4 Tips for Making POAs That Are Signed Outside the UAE But Used in the UAE

The UAE has transformed itself into a major business hub. You may either be representing a major multinational company or looking to set-up your own business here while currently being located in your home country. You may be an expatriate who is leaving the United Arab Emirates for good and wish to appoint someone on your behalf to manage or sell your real estate property or a vehicle. In all these situations, you will be looking to appoint someone on your behalf who can carry out the required tasks to your satisfaction while you are outside the UAE.

Below given are four (4) of the most important tips that you should keep in mind while going about preparing and executing a power of attorney for use in the United Arab Emirates. It must be noted that the process mentioned below may be required for complicated company POAs with multiple layers of shareholders. For others, we would suggest following the e-notarization process.

1. Have Your POA Prepared in Line With the UAE Law Requirements

There is a chance that you may be considering to have your document drawn-up by someone in the country of your residence. You might feel comfortable dealing with someone face-to-face to draft this document. You should, however, keep in mind that the document must be drafted in line with the UAE laws and requirements of the relevant government departments. It is only a UAE based law firm such as Legal Inz that can help you draft the POA that complies with these requirements. If you have already drafted the power of attorney through someone in your home country, you should have the draft reviewed by us to ensure that it will be acceptable in the UAE.

2. Choose Your Attorney with Care

It is also important that you choose your representative (referred to as ‘attorney’ in the POA) with care. Your attorney should be someone who you can trust with your assets and he/she should be well-aware of the workings of government departments in UAE. Your attorney may have to take time out from work to visit the relevant government departments to carry out the duties assigned by you. If you think you need professional assistance, we provide an end-to-end POA representation service in UAE. In other words, we can prepare the power of attorney in UAE, have it legalized, act as your attorney and complete your desired tasks outlined in the document. Please contact us if you would like to avail our POA representation services.

3. Complete the Legalization Process

The legalization process can be daunting at times if you wish to carry out the entire process on your own. It will typically involve visits to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the UAE Embassy in the country of your residence once you have signed the POA before a notary public. Your attorney will need to visit the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Justice in UAE to complete the legalization and attestation. We offer an end-to-end service to our clients for the legalization of POA throughout the world. If you are interested in our legalization services, please contact us.

4. Confirmation of Completion of Tasks Assigned in the POA

Once your attorney has exercised the powers granted by you, he/she should provide you with the relevant documents provided by the relevant third parties/government departments that are issued as a result of the completion of relevant transaction. For example, in the case of sale or purchase of real estate property, you should seek a copy and then the original of the title deed issued by the Land Department in the relevant Emirate. It is important for you to have these documents delivered to you as evidence of your ownership of the real estate property. A similar process applies to all other transactions.

The above tips are based on our experience in the preparation, legalization and representation of powers of attorney in UAE. There may be additional issues that need consideration keeping in view your situation and requirements.