Q: Insolvency Law No. 9 of 2019: Court may order to stop all criminal and civil proceedings against an individual defender. I do not live in Dubai, UAE, and I am currently hiding out overseas. I have pending 2013 judgments by the criminal court in absentia and civil court in absentia. - Could you please recommend an experienced lawyer to file for insolvency in Dubai Court? - Is it possible to give a POA, my lawyer file insolvency in absentia, and obtain bail from the same court?

Q: So there is this new law applicable on Jan 2, 2022, where convicts of bounced cheques will all be cleared and found innocent. Question 1: Will this apply to civil cases that have passed all stages and are under execution? Question 2: Will all this be cleared automatically or are there procedures to be done by the convict to fix and if so what are they? Thank you.

Q: Hi, I have a cheque bounce from a person who owes me 63,000 AED. They are two cheques; one for 43,000 and another for 20,000 have bounced. How can I recover my money? The person continues to ask for more time but it has been 4 months now and I no longer trust him. Please let me know the timelines, also whether a travel ban will be imposed on him with the recent change in the law (decriminalization of cheque bounce). Also how much court fees will need to be paid with the new law (with direct execution) and is it recovered from the other party? Looking for urgent help on this, please!

Q: I currently have a civil case, and a judgment was passed in my absence where the court ruled that I should pay the full amount. With the new laws passed regarding bounced cheques, I paid the fine for this case but the civil case and judgment were passed already. The amount for both the credit card and loan is a total of AED 324,000. I would like to find out how I can get the judgment removed and find a way forward in closing the civil case as I have a travel ban and can’t get employment.

Q: Dear sir/madam, Can I file a police case (criminal case) against a customer who issued a cheque that got returned for insufficient funds?

Q: Dear sir/madam, I had 2 cheque bounce cases in the UAE; one in Sharjah and another in Abu Dhabi. The Sharjah case went to court and the judge gave me a 10k AED fine. I paid the fine and the case was closed. The Abu Dhabi case was pending and now due to the new amendment in law, this case is also closed without any fine. Now I want to travel to the UAE on a visit visa, to see if I can find a job or set up a small business and start my life altogether. I have heard that once I enter the UAE, the bank will get to know the same and they will file a civil case and impose a travel ban. Once entered, I will not be able to get out till I clear the payment with the bank. I am ready to have a negotiation with the bank and make the repayment in installment but I don't want to be stuck in the UAE with a travel ban. Please advise on this. Also, I want to check my immigration status - if my travel bans by the cheque bounce cases issued earlier are cleared.

Q: Hi, I know the cheque bounce has been decriminalized. but someone gave me a cheque of 250k knowing that it will bounce because the bank account is closed. What are the legal consequences for this, because it does not appear fair if there are no consequences, especially if the person has no funds. I don't know if it is worth making a case with all the costs and no consequences. I appreciate any advice. Thanks. J.

Q: Dear sir/madam, I have a bounced cheque case. If I go to the police station to clear that, will they arrest me? The amount of the cheque is below 100k.

Q: With the new UAE cheque decriminalization law, does it mean if I come to the Dubai airport I will not be arrested but instead will be asked to go to the police station or court to personally pay the fine?

In the UAE, cheque bounce is a very frequent problem faced by people during their span in the country. It is covered under the purview of Commercial Transactions Law, and legal implications/penalties can be financially severe and daunting for more “serious” offenses. Bounced cheque issues may arise in a variety of commercial transactions, including but not limited to, companies’ exchanges, bank loans, property rents or purchases, and individual transactions.

An interview-format article covering the topic of loans and bounced cheques in the UAE. This is from the legal podcast of lawyer Ludmila Yamalova, the founder of Lawgical with LYLAW.

This Law promulgates the Federal Penal Code (Criminal Law) of the United Arab Emirates. Crimes and chastisement punishments shall be determined in accordance with the provisions of this Law and other penal codes.

The provisions of this Decree by Law amend the Federal Law No. (18) of 1993 by replacing Clause (4) of Article (379) as well as Articles (600), (617), (641), (642), (643), (644), and adding new articles numbered (635) Bis, (641) Bis (1), (641) Bis (2), (641) Bis (3), (641) Bis (4), (643) Bis (1), (643) Bis (2), (644) Bis (1) and (644) Bis (2). The Decree-Law also repeals Articles (401), (402) and (403) of the Federal Law No. (3) of 1987.