If you make things by hand in Dubai — soap, resin art, imitation jewellery, calligraphy, engraved gifts, frames, sculptures, handmade shoes — you can license that craft and sell it legally online. Dubai DET groups these under Handicraft workshops (صناعة اللوازم الشخصية), and 14 of the 16 activities in the group can be issued as a home-based E-Trader (Professional) license for a total of AED 1,416.50, with no shop, Ejari or local agent.
Online Seller (6312009) is temporarily suspended
The Online Seller activity — the usual E-Trader activity for selling products online — has been temporarily suspended by Dubai DET until further notice, so new applications for it are on hold. If you make the products you sell, a handicraft activity is a legitimate licensed alternative that lets you keep trading through your own website and social media pages.
Important: marketplaces such as Amazon.ae and Noon set their own seller onboarding rules and decide which activities they accept. Check with the platform directly before you rely on it.
What Is a Handicraft License?
A handicraft license is a Dubai DET trade license issued for one of the activities in the Handicraft workshops group. These are craft and workshop activities: the licence holder makes the product, rather than buying finished goods to resell. Every handicraft activity available on E-Trader is classified as Professional, which is why the license fee is AED 1,070 rather than the commercial rate.
The same activity can be issued three ways: as an E-Trader (Freelancer) license, as a Mainland Sole Establishment with a local service agent, or inside a Mainland LLC. E-Trader is by far the cheapest and is fully home-based; the Mainland routes add a shop or office, Ejari, staff visas and the ability to trade in bought-in goods.
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The Activity Group
Handicraft workshops
صناعة اللوازم الشخصية
16
14 (all Professional)
All 16 Handicraft Activities — Codes & Descriptions
Every activity in the DET Handicraft workshops group, with its official code, Arabic name, licence type, whether it can be issued on E-Trader, and what DET's description actually covers.
Saddles & Animals, Bird Training Requisites Making
شغل السروج ولوازم ترويض الحيوانات والطيورProfessionalE-Trader availableMaking saddles, reins and other requisites for horses, camels and other animals, whether for sport or other purposes, plus veils, stands, straps and gloves used in breeding and training falcons and birds. Includes cutting wood and raw leather, then sewing and embroidering the finished items.
Shoe Making
شغل الأحذية والنعالProfessionalE-Trader availableSmall workshops that manufacture shoes and sandals of all kinds by cutting, fitting and finishing, and that produce special designs to customer requirements.
Books Binding Workshop
مشغل تجليد الكتبProfessionalE-Trader availableManual and automated book binding to protect books and make them easier to use, including deluxe binding with card covered in paper, textile, plastic or natural leather, and simple paper binding for popular editions.
Crystal Products Processing
شغل المنتجات البلورية ومعالجتهاProfessionalE-Trader availableProcessing crystal products such as glassware, novelties, sculptures, gifts, shields and badges — including design, cutting, engraving, polishing, sandblasting and gilding to turn raw or semi-finished pieces into marketable products.
Display Products Making
تجهيز أدوات العرضProfessionalMainland onlySmall workshops making accessories used to display goods in shops — price-list holders, stamp displays, stands for pamphlets, brochures and cards, photo frames and similar promotional display items.
Metal Products Engraving
الحفر على المنتجات المعدنيةProfessionalE-Trader availableIncising designs on metal by cutting grooves, by hand or by laser, to embellish advertising medals, stamps, trademarks and tags, jewellery and watches.
Imitation Jewellery Smithing
صياغة الحلي من غير المعادن الثمينةProfessionalE-Trader availableManufacturing goldsmiths' articles such as brooches, earrings, necklaces, bracelets and rings made from base metals plated with precious metals, or jewellery set with imitation gemstones and imitation diamonds.
Handicraft Works
الأشغال اليدوية للتحف والادواتProfessionalE-Trader availableMaking a wide variety of decorative objects completely by hand or with simple tools, using materials such as wood, metal, clay, bone, glass, stone, textiles, leather or plants. This is the broadest activity in the group and covers most general handmade craft products.
Gifts & Jewellery Box Making
شغل علب الهدايا والمجوهراتProfessionalE-Trader availableDecorated boxes made from different materials and used for keeping jewellery and for presenting gifts.
Artificial Plants & Flowers Making
صناعة الزهور ونباتات الزينة المصطنعةCommercialMainland onlyManufacturing artificial ornamental plants and flowers from paper, plastic, fabric, glass or shells, and drying flowers and plants for decorative use.
Frame Making
شغل براويز الصور واللوحات الفنيةProfessionalE-Trader availableMaking decorative frames for paintings or photographs, intended to display and protect the artwork.
Glass & Plastic Engraving
الحفر على الزجاج والبلاستيكProfessionalE-Trader availableIncising designs on glass and plastic by cutting grooves, either by hand or by laser.
Calligraphers & Painters
خدمات الخط والرسمProfessionalE-Trader availableHand lettering and calligraphy for certificates, invitations, envelopes, business branding and logos, plus drawing and painting works — visual art, abstract art, sketching, decorative art, illustration and graffiti, as well as body painting on adults and children (tattooing is prohibited).
Decorative Sculptures Making
عمل المنحوتات والمشغوالت التجميلية للعروض الخاصةProfessionalE-Trader availableProducing sculpture works such as statues, shapes and decoration pieces from disposable materials like polystyrene, paper, ice and sweets, used to decorate hotels, restaurants, parties and feasts, or for shop display windows.
Sculptors
مشغل نحتProfessionalE-Trader availableCarving shapes from material by scraping away portions of it — statues from stone, scraped concrete for building decoration — and making three-dimensional models from soft, malleable materials such as clay and wax.
Soap Making & Forming
تحضير وتشكيل الصابونProfessionalE-Trader availableProducing soap from natural and chemical substances at less than industrial scale.
3290013 Artificial Plants & Flowers Making and 2592101 Display Products Making are part of the same group but are not enabled for E-Trader — they can only be licensed on the Mainland.
Which Activity Fits What You Make?
| What you make | Suggested activity |
|---|---|
| Handmade soap, bath bars, natural soap | 9609019 — Soap Making & Forming |
| Resin art, clay, wood, macramé, textile crafts, general handmade décor | 3212003 — Handicraft Works |
| Fashion / imitation jewellery, plated pieces, imitation stones | 3212002 — Imitation Jewellery Smithing |
| Engraved metal tags, medals, plaques, watches, jewellery | 3211006 — Metal Products Engraving |
| Engraved glass, acrylic and plastic gifts | 3290025 — Glass & Plastic Engraving |
| Photo and painting frames | 3290022 — Frame Making |
| Gift boxes, jewellery boxes, hampers you assemble | 3212004 — Gifts & Jewellery Box Making |
| Arabic calligraphy, portraits, canvas art, illustration, body painting | 7410004 — Calligraphers & Painters |
| Crystal shields, awards, cut and polished crystal gifts | 2310017 — Crystal Products Processing |
| Statues, decorative sculptures, polystyrene / ice / sugar art | 9000901 — Decorative Sculptures Making |
| Stone, clay and wax sculpture | 9000915 — Sculptors |
| Handmade shoes, sandals and leather footwear | 1520006 — Shoe Making |
| Book binding, journals, deluxe leather binding | 1812007 — Books Binding Workshop |
| Saddlery, falconry gear, animal training requisites | 1512003 — Saddles & Animals, Bird Training Requisites Making |
If your craft is not on this list, do not guess a code — send us photos or a short description and we will search the full DET activity list for the closest legitimate match.
Not sure which activity to pick?
Search the full DET activity list or ask our team to confirm the right code.
Handicraft License Cost — E-Trader vs Sole Establishment vs LLC
The same handicraft activity costs very different amounts depending on the legal form you choose. All figures are in AED and cover the first year of government-side fees.
| Fee item | LLC | Sole Est. + Local Agent | E-Trader (Freelancer) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trade name reservation | 735.50 | 735.50 | 115.50 |
| Initial approval | 235.50 | 235.50 | 115.50 |
| Follow-up receipt | 115.50 | 115.50 | — |
| MOA (Memorandum of Association) | 210.00 | 210.00 | — |
| License issuance | 115.50 | 115.50 | 115.50 |
| Local agent fee (annual) | Not required | 1,500 – 4,000 | — |
| License fee | 12,000 | 6,000 | 1,070 |
| English trade name (optional) | 2,000 | 2,000 | — |
| Dubai Municipality market fee | 5% of annual rent | 5% of annual rent | — |
| Additional partner | 1,100 per partner | 1,100 per partner | N/A |
| Ejari / shop tenancy | Required | Required | Not required |
| Indicative first-year total | ≈ 13,412+ | ≈ 8,912 – 11,412 | 1,416.50 |
Mainland totals are approximate first-year indications, not quotes — they exclude shop rent, the 5% Dubai Municipality market fee on that rent, the optional AED 2,000 English trade name and AED 1,100 per additional partner. The E-Trader figure is exact: AED 1,070 license fee + AED 346.50 DET transaction fees = AED 1,416.50.
Cheapest option: E-Trader at AED 1,416.50
For a home-based crafter selling through their own website and social media, the E-Trader (Professional) handicraft license is roughly one sixth the cost of a Sole Establishment and about one tenth the cost of an LLC — with no Ejari, no local agent and no municipality market fee.
Get your Handicraft license for AED 1,416.50
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If You Resell Instead of Make
A handicraft license only covers products you make yourself. If you buy finished goods and resell them, the correct route today is a Mainland trading license: a Trading LLC for a single group of items costs around AED 13,000 in the first year, and General Trading adds roughly AED 15,000 more — around AED 28,000 in total. These are approximate first-year indications, not quotes; our team can confirm the exact figures for your activity list.