ADDED (Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development)

ADDED is the Abu Dhabi government department that licenses and regulates mainland business activity in the emirate — the capital's counterpart to Dubai's DET. It issues economic licences across commercial, industrial, professional and tourism categories, approves trade names and activities, supervises commercial compliance, and handles consumer protection complaints against Abu Dhabi retailers. ADDED has driven licensing reforms including streamlined dual licensing that lets some free zone companies operate onshore in the emirate, and reduced licence fees as part of competitiveness pushes. Entrepreneurs meet ADDED when forming a mainland company in Abu Dhabi and at each renewal or amendment — adding activities, changing shareholders, opening branches. Lawyers interact with ADDED on entity setup, activity classification, foreign ownership questions and regulatory penalties, coordinating with other emirate-level authorities for sector approvals.