UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Trends and Developments Contributed by: Stuart Paterson, Janine Mallis and Tania Forichon, Herbert Smith Freehills (Dubai)
cerned that they may speak up safely. This is particularly important in circumstances where, for many expatriates, their residency visa is typi - cally dependent on their continuing employment such that they risk having to leave the country if their employment is terminated. There remains no whistle-blowing legislation in the UAE at a federal level. Such a development would be welcome to root out wrongdoing wher - ever it occurs. It would ensure that businesses and employees have a clear and consistent basis for understanding their rights and obliga - tions in this area, in particular given that many international and domestic businesses operating in multiple emirates and/or freezones that may have different regimes in place or have busi - nesses that may be subject to different sectoral requirements (such as for financial services). However, the overall trend is positive – whistle- blowing frameworks have been introduced over the last few years and encourage those who discover misconduct, such as fraud, to come forward. Although the UAE’s whistle-blower protection framework is still fragmented, it lacks a fed - eral law that provides adequate protection for whistle-blowers. Government authorities and freezones have published their own whistle- blowing laws and regulations, including: • the introduction by the Dubai Financial Ser - vices Authority (DFSA, the regulatory author - ity for financial services within the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) financial freezone) in 2022 of a new whistle-blower protection regime in Section 68A of the DFSA General Regulation and Anti-Money Launder - ing Provisions (which broadly aligns with the DIFC’s whistle-blowing regime which covers
all business whether or not also regulated by the DFSA); • the publication by the Central Bank of the UAE in 2021 of a whistle-blowing policy which sets out mechanisms that allow employees in firms regulated by the Central Bank to raise concerns, including by mak - ing an anonymous report through an online portal; and • the enactment of UAE Federal Decree-Law No 33 of 2021 which provides for a form of quasi-whistle-blower protection in the private sector by prohibiting the termination of an employee’s service if such termination is due to an employee filing a serious complaint to the Ministry of Human Resources and Emi - ratisation or a lawsuit against the employer insofar as the complaint is true. The most recent development is the introduc - tion by the Abu Dhabi Global Market ( “ADGM” ) of its Whistleblower Protection Regulations in July 2024 (the “ADGM Regulations” ) (although ADGM entities will only be required from 31 May 2025 to have fully complied with their new obli - gations to implement policies and procedures to facilitate whistle-blowing, as discussed below). The ADGM Regulations provide that individu - als who make good faith disclosures relating to contraventions, financial crimes (eg, money laundering), or other similar concerns within ADGM entities (defined as “Protected Disclo- sure” ) will be protected from civil or contractual liability employment termination, disciplinary action from the employer or any other form of detriment or disadvantage due to the disclosure. Protected Disclosures can be made to a wide range of designated persons – including indi - viduals within the entities, regulatory bodies or law enforcement agencies.
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