VARA licence in Dubai: eight activities, eight prices
- APPLICATION
- 40–100k
- ANNUAL
- 80–200k
- REGISTER
- 57
In short. Dubai does not sell one crypto licence. VARA licenses eight separate activities, and a firm pays for each one it wants. Advisory costs AED 40,000 to apply; running an exchange costs AED 100,000, and the annual supervision fee behind it is five times the advisory one. Two names in the public register can mean two different things, and only one of them may serve clients.
- APPLICATION FEE
- 40–100kAED, depending on the activity
- ANNUAL SUPERVISION
- 80–200kAED, for each licensed activity
- EACH EXTRA ACTIVITY
- +50kAED added to the application
- LICENSABLE ACTIVITIES
- 8named by the regulator itself
- IN THE REGISTER
- 57licensed and in-principle together
- IN-PRINCIPLE APPROVAL
- No tradinguntil the full licence arrives
How the regulator came about
Dubai created VARA by Law No. 4 of 2022, issued on 28 February 2022 and in force from its publication in the Official Gazette on 11 March 2022. That made the emirate the first jurisdiction anywhere to stand up a regulator built for virtual assets alone, rather than bolting crypto onto a securities or banking authority that already had another job.
The rules themselves followed on 7 February 2023, when VARA issued the Virtual Assets and Related Activities Regulations. Between those two dates a firm could announce its intent to be regulated in Dubai and have no rulebook to comply with, which is worth remembering when you read a press release from that period.
Where the licence works, and where it does not
VARA covers the whole emirate: the mainland, the free zones and the special development zones. One exception trips people up, and it is a large one. The Dubai International Financial Centre is its own jurisdiction with its own regulator, and a VARA licence buys nothing inside it.
Federal rules sit above all of this. Since June 2026 paying a merchant on the UAE mainland works only with payment tokens the central bank has approved, whatever a firm's VARA status says.
So "regulated in Dubai" is three different statements depending on the address, and the three are not interchangeable.
Eight activities, eight prices
The regulator names eight licensable activities and prices them in two bands. Advisory and transfer-and-settlement sit in the cheaper one: AED 40,000 to apply and AED 80,000 a year to be supervised. The other six, including exchange, custody and broker-dealer, cost AED 100,000 to apply and AED 200,000 a year.
Each additional activity adds AED 50,000 to the application. A firm that wants to run an exchange and hold client assets is applying twice, not once, and will pay two annual supervision fees for as long as it holds both.
The annual fee is not a formality. It recurs whether or not the activity made money that year, and VARA can adjust it to a firm's risk profile.
Two statuses in the register
A firm holding in-principle approval appears in VARA's public register beside the ones holding a full licence. The regulator states it may not start operations, conduct any virtual asset activity or serve clients until the full licence is granted.
Fifty-seven entries sit in the register, split across those two tabs. Before you trust a claim of being VARA regulated, check which tab the name is under. The two are not equivalent, and the register is the only place that settles it.
What it costs
| Activity | Application | Annual supervision |
|---|---|---|
| Advisory Services | AED 40,000 | AED 80,000 |
| Transfer & Settlement Services | AED 40,000 | AED 80,000 |
| Broker-Dealer Services | AED 100,000 | AED 200,000 |
| Custody Services | AED 100,000 | AED 200,000 |
| Exchange Services | AED 100,000 | AED 200,000 |
| Lending and Borrowing Services | AED 100,000 | AED 200,000 |
| Management and Investment Services | AED 100,000 | AED 200,000 |
| VA Issuance Category 1 | AED 100,000 | AED 200,000 |
How an application runs
- 1Incorporate inside VARA's territory. The DIFC is outside it, and an entity there cannot hold this licence.
- 2Apply for the activities you want. Each is priced on its own and the fee falls due with the filing.
- 3Receive in-principle approval. The name appears in the public register, and operating is still prohibited.
- 4Satisfy the conditions: capital, custody arrangements, compliance staff, technology audits.
- 5Receive the full licence. Only now may the firm serve clients, and annual supervision fees begin.
Timeline
Dubai issues Law No. 4 and creates VARA, the first standalone virtual asset regulator.
The law takes effect on publication in the Official Gazette.
VARA issues the Virtual Assets and Related Activities Regulations.
Federal rules limit mainland payments to central-bank approved tokens.
57 providers listed in the public register across both statuses.
Questions
Can one licence cover everything?
No. Each of the eight activities is licensed on its own, and every extra one adds AED 50,000 to the application.
Does a VARA licence work in the DIFC?
No. The DIFC is a separate jurisdiction with its own regulator and sits outside VARA's territory.
Is an in-principle approval enough to start?
No. VARA prohibits operating, conducting any virtual asset activity or serving clients until the full licence is granted.
What does supervision cost each year?
AED 80,000 for advisory and transfer-and-settlement, AED 200,000 for the other six activities, per activity held.
How do I check a firm?
Open VARA's public register and look at which tab the name appears under.
Sources
Updated 08.10.2026 · this is reference material, not legal advice