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The DFSA assigns every DIFC financial services firm to one of eight prudential categories based on the activities on its licence. The 2025 and 2026 amendments lowered base capital for brokers and advisers, introduced activity-based capital and changed insurance requirements, while fintech firms can test products under the Innovation Testing Licence.

Companies with no presence in the DIFC can agree in writing to the DIFC Courts under Article 14(B) of Dubai Law No. 2 of 2025. A clause that only names the courts of Dubai invites a jurisdiction challenge, and judgments against onshore assets are enforced through the Dubai Courts under Article 32.

Article 224 of the new Civil Code allows a court to reduce an obligation or rescind a contract where exceptional unforeseen circumstances make performance oppressive, and any agreement excluding that power is void. The equivalent provision for lump-sum construction contracts, Article 829(3), can be excluded, which means drafting that targets only the construction route leaves the general one intact.