Guides to UAE powers of attorney
These pages are built from what the authorities themselves publish - Dubai Land Department, RTA, the federal portal, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs - and they are explicit about where those sources stop. Where a question is not answered by anything official we have found, the guide says so rather than filling the gap.
They exist to help you choose. The service pages are where something gets prepared.
Choosing a power of attorney
Which document, and how wide the authority should be. Worth settling before anything is drafted.
- General vs special power of attorney in the UAE
Someone deciding whether they need a broad power of attorney or one written for a single purpose.
- Property POA or DLD POA - which one do you need?
Someone who has found two of our property pages and wants to know which one is theirs.
- Vehicle POA or RTA POA - which one do you need?
Someone selling or transferring a vehicle who needs to know whether the Dubai RTA page applies to them.
Translation
What UAE authorities publish about documents that are not in Arabic - and how differently each of them words it.
- When a UAE authority needs an Arabic translation
Someone who has been told their document needs an Arabic translation, and wants to know what kind, for which authority, and who is allowed to do it.
Preparing one
What the authorities publish about documents and about signing from abroad - and where they are silent.
- What documents does a UAE power of attorney need?
Someone asking what documents a UAE power of attorney needs, who is about to discover the honest answer is "it depends" - and deserves to be told what it depends on.
- Arranging a UAE power of attorney from outside the country
Someone outside the UAE who needs a document used here, and wants to know what is actually involved.
Crossing a border
A document signed in one country and used in another passes through several authorities. What each stage does, and which one decides.
- Using a UAE power of attorney abroad
Someone in the UAE who needs a document they sign here to be acted on by an authority in another country, and wants to know what the chain actually is.
Wills
Three registries will register a will in the UAE, and they publish very different amounts about how. Which route, and what each one actually involves.
- DIFC, Dubai Courts and ADJD wills compared
Someone who has decided to make a will in the UAE and is choosing between the three places that will register one.
- Registering a DIFC will: what the appointment involves
Someone who has chosen the DIFC route and wants to know what the appointment actually involves before booking it.
- Registering a will in Abu Dhabi through ADJD
Someone considering the Abu Dhabi route who wants the published procedure rather than a summary of it.