Federal Law No. 3 of 2021 Concerning the Regulation of Fundraising Activities ( PDF, 3.89 MB; available in Arabic) aims to regulate the fund-raising activities and donations for charities in the UAE. It pronounces the rules for charitable donations and governs the functioning of non-profit organisations. It applies to any association that wants to collect or provide donations in the country, on the mainland and in free zones. The law aims to protect fund-raisers and their funds from the risks of exploitation in financing terrorism and illegal organisations.
Who can raise funds?
Fund-raising activity, whether it is carried out through traditional or digital methods, is restricted to entities classified by law as charitable and humanitarian organisations and to government and non-government public interest institutions whose decrees, laws, or resolutions of establishment confirm that they may conduct such activities.
According to the law, natural persons are not allowed to host, organise or carry out any fund-raising activity.
How to raise funds?
Any non-profit association that wishes to raise any type of donations in the UAE, must first obtain a licence from Ministry of Community Development or a competent authority in each emirate. Additionally, fund-raising must be done through one of the licensed charities or humanitarian organisations in the UAE. Also, the applicant must:
Penalty for raising funds through unauthorised means
Raising funds by natural persons or unauthorised organisations is punishable with imprisonment and heavy fines.
All you need to know about donations regulatory law.- MoCD
Additional regulations on fundraising
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