Mutual Legal Assistance in UAE Criminal Cases: Evidence, Search, Seizure, Asset Freezing, and Foreign Requests
Mutual legal assistance (MLA) is the formal cooperation process through which one state asks another to obtain evidence, locate people or assets, serve documents, conduct searches, seize property, freeze funds or take another judicial step for a criminal investigation or prosecution. It is different from an informal police-to-police enquiry and different from extradition: the request may concern evidence or property without asking the UAE to surrender a person.
The principal UAE statute is Federal Law No. 39 of 2006 Concerning International Judicial Cooperation in Criminal Matters, shown on the official UAE Legislation platform as active and last updated in September 2023. The law operates alongside bilateral and multilateral treaties. For money-laundering, terrorism-financing and proliferation-financing matters, Federal Decree by Law No. 10 of 2025 supplies an additional cooperation framework for tracing, freezing, seizure and confiscation.
An MLA request is not a foreign warrant that executes itself in the UAE. It must pass through the correct central-authority channel, satisfy treaty and statutory requirements, and be carried out by UAE authorities using procedures compatible with UAE law.
This article explains what a foreign judicial authority can request, how the UAE receives and evaluates a request, what must be included in the file, how searches and asset freezes are handled, when assistance may be refused, and how a UAE authority can request evidence from abroad. It is general information, not advice on a particular investigation.
1. The legal and institutional framework
Federal Law No. 39 of 2006 contains a dedicated chapter on judicial assistance in criminal matters. It distinguishes requests sent by a foreign judicial authority to the UAE from requests sent by UAE authorities to a foreign state. Article 2 gives priority to applicable international agreements and permits cooperation on reciprocity where no treaty supplies a rule. Article 4 applies UAE laws where the international-cooperation statute does not contain a specific provision.
The Central Authority is the competent department of the UAE Ministry of Justice. The Ministry of Justice describes the International Cooperation Department as the unit that receives, registers, reviews and routes international judicial-cooperation requests. Its guide says foreign MLA requests are sent through diplomatic channels, normally through the foreign mission to the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs for transmission to the Ministry of Justice Central Authority.
The route can be modified by a bilateral or multilateral treaty. A treaty may designate a different channel, allow urgent transmission through an agreed network, prescribe a different language or set special rules for tax, corruption, organized crime, cybercrime or asset recovery. The requesting authority should therefore identify the treaty before preparing the request, rather than assuming that the domestic statute is the only instrument.
2. What can a foreign MLA request seek?
Article 43 provides a broad list of assistance that may be available where the request concerns a crime punishable in the requesting state, falls within the requesting authority’s jurisdiction and is essential to criminal proceedings. The list includes:
- identifying persons and their whereabouts;
- interrogating persons and obtaining witness statements;
- bringing a detained person to give testimony before a foreign judicial authority, subject to the statutory safeguards;
- serving judicial documents;
- searching persons and places and seizing things;
- providing information, evidence, original documents or certified copies of records; and
- attaching and freezing property of all types.
In practice, an effective request may combine several measures: identify the account holder, obtain the bank records, search a premises for devices, seize specified items, trace the proceeds and freeze the account pending a confiscation or restitution decision. Each measure should be described separately and supported by facts showing why it is necessary and proportionate.
3. How a request enters the UAE
Foreign request through the Central Authority
Article 44 requires the competent authority of the foreign judicial authority to submit the request to the UAE Central Authority through diplomatic channels. The Central Authority examines the formal conditions and, if satisfied, refers the request to the competent UAE judicial authority for the necessary action.
The Ministry of Justice guide describes a structured internal path: registration and documentation by the International Cooperation Department, referral to the responsible legal and judicial-cooperation team, formal review, and transmission to the competent prosecution or court. The authority that executes the measure may be federal or local depending on the location, type of evidence and applicable allocation of jurisdiction.
Urgent provisional measures
Article 45 addresses urgency. Before the complete formal requirements have been satisfied, the competent judicial authority may order provisional measures on a written request from the foreign judicial authority to protect threatened legal interests or secure evidence and documents likely to be lost or tampered with. The measures may be suspended if the requesting authority does not complete the requirements within the period set by the UAE authority, unless good cause is shown.
Urgency should be explained with concrete facts: an imminent transfer of funds, a planned destruction of records, a device scheduled for disposal, a witness preparing to leave, or a limited window to preserve volatile data. “Urgent” as a label is not a substitute for the facts needed to justify the provisional measure.
4. What must the request contain?
Article 46 requires the request and attachments to be in writing, dated, signed and sealed by the requesting party. It must identify the type of case, requesting and requested parties, detailed facts, applicable legal provisions and the procedure to be adopted. It should contain, in particular:
| Request element | What the UAE authority needs to understand |
|---|---|
| Witness schedule | Names, residences and the questions to be addressed. |
| Interrogation plan | The questions for each person and the status of that person in the foreign case. |
| Property or document description | The records, devices, accounts, premises or items to be inspected or seized, with identifying details. |
| People to be located | Names, identity documents and information that can distinguish the person from others with a similar name. |
| Legal and factual basis | The offence, material facts, jurisdiction, relevance and necessity of each requested measure. |
| Language and authentication | Necessary papers translated into Arabic and signed and stamped by the requesting state’s Central Authority, unless the applicable convention provides otherwise. |
Article 47 allows the Central Authority to request additional information. The requesting state should treat a request for clarification as an opportunity to cure a defect, not as a refusal on the merits. The response should preserve the original factual theory and explain any change in scope rather than sending disconnected documents.
5. Evidence, records and chain of custody
Cross-border evidence is only useful if the requesting court can understand what was obtained, how it was obtained and why it is authentic. The request should identify the evidentiary purpose of each item, the form required by the requesting court, any certification or attestation requirement, and the person who can explain the record if challenged.
Article 43 allows original documents and records or certified copies. The request should state whether originals are essential, whether a certified copy will suffice, and whether the requesting court requires a certificate, affidavit or testimony from the custodian. For electronic evidence, describe the device or account, date range, data type, preservation steps, hash or forensic method where relevant, and the proposed transfer route.
The UAE authority will execute the request under UAE procedure unless the foreign authority expressly asks for a specific manner that does not conflict with UAE law. Article 54 therefore creates a balance: the requesting state may explain the form of evidence it needs, but it cannot require a method that UAE law does not permit.
For business records, a precise schedule is safer than a request for “all documents.” Identify the entities, accounts, custodians, date range, transaction types, keywords, beneficial-owner information and links to the alleged offence. Overbroad requests may cause delay, privacy objections or a request for clarification.
6. Search and seizure in the UAE
A foreign request may seek the search of a person or place and seizure of things. The foreign authority should provide the legal basis for the search, the facts supporting probable relevance, the location and occupants, the items sought, any privilege issue and the proposed handling of copies and originals.
The actual search is conducted by the competent UAE authority under UAE law. The foreign request does not give foreign investigators an independent power to enter premises or seize material in the UAE. Foreign officials may be permitted to attend or assist only if the applicable treaty and UAE authority allow it, and their role should be defined in advance.
Where the search may capture privileged communications, personal data, unrelated commercial information or material belonging to third parties, the requesting authority should explain how the information will be filtered, stored and used. A targeted schedule and a clear protocol for sealed or privileged material reduce the risk that evidence is excluded or that the request is narrowed.
7. Asset tracing, attachment and freezing
Article 43 expressly includes attachment and freezing of property of all types. A request should identify the property, its suspected connection to the offence, the person or entity that controls it, the urgency, the requested duration and the final objective: evidence preservation, confiscation, restitution or enforcement of a foreign judgment.
The Ministry of Justice guide treats requests for seizure, freezing or confiscation, identification and tracking of funds, beneficial ownership and division of criminal proceeds as complex requests. That classification is a practical warning that the authority will need a complete financial narrative, not only an account number.
For financial crime, the 2025 AML/CFT law provides a parallel cooperation basis. It refers to identification, tracing, evaluation, seizure, freezing or confiscation of funds, criminal property or equivalent-value funds, and allows measures such as production of records held by financial institutions, designated non-financial businesses and professions, virtual-asset service providers and non-profit organisations. It also addresses the management and recovery of seized, frozen or confiscated assets and the protection of bona fide third-party rights.
What an asset-freezing request should show
- the predicate offence and the jurisdiction of the requesting authority;
- the transaction chain connecting the property to the offence or an equivalent-value theory;
- the owner, controller, beneficial owner, account, wallet or custodian;
- the risk of dissipation and why notice would defeat the purpose;
- the requested order, duration, permitted payments and treatment of legitimate expenses;
- the rights of innocent owners, secured creditors and other bona fide third parties; and
- the route for eventual confiscation, return, sharing or release.
A freeze is not the same as confiscation. Freezing preserves the asset while the case proceeds; confiscation transfers or permanently deprives the interest only under the applicable legal process. The request should not ask the UAE authority to treat an investigative restraint as a final forfeiture.
8. Confidentiality and limits on use
Article 48 allows the UAE authority, at the request of the foreign judicial authority, to maintain the secrecy of the request or the information it contains. Confidentiality should be requested expressly and justified by the risk of flight, destruction of evidence, witness intimidation, asset dissipation or another concrete harm.
Confidentiality does not remove the need to comply with UAE law or a court’s directions. The request should address who may access the material, how it will be stored, whether it may be disclosed to another agency or used for a different prosecution, and how the requesting state will protect personal, financial and commercially sensitive information.
Treaties and specialist statutes may impose purpose limitation and onward-use conditions. If the requesting authority later wants to use the material for a different offence, civil recovery, tax proceeding or third-state request, it should obtain the consent required by the applicable instrument before doing so.
9. Witnesses, experts and detained persons
Articles 49 to 52 address testimony and the movement of witnesses or experts. A person requested to testify may invoke protections available in similar UAE situations. If a detained person is asked to appear before a foreign judicial authority, the person’s prior consent and the UAE safeguards are important; the foreign authority must keep the person in custody and return the person as soon as practicable or within the period specified by the UAE.
The UAE may refuse to transfer a detained person where doing so would conflict with sovereignty, security or public policy, interfere with UAE proceedings, prolong custody or put the person or family at risk. Article 51 also provides immunity protections for a witness, expert or accused who attends abroad for the requested purpose, including protection from prosecution or detention for earlier matters, subject to the statutory terms.
Witness arrangements should cover travel, interpretation, remote testimony, reimbursement, safety and the date for return. Article 56 recognises travel and subsistence reimbursement and compensation for loss of earnings or profits, with the requesting state responsible for the stated payments.
10. When can the UAE refuse assistance?
Article 53 states that an MLA request may be refused in several circumstances:
| Refusal ground | What it means in practice |
|---|---|
| No UAE crime equivalent | The underlying act would not constitute a crime if committed in the UAE. Coercive measures require especially careful conduct and legal analysis. |
| Sovereignty, security, public order or essential interests | Execution would materially conflict with the UAE’s protected state interests. |
| Political crime | The request is connected to a political crime or political offence. |
| Discriminatory purpose or prejudice | Substantial grounds show prosecution because of race, gender, religion, nationality, ethnic origin or political opinion, or prejudice for those reasons. |
| Parallel or repeated prosecution | The matter is under investigation or prosecution in the UAE, or foreign prosecution would violate non bis in idem principles. |
| Terminated criminal action | The criminal case has ended for a reason recognised by UAE law or the requesting state’s law. |
| Incompatible compulsory measures | The request requires severe coercive measures inconsistent with UAE law for the offence concerned. |
Article 53 is not a general invitation to refuse inconvenient requests. The requesting authority should address each possible ground in the request, especially dual criminality, coercive powers, privilege, data handling and the relevance of the requested material. Where a defect can be cured by a narrower request or an assurance, consultation through the Central Authority may be more effective than an adversarial exchange.
11. Execution, costs and return of material
Article 54 requires execution according to UAE procedure, while allowing a specific foreign method where it does not conflict with UAE law. Articles 55 and 56 address fees, expert deposits, witness reimbursement and compensation. The requesting state may need to lodge a deposit before experts or documents are engaged.
Article 57 allows UAE authorities to request the return of property, documents or records delivered to the foreign judicial authority. The request should therefore state whether material is being transferred permanently, temporarily or as a certified copy, and how originals will be preserved for any UAE proceeding.
Article 58 permits sharing of revenues generated from crimes for which judicial assistance was provided. The Minister, in coordination with relevant authorities, determines the conditions and procedures, and a committee examines applications. Revenue sharing should not be confused with the legal entitlement of victims, secured creditors or bona fide owners.
12. Requests sent by UAE authorities abroad
Articles 59 to 61 govern outgoing UAE requests. The competent UAE judicial authority may request assistance mentioned in Article 43 from a foreign authority. The request is sent to the UAE Central Authority for review and referral through diplomatic channels.
The outgoing request should be written, dated, signed and sealed, translated into the language of the foreign judicial authority or another accepted language, and include the case description, facts, relevant laws, measures requested, witnesses, questions, property or documents to be inspected and any deadline. Article 60 specifically allows a time limit to be stated where the evidence is needed for a hearing, limitation issue or asset-preservation step.
Article 61 recognises measures taken abroad when carried out under the foreign authority’s law, unless the UAE authority requested a particular manner. UAE prosecutors should therefore anticipate admissibility and authenticity questions at the time of drafting, not after the evidence returns to the UAE.
13. Practical checklist
| For a foreign requesting authority | For a UAE person, business or institution affected |
|---|---|
| Identify the treaty, Central Authority and diplomatic channel. | Ask which authority issued the request and whether it is an MLA request, local investigation or AML freeze. |
| Explain the offence, jurisdiction, relevance and necessity of every measure. | Check whether the request describes a UAE criminal equivalent and a sufficiently specific factual basis. |
| Use a narrow schedule for accounts, records, devices, premises and date ranges. | Preserve documents and devices; do not destroy, alter or move material after notice. |
| Provide authenticated Arabic translations and identify the evidence form required abroad. | Raise privilege, confidentiality, data-protection and third-party ownership issues promptly. |
| Support urgency with dissipation or destruction facts and propose a workable order. | Challenge overbreadth, indefinite freezes, unrelated material and measures inconsistent with UAE law. |
| Explain future confiscation, return, victim compensation and third-party protections. | Record the freeze date, identify legitimate funds needed for operations or living costs, and seek release or variation where available. |
14. Common scenarios
Foreign fraud investigation seeking UAE bank records
The request should identify the accounts, period, transactions and suspected role of each account holder. A request for “all banking information” without a transaction theory may be returned for clarification. Certified records, a custodian statement and the requested authentication format should be addressed together.
Search for devices and cloud evidence
The requesting state should explain the device, account, user, time range and offence link, and distinguish preservation from seizure. A targeted digital protocol helps the UAE authority avoid collecting unrelated private or privileged material.
Freeze of funds held through a virtual-asset service provider
For AML/CFT cases, the 2025 framework expressly contemplates records held by virtual-asset service providers and equivalent-value property. The request should identify wallet addresses, transaction hashes, custodians, conversion points and the legal basis for freezing or tracing, while preserving bona fide third-party rights.
Tax or customs investigation
Do not assume that a foreign fiscal label automatically satisfies Article 53. Explain the underlying conduct and its UAE criminal equivalent, and check whether a treaty or the 2025 AML/CFT framework changes the analysis. A purely administrative dispute may not justify coercive assistance.
15. Frequently asked questions
Does an MLA request allow foreign police to conduct the search themselves?
No. UAE authorities execute the measure under UAE procedure. Foreign participation requires a legal basis and prior UAE approval.
Can an MLA request freeze assets without a final conviction?
It may seek provisional attachment or freezing to preserve property while the foreign case proceeds, subject to the applicable statute, treaty, urgency and UAE judicial process. A freeze is not final confiscation.
Must every request be translated into Arabic?
Article 46 requires the request and necessary papers to be translated into Arabic and signed and stamped by the requesting state’s Central Authority unless an applicable convention provides otherwise. A treaty may specify a different language or channel.
Is there one fixed deadline for UAE execution of an MLA request?
Federal Law No. 39 of 2006 does not create one universal execution deadline. Urgent requests, provisional measures, treaty deadlines and the complexity of the evidence affect timing. The Ministry of Justice guide treats freezing, confiscation, beneficial ownership and multi-part requests as complex.
Can the UAE refuse a request because the foreign offence has a different name?
The law focuses on the underlying conduct and applicable safeguards. A different label alone is not decisive, but the act must satisfy the relevant UAE criminality and coercive-measure requirements.
What happens to documents after they are sent abroad?
The authorities may request their return under Article 57. The request should identify whether originals, certified copies or temporary transfers are needed and preserve the chain of custody.
16. HZ Legal practical view
The quality of an MLA outcome is often decided before the request reaches the Central Authority. A requesting state should build a precise factual narrative, legal mapping, evidence schedule, Arabic translation, authentication package and confidentiality protocol. A UAE business or individual affected by a request should preserve evidence, identify privilege and third-party interests, and challenge overbreadth or legally incompatible coercive measures early.
Hossam Zakaria Legal Consultancy can assist with treaty selection, UAE-law review, foreign-request drafting, Arabic legalisation and translation coordination, urgent preservation, search and seizure response, asset-freezing strategy, beneficial-owner evidence, confidentiality issues and outgoing UAE requests.
Official sources and verification note
- Federal Law No. 39 of 2006 Concerning International Judicial Cooperation in Criminal Matters, especially Articles 43–61.
- Ministry of Justice Guide to International Judicial Cooperation in Criminal Matters.
- Federal Decree by Law No. 10 of 2025 Regarding Anti-Money Laundering, and Combating the Financing of Terrorism and Proliferation Financing.
- Ministry of Justice International Cooperation Department.
Verification note: The UAE Legislation platform warns that its English rendering is provided for convenience and that the original Arabic text prevails in case of conflict. Always check the current consolidated statute, the treaty with the requesting state, the 2025 AML/CFT framework where relevant, and the current instructions of the Central Authority before sending or answering a request.
Disclaimer: This article is general legal information and is not legal advice. It does not create a lawyer-client relationship. MLA requests can affect confidential records, business operations, bank accounts, digital devices and property without advance notice. Obtain UAE-qualified counsel immediately if a request, search, seizure or freezing measure is received.