Catering company licence in the UAE

Catering sits alongside a foodservice market of roughly USD 12.8bn, and benefits from a corporate and events economy that Dubai's 19.59 million annual visitors help sustain. Demand is lumpy — concentrated around the events calendar, the National Day period and the winter conference season — which makes it a working capital business as much as a food one.

How the business actually makes money

You are quoting per head against a fixed production cost, so utilisation of the kitchen is everything. Contract catering — staff canteens, schools, labour accommodation — is lower margin but smooths the curve, and most successful operators run it alongside events work rather than instead of it. Payment terms in corporate catering routinely run 60–90 days, which for a business buying fresh produce weekly is the real constraint.

You are inspected on a facility the public never sees and on the chain between it and the event. Cold chain and transport are inspected, not assumed.

Approvals beyond the trade licence

Municipality food safety for the production kitchen, approved food transport vehicles, food handler cards, and event-by-event approvals where you cater at public venues.

Where to license it

The food & beverage activity in full  ·  The general setup guide