Chances are that you have done a quick search to find out how to write a power of attorney to authorize someone within the UAE to carry out certain tasks on your behalf. It is critical that you understand the importance of this document and ensure that it is correctly written and executed in line with your as well as the requirements of third parties/government departments where this document will eventually be presented. You do not want to end-up in a situation where you have written and executed a document which is not considered valid when is presented for use. This article provides you five (5) most important tips which you should take into account while going ahead with a POA. It is common knowledge that the typing centers and law firms across the UAE prepare powers of attorney for use in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and across other Emirates. The typing centers use standard templates that they use for all clients. As these templates have typically fixed language, clients may run the risk of ending-up with documents that do not correctly reflect their requirements. The typing centers typically only enter the passport/Emirates ID details in their templates and provide the print-outs ready for signing. You may face the risk of (i) having more powers included in your POA than desired; (ii) missing the powers that are required to be included; or (iii) having broader powers than required that may be misused by the attorney. To avoid this situation, it is critical that you have your POA prepared by a law firm. The law firms ensure that (i) they reflect your desired powers in the document; (ii) the document does not contain any unnecessary powers; and (ii) it is eventually accepted by the relevant third parties/government departments. Legal Inz specializes in preparing POAs that meet your, as well as the requirements of the third parties/government departments. We have made it easy for you to obtain a POA in the UAE. You can choose and order your POA with us in minutes.

2. Use the Correct Document (i.e. General POA or Special POA)

There are two (2) types of POAs that are used within the United Arab Emirates (i.e. general and special). It is very important that you understand the difference between these types of POAs and use the correct document. A general POA contains very broad powers for acting in general, legal and business matters. It may be typically used to purchase real estate, set-up companies and represent you before government departments. However, this document is unlikely to work for the sale of real estate, vehicles or shares in companies within the UAE. As a rule of thumb, you should always opt for a special POA if you are looking to grant specific and limited powers about a subject matter or sale of an item (such as real estate, vehicles or shares in companies). If in doubt, the safest approach is always to choose a special POA over a general one.

3. Choose Your Attorney Wisely

As this document authorizes someone else to step into your shoes for carrying out your tasks, you need to ensure that you choose your representative (referred to as the ‘attorney’ in the POA) with care. You should appoint someone who is trusted by you and is aware of how things are done within the United Arab Emirates on a day-to-day basis. You do not also want to be in a position where the powers granted by you are misused by someone putting you in an undesired situation.

4. Have the Arabic Translation Done

It is mandatory that your POA is translated into Arabic by a certified legal translator approved by the Ministry of Justice within the UAE. The document may be signed before a notary public either in Arabic language only or in a bilingual format (English and Arabic). If you are not an Arabic speaking person, you should ensure that your document is prepared in bilingual format for the simple reason that you must understand your document in English language first before it is translated into Arabic and signed by you before a notary public.

5. Sign it Before a Notary Public

Once the document has been translated into Arabic, printed and stamped by the legal translator in three (3) originals, it must be signed by you before a notary public in Dubai, Abu Dhabi or in any other Emirate. The notary public carries out the registration immediately and provides you with two (2) originals of the document. You can provide one (1) original to the attorney authorized by you in the document and keep one (1) original with yourself. If you are not present within the UAE, you can still sign the power of attorney in the country of your residence before a notary public, provided that you follow the process of legalization before the document is presented for use in the United Arab Emirates. These are the most important issues that we have noted based on our day-to-day experience. Your situation may require further consideration in addition to the points highlighted above.

A POA is valid if it is signed and registered with a notary public in the UAE. However, if you are not present within the UAE, you can still sign the power of attorney before a notary public in the country of your residence, provided that you follow the process of legalization to make the document valid for use within the UAE.

The requirement of legalization has been put into place as the UAE is not a signatory to the Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement for Legalization for Foreign Public Documents. The authorities in the UAE thus do not accept any POA that does not comply with the legalization requirements.

The process of legalization is initiated in the country of origin (where the POA is signed) and is completed within the UAE. This process provides a guarantee that the document is genuine and contains correct and truthful information.

The process of legalization is summarized in steps 1-4 below. Steps 5-6 in this Article refer to the process applicable to the translation of the document into Arabic and certification of the Arabic translation.

1. Notarization

As a first step, the document is signed before a notary public in your country of residence. The role of the notary public is to confirm the authenticity of your signatures as a witness. The notary public will typically need to see your identity document such as passport to allow you to sign the POA. In addition, if the POA is being signed on behalf of a company, the notary public will insist on you providing the evidence that you have been duly authorized by the company as its signatory.

The document is typically printed on a A4 size plain paper. In some countries such as Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka, the notary public may require the document to be printed on a stamp paper in line with the requirements of the local stamp duty laws.

2. Attestation by Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The second step in the legalization process is to have the document attested by the ministry of foreign affairs of your country of residence. The purpose of this attestation is for the ministry to cross-check the name and practicing number of the notary public who has notarized the document. If the notary public is recognized by the ministry, it will attest the document.

The act of attestation provides the document a legal standing on international level. In some countries, the process of attestation may also be referred to as legalization or apostille.

The legalization is carried out at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office in the UK. In the United States, US Department of State provides this attestation.

3. Certification by the UAE Embassy

At this stage, the document is submitted to the UAE Embassy/Consulate for certification. The UAE Embassy/Consulate certifies the document after ensuring that the first two (2) steps indicated above have been correctly completed. The UAE Embassy/Consulate also determines whether the document is treated as personal of commercial to apply the correct fee for the certification.

Once this certification has been obtained, the document is brought to UAE to complete the next step in the legalization process.

4. Certification by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) in the UAE

Once the document is presented to MOFA, it verifies if the document has been notarized, attested and certified as indicated in the first three (3) steps above. MOFA certifies the document accordingly. Once this certification has been obtained, the document becomes legally valid for use in United Arab Emirates.

5. Arabic translation

The Arabic translation is carried out after the attestation of the POA by MOFA. The legal translators will only be able to stamp the document as legally translated if it has been attested by MOFA. The translation is attached underneath the original document and the translators typically staple the documents together. The Arabic translation is required to be carried out if the document is to be presented before any government authority in UAE. Exceptions may only apply in cases where the document is presented for use in a free zone – however, this practice may not be consistent and a safer approach is always to have the document translated into Arabic.

6. Attestation by the UAE Ministry of Justice

As a last step in the process, the Arabic translation will be certified by the UAE Ministry of Justice. This certification essentially confirms that the Arabic translation has been carried out by the legal translators duly licensed and approved by the UAE Ministry of Justice.

The POA can be presented to any third parties, government departments and authorities to carry out the relevant transactions once the above process of legalization and certification has been completed.

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.

Here 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:

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.

If you have determined that you require a special POA in UAE after carrying out an assessment of your situation, you should keep in mind the requirements that may apply to preparing and executing the document before it is presented for use.

In all special POAs, it is a rule of thumb that the subject matter and transaction should be specified in details so the parties relying on the document should be in a position to identify the document as clearly applicable to the transaction at hand.

Here are some of the examples of the most common special POAs that are used in the UAE:

1. Special POA For the Sale of Real Estate Property

For a special POA relating to the sale of real estate property in the UAE, you should ensure that the following details are included in the document:

1. Details of the real estate property with precise unit number and other information provided on the title deed of the property.
2. Details of the specific powers that you wish your attorney to exercise while using the power of attorney.
3. If the transfer of property is a transfer as ‘gift’ instead of an actual sale, you must specify that the transfer will take place as ‘gift’ and there will be no consideration payable for this transfer.

If your real estate property is currently mortgaged, you will also be required to obtain an NOC from the relevant bank before you can sign the document at a notary public. It may be possible for you to sign the document without this NOC if you wish to sign it before a notary outside the UAE.  However, in all cases, you will need to provide notary public the evidence of your ownership of the real estate property at the time of signing the document.

It may not be necessary for you to choose a special POA if you wish to purchase or manage the real estate property. A general POA is typically acceptable for these transactions.

2. Special POA For Vehicle

For a special POA authorizing the sale of a vehicle, you will need to include the following information in the document:

1. Details of the vehicle registration as per the vehicle registration card.
2. Details of the specific powers that you wish your attorney to exercise.

You will need to present the original vehicle registration card valid at the time of visiting the notary public for signing the document.

3. Special POA For Sale of Shares

The special POA authorizing the sale of shares should include the following:

1. Details of the company where the shares are held by you.
2. Details of number of shares held by you.
3. Specific powers that you wish your attorney to exercise.

You will need to provide original trade license, memorandum and articles of association and share certificate (if applicable) to the notary public at the time of signing the document.

If your special POA does not fall under any of the above categories, please contact us and we would be happy to provide you with the relevant requirements applicable to your document.