Your partner for the United Arab Emirates
Imports and exports by air & sea freight
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is an important trading partner for Germany on the Arabian Peninsula. Oil-related activity, economic diversification, international investment and its regional gateway role all contribute to demand for logistics services. Many German businesses have branches or other operations in the Emirates.
Sea, Air, Transport & Service is an experienced partner for transport with the UAE as its origin or destination. We can support your imports and exports and can also assist with international removals to or from the United Arab Emirates. This includes support for German companies with employees in the UAE, covering relocation requirements and vehicle transport according to the goods, route and agreed scope.
Local connections in Dubai, Jebel Ali and Abu Dhabi
Through local partners, we work at important regional logistics centres including Dubai and Abu Dhabi and the deep-sea Port of Jebel Ali. These connections help us coordinate your shipment locally. Jebel Ali is an important international trade and transshipment gateway linking Europe with Africa and Asia. The wider UAE network supports both sea and air freight and can form part of logistics arrangements extending beyond the region.
Our coordinated service can include collection and delivery through to the agreed address, together with handling, documentation and the relevant customs process. Local partners contribute their knowledge of the import and export rules applicable to the shipment.
Support for your shipment
Contact us to discuss transport or an international removal involving the UAE. Our team can explain the available options. Use our enquiry form or contact us by email or telephone. Once you provide the necessary shipment details, we can prepare an individual quotation.
The UAE: historical economic context
- the earlier overview described a substantial oil-related contribution to the UAE economy and reported GDP of US$398 billion and per-capita income of US$49,500 in 2014. These historical figures do not measure the current scale of economic diversification or establish a current world ranking;
- the overview attributed more than 40% of exports to oil and reported 2013 exports of US$393 billion and imports of €264 billion. The original amounts and differing currencies are retained as historical source data, not directly comparable current trade statistics;
- it described the UAE as Germany’s largest Arabian Peninsula sales market in 2013, with around US$10 billion of exports and Germany ranking behind India, China and the United States as a supplier. Imports into Germany were described as smaller. This relates to the historical period covered by that overview.
Selected airports and seaports in the United Arab Emirates
| Airport / seaport | IATA code / UN/LOCODE | City |
| Zayed International Airport (Abu Dhabi) | AUH | Abu Dhabi |
| Al Maktoum International Airport (Dubai World Central) | DWC | Dubai |
| Dubai International Airport | DXB | Dubai |
| Port of Mina Zayed | AE AUH | Abu Dhabi |
| Port of Jebel Ali | AE JEA | Dubai |
01. The right partner for your shipment
Benefit from our experience with transport to and from the United Arab Emirates.
Our partner network supports an individual plan for your goods, route and delivery requirements.
02. What do you need?
Germany–UAE trade route: Jebel Ali and the air gateways of Dubai and Abu Dhabi
The UAE is an important logistics and transshipment hub connecting Europe, the Gulf, East Africa and the Indian subcontinent. For sea freight from Germany, Jebel Ali (Dubai) is a major gateway. DP World reported 15.5 million TEU handled there in 2024. The port’s international service network supports both UAE imports and goods intended for re-export to the wider GCC region, East Africa and South Asia. Another gateway is Khalifa Port (Abu Dhabi) for suitable industrial and project cargo. From Hamburg or Bremerhaven the existing overview gives an indicative sea transit to Jebel Ali of 25–35 days. Actual transit depends on the selected service, transshipment and routing; changes between Red Sea/Suez and Cape of Good Hope routes can substantially affect the schedule. Whether FCL (German) (a full container) or LCL (German) (groupage) is appropriate depends on the cargo volume and requirements. Use our sea freight cost calculator (German) for an initial estimate. Urgent and high-value goods may use air freight through Frankfurt (FRA) and gateways including Dubai International (DXB), Al Maktoum (DWC) and Abu Dhabi (AUH). The existing overview gives roughly 6–7 hours of flying time; actual flight availability and the end-to-end schedule must be confirmed.
UAE customs: GCC rules, free zones and supporting documents
For EU customs purposes, the UAE is a non-EU country (German). EU–UAE free-trade negotiations are under way, but an EU tariff preference must not be assumed for a shipment without checking the applicable legal framework and origin requirements. An ordinary certificate of origin (German) and the correct commodity code (German) may form part of the import documentation, according to the goods and procedure. The UAE applies GCC customs arrangements, with a common rate for many goods of around 5% of the CIF value. Actual rates, exemptions and any additional charges are product-specific; some categories, including alcohol and tobacco, have different treatment. The UAE’s numerous free zones including Jebel Ali Free Zone (JAFZA) have their own customs procedures. Qualifying goods can generally remain under the relevant free-zone or re-export procedure without immediate mainland customs duty. Release to the mainland requires the appropriate declaration and can trigger the applicable duty and taxes; this is not a universal 5% or VAT exemption. Digital customs and trade processes include Dubai Trade (Mirsal 2) and Abu Dhabi’s ATLP platform. Economic operators handling EU customs formalities generally need an EORI number (German). We coordinate export-side customs clearance (German) as part of our international freight-forwarding service.
Frequently asked questions
How long does sea freight from Germany to the UAE take?
The existing overview gives an indicative 25–35 days of sea transit from Hamburg or Bremerhaven to Jebel Ali. The actual carrier service and current Red Sea/Suez or Cape routing can change this substantially. Collection, delivery and customs handling are additional. Your quotation will identify the route and schedule available for the shipment.
Is customs duty payable on a delivery into a UAE free zone?
It depends on the customs procedure and what happens to the goods. Qualifying goods entered into a free zone for storage or re-export generally do not incur mainland duty at that stage. Release for mainland use requires the appropriate declaration and assessment of the applicable duty and taxes. The often-cited 5% CIF rate is not universal, and free-zone customs treatment does not itself settle VAT treatment. We plan the procedure around your distribution route.
Which documents are needed for exports to the UAE?
Common documents include a commercial invoice, packing list and, where required, a certificate of origin and product-specific conformity or approval documents. EU economic operators generally need an EORI number for customs formalities. German import VAT relates to imports into Germany, rather than the export leg to the UAE. UAE import taxes must be assessed separately.
Discuss your UAE shipment with us: sea freight, air freight and customs coordination.