UAE: hemp, full penalty tiers, enforcement figures and 1969-2026 history

The federal decree regulating industrial and medical uses of industrial hemp, issued on 1 … edical products that contain hemp compounds. Personal and recreational use stay prohibited, as do; hemp foodsfood is banned except roasted or processed non-viable seeds, and supplements, veterinary products and smoking products are banned. An emirate may prohibit or restrict an activity. Whether any cultivation licence has been issued, or any product is in a pharmacy, was not verified.

Federal Decree-Law 30 of 2021, in force from 2 January 2022, lowered the penalties for use and possession of cannabis: at least three months in prison or a fine of 2010,000 to 100,000 dirhams for a first offence, at least six months or 20,000 to 100,000 dirhams for a second within three years, and two yearsat least six months and 50,000 to 200,000 dirhams for a third. A court may send a first offender to a treatment centre instead, for up to a … tor carrying food or products containing drugs has them confiscated without being charged.

20252026-1201-01

Amendments to the drug decreeFederal Decree-law requireLaw 14/2025, dated 1 October and announced on 11 December 2025, took effect on 1 January 2026. Article 75 now requires courts to deport foreignersany foreign national convicted ofunder the narcotics offences once they have served theirlaw after sentence, except the spouse or closefirst-degree relative of a UAE citizen, or a member of a resident family thatwhere deportation would seriously harm family stability or care. DoctorsThe law also replaced Ministry of Health references with the Emirates Drug Establishment and dispensers who supply drugs without a valid prescription faceimposed at least five years in prisonand AED 50,000 on pharmacies or doctors dispensing without authorisation. A new National Anti-Narcotics Authority takes over from the interior ministry.

WAM — Federal decree-law issued amending the law on combating narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances (11 December 2025) Zayed Alshamsi — Judicial deportation of foreign nationals under the amended narcotics law (4 August 2026) 1 unchanged

A 2022 reform softened firstFirst-offence penalties (minimum three months or a fine) and made deportation discretionarywere softened in 2022, but personal use remains one of the world's strictest regimes, including forwith trace amounts. From enough and mandatory deportation for foreigners from 1 January 2026 a. A separate 2026 law allows licensed industrial hemp and authorised hemp-derived medical products.

Under Federal Decree-Law 30 of 2021, a first offence of possessing or using cannabis for personal use carries at least three months in prison or a fine of AED 10,000–100,000 — a softening from the previous mandatory four years. Repeat offences bring longer mandatory terms. Trace amounts[@dl30, includinglexai] A second offence within three years brings at least six months or AED 20,000–100,000, and a third at least six months and AED 50,000–200,000.[@lexai] There is no minimum quantity: residue or metabolites in the body, are enough, and purity is ignored when the weight is calculated.[@dl30,lexai] Possession outside personal use follows quantity tiers, with life imprisonment above 100 g and death where intent to traffic or promote is proved.[@dl30]

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label First personal-use offence · treatment criminal · fine 100000term Personal use · prison min 3 months · fine min 10000 · fine 100000 · note At least three months in prisonPrison or a fine of AED 10,000–100,000; court may order treatment for up to a year instead, label Second personal-use offence within three years · treatment criminal · term Personal use · prison min 6 months · fine min 20000 · fine 100000 · note Prison or fine, label Third or later personal-use amountoffence · treatment criminal · term Personal use · prison min 6 months · fine min 50000 · fine 200000 · note Prison and fine; the English text misprints the maximum as 200 dirhams, label Non-resident at a port of entry (non-residents, 2024 rule)first offence · treatment criminal · term Personal use · fine min 5000 · fine 20000 · note FineUnder 100 g of cannabis; substances seized and destroyed, label Non-resident at a port of entry, second offence · treatment criminal · term Personal use · fine min 10000 · fine 30000 · note Plus deportation and a three-year entry ban, label Non-resident at a port of entry, third offence · treatment criminal · term Personal use · fine min 50000 · fine 100000 · note Plus deportation and a permanent entry ban, label Possession outside personal use, under 20 g · treatment criminal · term Possession · fine min 100000 · note Imprisonment and a fine of at least AED 5100,000–, label Possession outside personal use, 20 g to 100 g · treatment criminal · term Possession · prison min 10 years · fine min 100000 · note Imprisonment and a fine of at least AED 100,000, label Possession outside personal use, over 100 g · treatment criminal · term Possession · fine min 500000 · note Life imprisonment and a fine of at least AED 500,000, label Possession with intent to traffic or promote · treatment criminal · term Trafficking · death true · note Death penalty available under Decree-Law 30 of 2021Article 57; no quantity threshold

Growing cannabis outside a licence is a serious crime with long prison terms.[@dl30] Under Article 14 and Schedule 10, fewer than five plants bring imprisonment and a fine of at least AED 100,000; five to fifteen plants bring at least ten years and AED 100,000; more than fifteen plants bring life imprisonment and at least AED 500,000.[@dl30,lexai] Intent to traffic or promote carries death under Article 57, with no plant threshold.[@dl30] Licensed industrial hemp, at or below 0.3% tetrahydrocannabinol and onlyTHC, in approved zones, is a separate regime from 1 January 2026.[@hemp26n]

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Still one of the strictest regimes, though the 2021 law added fines and rehabilitation as alternatives for first offences.[@mondaq,ly] A 2024 rule lets non-residents caught at ports of entry with personal-use amounts pay a fine of AED 5,000–20,000, with higher tiers for repeat entries and deportation.[@res43] The National Anti-Narcotics Strategy 2024–2031 aims at a drug-free nation by 2031.[@gulfstats24]

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Supply is trafficking. Article 57 provides the death penalty when prohibited drugs or plants are possessed or acquired with intent to traffic or promote them, with no quantity threshold.[@dl30] Without that intent, the quantity tiers apply: under 20 g brings imprisonment and at least AED 100,000; 20 g to 100 g at least ten years and AED 100,000; more than 100 g life imprisonment and at least AED 500,000.[@dl30,lexai] Facilitating another person's use is a separate offence carrying at least five years and AED 50,000.[@dl30]

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Use is an offence proved by blood or urine test, on the same terms as possession.[@ly,mondaq] Courts can order treatment for first offenders for up to a year, and prosecutors can divert before charge.[@dl30,mondaq]

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None. High-THC medical cannabis is not legal; the only medical route is an authorised hemp-derived product under the 2026 law, and no product or pharmacy stock was verified.[@dl30,national26] CBD has no open consumer route.[@national26]

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Federal Decree-Law 30 of 2021 provides the death penalty for trafficking or promotion involving prohibited narcotic substances or drug-producing plants, which include cannabis.[@dl30] The wording is mandatory where intent is proved, but no reliable public data on cannabis-specific executions in 2024–2026 was found.[@dl30,lexai]

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medicalhemp

From 1 January 2026 licensed industrial hemp is lawful.[@hemp26] Cultivation needs a licence from the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, a local permit and security clearance, and it is confined to zones that are secured, fenced and kept apart from homes and other farms.[@hemp26n] Tetrahydrocannabinol must stay at or below 0.3%.[@hemp26] An emirate may prohibit or restrict the activity.[@hemp26n] No list of issued cultivation licences was read.[@hemp26,hemp26n]

Personal and recreational use of industrial hemp is prohibited, as are hemp foods, dietary supplements, veterinary products and smoking products. Cosmetics that contain hemp are prohibited except for oils from seeds or stalks. The 2026 law allows authorised medical products that contain hemp compounds, and licensed manufacture of industrial products kept at or below 0.3% tetrahydrocannabinol. Whether any such product is on sale was not verified. A compound that can produce a narcotic or psychoactive effect stays under the narcotics law.

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No high-THC medical cannabis is legal. The 2026 hemp law permits only authorised medical products that contain industrial-hemp compounds or hemp raw materials, under the law on medical products. It is a route for those hemp-derived products. Whether a law; no authorised product or pharmacy stocks any of themstock was not verified.[@hemp26n,national26] A compound that can produce a narcotic or psychoactive effect stays under the narcotics law.[@ly]

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Deportation of foreignersSince 1 January 2026, courts must deport any foreign national convicted under the narcotics law after sentence, except the spouse or first-degree relative of a drug convictionUAE citizen, once mandatoryor a member of a resident family where deportation would seriously harm family stability or care.[@decree14_2025, is now at the court's discretionzaa] Before that, deportation for first-time personal -use was discretionary.[@mondaq] A conviction can also bring a criminal record and, for repeat addiction offences, licence revocation.[@dl30]

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Article 14 of Federal Decree-Law 30 of 2021 bans growing, importing, owning or holding the listed plants, or any other plant that yields drugs, at any stage of growth, as well as their seeds.[@dl30] Landowners must report such plants on their land.[@dl30] Licences under that law go only to government bodies and scientific institutes.[@dl30] From 1 January 2026 a separate law lets a licensed agricultural company import and export … roved plots. Seeds and seedlings may be passed only to a person licensed for the activity.[@hemp26n] Personal growing stays prohibited.[@dl30]

No cannabis clubs are known, and the law leaves no room for them: growing cannabis and supplying it to another person are both prohibited.[@dl30,mondaq]

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There is no legal recreational supply for anyone. Under Federal Decree-Law 30 of 2021, a[@dl30] A first offence of possessing or using cannabis for personal-use offence carries at least three months in prison or a fine of AED 10,000 to –100,000, with longer mandatory terms for repeat offencesrepeats.[@lexai] Non-residents entering with under 100 g of cannabis for personal use can pay AED 5,000–20,000 on a first entry, rising to AED 10,000–30,000 plus a three-year ban on a second and AED 50,000–100,000 plus a permanent ban on a third.[@res43]

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Federal Decree-Law No. 14 of 2024 on traffic regulation, in force from 29 March 2025, makes it an offence to drive or attempt to drive a vehicle while under the influence of narcotic or psychotropic substances.[@gn_traffic24,trafficlaw24] The penalty is imprisonment, a fine of 30,000 to 200,000 dirhams, or both, heavier than for alcohol.[@gn_traffic24,trafficlaw24] The licence is suspended for six months on a first offence and a year on a second, and cancelled on a third.[@gn_traffic24] Causing a death while under the influence brings at least a year in prison and a fine of at least 100,000 dirhams.[@gn_traffic24,trafficlaw24]

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Lexai — UAE Federal Decree-Law 30/2021, consolidated amended text (synced 19 October 2026) UAE Legislation — Cabinet Resolution 43/2024 implementing Article 42 bis on port fines Gulf News — Major achievements: UAE Ministry of Interior reports seizure of over 12 tonnes of drugs (26 June 2025) The National — UAE hemp law offers new ways to treat insomnia, anxiety and epilepsy (4 January 2026) WAM — Federal decree-law issued amending the law on combating narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances (11 December 2025) Zayed Alshamsi — Judicial deportation of foreign nationals under the amended narcotics law (4 August 2026) US International Narcotics Control Strategy Report — United Arab Emirates (via the Free Library) UAE Legislation — Federal Decree-Law No. 14 of 2024 on traffic regulation 7 unchanged

AED

label Fewer than five plants · treatment criminal · term Cultivation · fine min 100000 · note Imprisonment and a fine of at least AED 100,000; personal-use intent is sentenced under Article 42, label Five to fifteen plants · treatment criminal · term Cultivation · prison min 10 years · fine min 100000 · note Imprisonment and a fine of at least AED 100,000, label More than fifteen plants · treatment criminal · term Cultivation · fine min 500000 · note Life imprisonment and a fine of at least AED 500,000, label Cultivation with intent to traffic or promote · treatment criminal · term Trafficking · death true · note Article 57; no plant threshold

AED

label Trafficking or promotion · treatment criminal · term Trafficking · death true · note Article 57; death where intent to traffic or promote is proved, label Facilitating another person's use · treatment criminal · term Facilitation · prison min 5 years · fine min 50000

standard

From 1 January 2026 a federal decree allows licensed industrial hemp at or below 0.3% tetrahydrocannabinol.[@hemp26] Cultivation needs a licence from the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, a local permit and security clearance, and must take place in secured, fenced zones apart from homes and other farms; an emirate may prohibit or restrict it.[@hemp26n] Personal and recreational use of hemp remains prohibited. Hemp food is banned except roasted or processed non-viable seeds; dietary supplements, veterinary products and smoking products are banned; cosmetics may use THC-free seed or stalk oils and some THC-free plant preparations, but not products containing THC.[@hemp26n]

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The national police reported 12,340 kg of narcotics and psychotropics seized in 2024, 9,774 drug-crime reports and 13,513 suspects; the figures cover all drugs, not cannabis alone.[@gulfstats24] The Emirates produce little cannabis but have long served as a transshipment point for hashish from Afghanistan and Pakistan, helped by free ports and a heterogeneous population.[@incsr09] No cannabis-only seizure series was found.[@gulfstats24]

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Police handled 13,513 suspects in 9,774 drug-crime reports in 2024, within the 12,340 kg of all narcotics and psychotropics seized that year.[@gulfstats24] The figures are not broken down by drug, and no public cannabis-only arrest count was found.[@gulfstats24]

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