For facilitiesSHA
Opening a facility: initial approval
The first approval, granted on your location, your ownership and your layout. It lets you start fitting out - it does not let you open. Getting this stage right is what keeps the second stage from becoming a rebuild.
What we do for you
- Check the site and your intended activity against the requirements before you sign a lease
- Get the layout right so it clears review the first time
- Assemble the ownership, trade name and town planning paperwork and file it
- Plan your fit-out against the operating licence from day one, so nothing gets built twice
What you will need
- Owner’s Emirates ID and passport
- Layout plan
- Proposal letter
- Power of attorney, if someone is acting for the owner
- Trade name reservation
- Affection plan from town planning
How it runs
- 1The application is opened on the authority system
- 2The form is completed
- 3Documents are submitted
- 4The authority reviews and verifies
- 5Fees are paid
- 6The initial approval letter is issued
Authority fees
The authority sets these by facility type and does not publish one figure. We quote you the exact amount for your case.
These are the authority’s fees, paid to them. Our fee is quoted for your case once we have seen the file.
Questions we get asked
- Can we open once we have this?
- No. This is permission to proceed. Opening needs the operating licence, which comes after your fit-out is finished and inspected. Treating initial approval as the finish line is the single most expensive mistake we see.
- What if the year runs out before we are ready?
- There is an extension route, and we manage that date with you rather than letting the approval quietly expire halfway through your fit-out. It is one of the things we watch on your behalf.
Tell us what you need
A couple of lines is enough. We reply within one working day.