The map·UAE·Government programmes

Masdar City Free Zone

Abu Dhabi’s sustainability and innovation free zone — home to more than 2,000 companies (site), positioned around clean energy, AI and R&D; 100% foreign ownership; home to the Catalyst CleanTech accelerator and R&D partnership access.

What
100% foreign ownership free-zone setup.
Who
Green tech, AI and energy R&D companies of any size.
Cost
No equity — service or permission
Status
Active

Checked · September 2026 · masdarcity.ae · How we check ↗

Website ↗On the map →

In detail

Masdar City Free Zone is a free zone (sustainability & innovation) in the UAE. Abu Dhabi’s sustainability and innovation free zone — home to more than 2,000 companies (site), positioned around clean energy, AI and R&D; 100% foreign ownership; home to the Catalyst CleanTech accelerator and R&D partnership access.

Amount
  • Free zone incentives
  • 100% foreign ownership
  • package prices not published
Terms
No
Eligibility
Green tech, AI, energy R&D and innovation-led companies of all sizes
Sectors
CleanTech, Renewable Energy, AI, Sustainability, R&D
Benefits
  • 100% foreign ownership
  • One-stop-shop setup
  • Catalyst accelerator on site
  • R&D partnerships
Status
Active

What the source says

“100% Foreign ownership”

masdarcity.ae/free-zone-and-leasing/freezone · seen September 2026

“100% exemption for personal taxes”

masdarcity.ae/free-zone-and-leasing/freezone · seen September 2026

“more than 1,000 local and international companies”

masdarcity.ae/free-zone-and-leasing/freezone · seen September 2026

Closing soon on the map

Cultural Development Fund (CDF)

Grant · Saudi Arabia
Up to SAR 500,000 non-repayable per project, capped at 20 projects total.
No equity — grant
29 Sep 2026closes

Finspire

Accelerator · Saudi Arabia
SAR 100,000 development funding, earmarked rather than paid as cash.
Equity via SAFE, capped at 5%
4 Oct 2026closes

QSTP Incubation

Accelerator · Qatar
In-kind support: Doha workspace and housing for a four-week Sprint, talent and investor access.
Equity — 1.5% deferred SAFE-style stake
1 Nov 2026closes

All published deadlines →

More government programmes in the UAE

ADGM

Government · UAE
A RegLab regulatory sandbox; not a funding programme.
No equity — service or permission
—

ADIO

Government · UAE
Project-dependent incentive packages plus regulatory fast-tracking.
No equity — service or permission
—

CBUAE FinTech Sandbox

Government · UAE
Regulatory permission to test fintech and digital-banking products.
No equity — service or permission
—

DIFC

Government · UAE
100% foreign ownership in a dedicated free zone; not a funding programme.
No equity — service or permission
—

All government programmes in the UAE →  ·  Across the Gulf →

More programmes that take no equity →

Sources

Primary source · masdarcity.ae · Checked September 2026