or voice plans; those stay with e& and du. In fibre-served areas of Dubai and Abu Dhabi, fibre remains faster, with some plans reaching 10 Gbps, so most companies would use Starlink as a backup or for remote locations.

What speed does Starlink deliver in the UAE?

Starlink reports typical land-based performance of 45 to 280 Mbps for downloads, 10 to 30 Mbps for uploads and 25 to 60 milliseconds of latency. The low latency comes from satellites orbiting at about 550 km, compared with 20,000 to 35,000 km for traditional communications satellites. Speeds are not guaranteed and depend on capacity in the area.