United Arab Emirates (UAE), which is in the process of reforming its foreign ownership legislation, will allow majority but not full foreign ownership in some sectors.
“The new companies law will give some relaxation to foreign ownership,” Gulf News says, quoting a senior official, Mohammad Omar Abdullah, undersecretary of the Department of Economic Development. Abdullah adds that the Ministry of Economy is preparing the final draft of the law ahead of its relay to the Federal National Council later this year.
New companies law has been in the works since 2008, but the provision for allowing majority foreign ownership has only been promoted by the Ministry of Economy since September.
Current rules limit foreigners to 49% ownership outside free zones, which allow 100% foreign ownership.
The report also quotes Mohammad Al Qamzi, chief executive of the Abu Dhabi government’s Higher Corporation for Specialised Economic Zones (ZonesCorp) as saying the federal law will likely serve as a “guideline,” allowing for flexible implementation at the local level according to each emirate’s needs.
Sectors to be excluded from the new legislation will likely be ones of “strategic” value such as oil and gas, Al Qamzi adds.
