Two laws, one checkout
A UAE online store sits under two federal instruments at once:
- Federal Decree-Law No. 14 of 2023 on Trading by Modern Technological Means, the e-commerce law, in force since September 2023. It covers websites, apps and social commerce, and free zone businesses selling outside their zone.
- Cabinet Decision No. 66 of 2023, the Executive Regulation of the Consumer Protection Law, in force since October 2023 (Mondaq). Article 40 is headed "E-Commerce".
Add the VAT Law for pricing and the data protection law for forms and cookies, and you have the full set. The penalty schedule for the e-commerce law is Cabinet Decision No. 200 of 2025. Sources disagree on its start date: Schroer Digital, citing BDO, gives 28 November 2025; Hossam Zakaria Legal gives 13 December 2025. Its Arabic schedule is not machine-readable, so we don't quote amounts.
The page-by-page checklist
| Page or element | What it must contain | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|
| Footer + "Legal details" page | Legal name as licensed, licence number and issuing authority, physical address, phone numbers, email, website | Decree-Law 14/2023, Art. 6(9) |
| Product page | Name, type, components, quantity; producer and importer with trade name and address; country of origin as "Made in …"; production date and shelf life where relevant; misuse warnings; storage and use conditions | CD 66/2023, Art. 40(1) |
| Product specs | Statement of components and standards in the original language and Arabic | CD 66/2023, Art. 40(1)(c) |
| Conformity | Supporting documents and the conformity mark on the web page, where the product needs one | CD 66/2023, Art. 40(2) |
| Prices | Clear prices including VAT for consumers; ex-VAT only for exports or VAT-registered buyers, clearly marked | VAT Law Art. 38; Exec. Reg. Art. 27 |
| Shipping and fees page | All delivery and payment fees, publicly available before checkout; no extra fees beyond those announced | Decree-Law 14/2023, Art. 5(5), 14(3), 15(3) |
| Checkout | No surcharge for paying by credit card | CD 66/2023, Art. 5(3) |
| Terms / digital contract | The terms of each stage of sale; buying counts as consent, so keep each version dated | Decree-Law 14/2023, Art. 5(5) |
| Returns page | Statutory return grounds and exclusions, plus your own policy | Decree-Law 14/2023, Art. 7; CD 66/2023, Art. 40(1)(g) |
| Invoice | Detailed electronic invoice; consumer invoice fields: supplier name and contact, date, description, quantity, price in AED, warranty, delivery date, commercial registration number, tax number | Decree-Law 14/2023, Art. 5(8); CD 66/2023, Art. 6(1) |
| Complaints | Permanently available phone and contact channels, qualified staff, a way to track complaints, a clear address | Decree-Law 14/2023, Art. 6(7) |
| Reviews | A way for customers to rate the merchant, goods and delivery | Decree-Law 14/2023, Art. 6(5) |
| Marketing consent | Customers choose whether to receive calls, emails or social media marketing | Decree-Law 14/2023, Art. 6(4) |
| Security | Secure browsing and payment | Decree-Law 14/2023, Art. 5(3), 6(3) |
Schroer Digital's article-by-article reading maps the same articles to page elements in more depth.
Returns: what the law actually gives
Article 7 lets a consumer return or exchange goods bought online when they:
- breach UAE law;
- arrive defective, incomplete, damaged or not as described;
- arrive so late they can't be used;
- breach the announced terms;
- fall under any further case set by the Minister.
The right is lost if the goods were used beyond checking for defects, if the legal period passed, for food and consumer goods that expire within three weeks, and for books, films or programs that can be used only once.
There is no general cooling-off period in the decree-law. Many UAE stores offer 7, 14 or 30 days anyway as a commercial choice. Once you publish it, it is part of your announced terms, and Article 7(1)(d) then makes it enforceable.
Separately, CD 66/2023 Article 25 obliges a supplier to take back goods without a warranty and refund them if a defect appears within 30 days.
Worked example: a perfume store's product page
| Field | Example | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Price | AED 315 (incl. 5% VAT) | VAT inclusive |
| Origin | Made in France | "Made in" phrase |
| Importer | [Legal name] LLC, Dubai, licence no. … | Producer/importer named |
| Ingredients | English + Arabic | Arabic statement |
| Warning | Flammable; keep away from heat | Misuse warning |
| Returns | Unopened within 14 days (our policy); defective or not as described (by law) | Statutory + own policy |
| Delivery | AED 20 under AED 200, free above | Fees shown before checkout |
Cosmetics and perfumes in Dubai also go through Dubai Municipality's Montaji system, including pre-approval of advertising, so check that before the page goes live.
What nobody tells you
- "Buy now, discount next week" can cost you. The Executive Regulation requires a seller to tell customers about discounts that will start within one week of their purchase; if it doesn't, the customer can claim the difference, Mondaq notes. Discounts also need a DET permit in Dubai; see our promotions permit guide.
- You answer for your marketplace sellers. Art. 40(3) of CD 66/2023 makes a platform responsible for defects in goods sold by third parties through it.
- Instagram shops count. The e-commerce law is technology-neutral: selling through social media, WhatsApp or an app is still "trading by modern technological means".
- Terms need version dates. Because purchase counts as consent to the terms, you need to show which version applied to which order.
Vladimir Chernyshev, GM: build the legal-details footer and the Arabic product fields into the template before launch. Store themes made for other markets don't have them, and both are cheap to add on day one and painful to retrofit across hundreds of products.
Related: UAE PDPL for websites, Arabic language requirements, website cost in Dubai.
