Fees and steps checked on
A US certificate of good standing is issued by the Secretary of State of the state where the company was formed. For the UAE, that same office then authenticates it, and the UAE Embassy in Washington attests it together with MOFA. UAE free zones, licensing authorities and banks ask for it when a US company opens a branch or subsidiary, takes shares in a UAE company or opens a corporate account, because it shows the parent company is active and has kept up its state filings.
Price: from AED 4,000 plus VAT per certificate, as a commercial document, with about 6 weeks for the full chain. Embassy, MOFA and courier fees are included. See attestation fees.
Ordering the certificate
Good standing is issued by the state, not by the company. You order it from the business division of the Secretary of State where the company is registered. Delaware, where many US companies are formed, issues it through its Division of Corporations, in a short form or a long form:
| Version | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Short form | The company exists and is in good standing |
| Long form | The same, plus the company's filings and name changes |
A company formed in Delaware but run from Texas still orders from Delaware. A foreign qualification in Texas gives a Texas certificate too, but the UAE authority normally wants the one from the state of formation.
The chain for a corporate document
The UAE Embassy's corporate documents page says business and corporate documents must be attested by the local Secretary of State before they go to VFS Global, which handles the embassy's attestation. Personal documents also need the US Department of State. We confirm the exact chain for your certificate when you send it, so nothing is filed twice.
- Order the certificate from the state of formation.
- Secretary of State authentication from the same state, often ordered with the certificate.
- Federal step, where required for your file.
- UAE Embassy and MOFA through VFS Global, applied for on the MOFA portal and issued digitally as a commercial attestation.
- Arabic translation, where the UAE authority works in Arabic. See legal translation in Dubai.
Good standing and the rest of the set
A UAE licence file usually holds more than the good standing:
- Certificate of incorporation or formation
- Articles, bylaws or operating agreement
- Board or members' resolution approving the UAE entity
- Power of attorney for the UAE manager, see USA power of attorney attestation
The full corporate set is on USA company documents attestation. Each document is attested on its own and carries its own fee.
Documents to send
- The company's legal name and state of formation
- The UAE authority, free zone or bank, and its written document list
- A scan of the certificate if you already ordered it
What goes wrong
- Too old. A good standing ordered months ago may be refused. Order it last, just before the chain starts.
- Company not in good standing. Unpaid franchise tax or a missed annual report means the state will not issue it. Fix the filing first.
- Wrong state. The state of formation, not the state where the office sits.
- Name differences. "Inc." against "Incorporated", or a missing comma, can trigger questions in the UAE. Use the exact registered name everywhere.
Commercial invoices and certificates of origin take a different route; see USA commercial documents attestation.
