UAE Anti-Money Laundering Law — articles 1–43

We, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates, - Having reviewed the Constitution; - Federal Law No. (1) of 1972 Regarding the Competences of the Ministries and the Powers of Ministers, as amend…

For the purposes of implementing the provisions of this Decree by law, the following terms and expressions shall have the meanings assigned to each of them, unless the context requires otherwise: The State: The United Ar…

1. A person shall be deemed to have committed money laundering if that person knows or there are sufficient indications or evidence to believe that the Funds, in whole or in part, are the Proceeds of a Predicate Offence,…

1. Whoever intentionally provides, collects, or makes available Funds by any means, directly or indirectly, including through the use of digital systems, Virtual Assets, or cryptographic technologies, with knowledge that…

A Legal Person shall be criminally liable where any of the crimes stipulated in this Decree by Law is intentionally committed in its name or for its account, without prejudice to the personal criminal liability of the pe…

1. The Chief of the Unit may, without prior notice, order the cessation or temporary suspension of any Transaction suspected of being related to the Crime, for a period not exceeding ten (10) working days, based upon the…

1. The Public Prosecution and the Competent Court, as the case may be, may, without prior notice, order the identification, tracing, valuation, Seizure, or Freezing of Funds, Criminal Property, or funds of equivalent val…

The Public Prosecution and the Competent Court, as the case may be, may assign the Accused, or any person deemed appropriate, to manage the Funds or Criminal Property, or funds of equivalent value, that have been Seized,…

1. Without prejudice to the provisions of Article (6) of this Decree by Law, the criminal case shall be filed against any person committing Money Laundering, Financing of Terrorism, or Proliferation Financing, as stipula…

1. The Public Prosecution may, either on its own initiative or upon request of Law Enforcement Authorities, where sufficient indications of the commission of the Crime exist, order direct access to accounts, registers, d…

Any person entering into or departing from the State shall be under the obligation to make a disclosure whenever they carry currencies, bearer negotiable instruments, precious metals, or valuable stones, in accordance wi…

An independent “Financial Intelligence Unit” shall be established within the Central Bank and shall act independently. All Suspicious Transaction Reports and information related thereto shall be submitted thereto, exclus…

By virtue of the provisions of this Decree by Law, a committee shall be established and shall be known as the “Higher Committee for the Supervision of the National Strategy for Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Fin…

Pursuant to the provisions of this Decree by Law, a committee shall be established under the chairmanship of the Governor, to be known as the “National Committee for Combating Money Laundering, the Financing of Terrorism…

The National Committee shall be competent for the following: 1. To establish and develop a National Strategy for combating the Crime, and to establish related regulations, procedures, and policies in coordination with th…

1. The National Committee shall have a General Secretariat, headed by a Secretary-General, and shall include a number of employees. 2. The Secretary-General shall act as Deputy Chairman of the National Committee and as a…

The Supervisory Authorities shall, within their respective areas of competence, undertake the duties of supervision, monitoring, and follow-up to ensure compliance with the provisions set forth in this Decree by Law, its…

1. Without prejudice to any more severe administrative sanction prescribed under any other legislation, the Supervisory Authority may impose the following administrative penalties upon Financial Institutions, Designated …

1. Where Financial Institutions, Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions, or Virtual Asset Service Providers suspect, or have reasonable grounds to suspect, that a Transaction or Funds, in whole or in part, r…

1. Financial Institutions, Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions, and Virtual Asset Service Providers shall comply with the following: a. Identify, understand, manage, assess, document, and continuously upd…

No natural or legal person shall engage in any Financial Activities, Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions, Virtual Asset Service Providers, or Virtual Asset Service Provider activities without obtaining a …

Without prejudice to the legislation in force within the State and to the provisions of the treaties or conventions to which the State is a party, or under the condition of reciprocity, the following shall apply: 1. None…

1. The Cabinet shall, based upon a proposal from the Minister and after coordination with the Concerned Authorities, issue a resolution regarding the determination and regulation of the procedures for the recovery and ma…

1. The Concerned Authorities shall maintain comprehensive statistics on Suspicious Transactions reports, investigations, judgments related to the Crime, Funds Frozen, Seized, and Confiscated, requests for international c…

Information obtained in relation to Suspicious Transactions or to any of the Crimes stipulated in this Decree by Law shall be deemed confidential, and may only be disclosed to the extent necessary for its use in investig…

The penalties prescribed in this Decree by Law shall be imposed without prejudice to any more severe penalty provided for in any other law.

1. Whoever commits the Crime of Money Laundering shall be punished with imprisonment for a term not less than one (1) year and not exceeding ten (10) years, together with a fine of not less than one hundred thousand dirh…

1. Without prejudice to any more severe penalty prescribed by another law, every legal person whose representatives, directors, or agents have, on its behalf or in its name, committed the Crimes of Money Laundering, Fina…

Whoever deliberately or through gross negligence violates the provisions of Article (18) hereof shall be punished by imprisonment and a fine of not less than one hundred thousand dirhams (AED 100,000) and not exceeding o…

1. Any person who notifies or warns another person, or discloses any information related to Transactions under review concerning Suspicious Transactions, or reveals that the Competent Authorities are conducting inquiries…

1. Any person who possesses, conceals, or conducts any Transaction in Funds where there are sufficient indications or evidence suggesting the illegitimacy of their source, or the concealment of the Beneficial Owner there…

1. Where the Crime is proven, the Court shall order the Confiscation of the following: a. The Criminal Property; b. Any Funds owned by the offender equivalent to the value of the Criminal Property, in cases where such pr…

Any person who violates the provisions of Article (20) of this Decree by Law shall be punished by imprisonment and a fine of not less than two hundred thousand dirhams (AED 200,000) and not exceeding ten million dirhams …

Any person who violates the instructions issued by the Executive Office or any other Competent Authority related to Targeted Financial Sanctions shall be punished with imprisonment and a fine of not less than twenty thou…

Any person who violates the provisions of Article (10) of this Decree by Law, or refrains from providing additional information where requested, or deliberately conceals information required to be disclosed, or knowingly…

1. Any person who intentionally provides false or misleading information concerning the Beneficial Owner to any Competent Authority requesting such information, or to Financial Institutions, DNFBPs, or Virtual Asset Serv…

1. Where a foreigner is punished with a custodial sentence due to the commission of the Crime of Money Laundering or any of the felonies stipulated in this Decree by Law, the judgment must include an order for their depo…

1. No criminal, civil, or administrative liability shall be incurred by the Supervisory Authorities, the Unit, the Law Enforcement Authorities, the Financial Institutions, the DNFBPs, the Virtual Asset Service Providers,…

By virtue of a resolution issued by the Minister of Justice or the Head of the competent local judicial authority, in coordination with the competent minister or authority, certain employees may be vested with the capaci…

The Cabinet shall, upon the proposal of the Minister and after coordination with the Supervisory Authority, issue a resolution prescribing the violations and administrative penalties applicable to acts committed in contr…

The Cabinet shall, upon the proposal of the Minister, issue the Executive Regulations of this Decree by Law.

1. Federal Decree by Law No. (20) of 2018, referred to herein above, shall hereby be repealed. 2. Any provision that contradicts or conflicts with the provisions of this Decree by Law shall hereby be repealed. 3. The Exe…

This Decree by Law shall be published in the Official Gazette and shall enter into force (2) two weeks after the date of its publication.