Law No. (17) of 2025
Concerning
Disposition of Lost and Abandoned
Property in the
Emirate of Dubai[1]
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We,
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Ruler of Dubai,
After perusal of:
Federal Law No. (5) of 1985 Issuing the Civil Code of the
United Arab Emirates, and its amendments;
Federal Decree No. (15) of 2022 Ratifying the Common Customs
Regulation (Law) of the Gulf Cooperation Council States, its Implementing
Bylaw, and their amendments;
Federal Law by Decree No. (29) of 2021 Concerning Entry and
Residence of Foreigners, and its Implementing Bylaw and its amendments;
Dubai Police Law of 1966 and its Implementing Bylaw;
Law No. (5) of 2015 Concerning Disposition of Lost and
Abandoned Property in the Emirate of Dubai;
Law No. (1) of 2016 Concerning the Financial Regulations of
the Government of Dubai, its Implementing Bylaw, and their amendments;
Law No. (9) of 2022 Regulating the Provision of Digital
Services in the Emirate of Dubai; and
Law No. (26) of 2023 Concerning the Executive Council of the
Emirate of Dubai,
Do
hereby issue this Law.
This Law will be cited as “Law No. (17)
of 2025 Concerning Disposition of Lost and Abandoned
Property in the Emirate of Dubai”.
The following words and expressions, wherever mentioned in this Law, will
have the meaning indicated opposite each of them unless the context implies
otherwise:
|
Emirate: |
The Emirate of Dubai. |
|
Government: |
The Government of Dubai. |
|
Executive Council: |
The Executive Council of the Emirate. |
|
DP: |
The Dubai Police. |
|
Commander-in-Chief: |
The Commander-in-Chief of the DP. |
|
Lost Property: |
Money and movables which may be legally
possessed; are of inherent value, or of value for their Owner; are lost by
their Owner without deliberate intention; and are found within the Emirate.
This does not include stray animals. |
|
Owner: |
The legal owner or legal possessor
of the Lost Property at the time of losing it. |
|
Finder: |
A natural person or a public or private legal person
who finds Lost Property. This does not include any public servant assigned
the task of searching for Lost Property as part of his employment duties. |
|
Abandoned Property: |
Money and movables which may be
legally possessed, are of inherent value; and are deliberately, expressly, or
implicitly abandoned by their owner or legal possessor. This does not include
stray animals. |
For the purposes of this Law, the DP
will have the duties and powers to:
1.
receive reports concerning the loss
of property and movables within the Emirate;
2.
receive Lost Property and Abandoned
Property; and safekeep the same in a suitable place;
3.
maintain special records of the
details and description of Lost Property and Abandoned Property; the date and
time of finding or receiving them; the place where they are found or abandoned;
the details of Finders; and any other information specified by the DP;
4.
develop an electronic system for the
registration of Lost Property and Abandoned Property;
5.
announce that Lost Property is in
the DP's custody in the manner it deems appropriate;
6.
estimate the cost of safekeeping and
making announcements on Lost Property;
7.
dispose of Lost Property and
Abandoned Property in accordance with the provisions of this Law and the
resolutions issued in pursuance hereof; and
8.
exercise any other duties or powers
required for implementing the provisions of this Law, as assigned to it by the
Ruler or the Chairman of the Executive Council.
a.
A
Finder must:
1.
register the Lost Property or
Abandoned Property in the electronic system developed by the DP for this
purpose within twenty-four (24) hours of finding it and hand it over to the DP
no later than forty-eight (48) hours of finding it. He may not dispose of or
possess the Lost Property or Abandoned Property with the intent to acquire
ownership thereof,
subject to criminal liability;
2.
cooperate and coordinate with the DP
to enable it to implement the provisions of this Law; and
3.
fulfil any other obligations determined
pursuant to the relevant resolution of the Commander-in-Chief.
b.
The
Lost
Property will be received by the DP pursuant to a receiving report which
contains the description, and the condition, of the Lost Property; the details
of the Finder; the date and place of finding it; and any other information
specified by the DP.
a.
The DP will retain Lost Property for a
period of not less than three (3) months from the date of finding it. Where
this period lapses without identifying its Owner and without the Finder
claiming it in accordance with the provisions of this Law, the DP may sell the
Lost Property in accordance with the rules and procedures it adopts in this
respect. The proceeds of sale must be deposited in trust with the Public
Treasury Account of the Government of Dubai.
b. The proceeds of sale of Lost
Property will be paid to the Public Treasury Account of the Government of Dubai
if its Owner does not claim them
within three (3) years from the date of sale.
c.
Notwithstanding the period
stated in paragraph (a) of this Article, the DP may, at any time, sell Lost
Property and deposit its sale proceeds in trust with the Public Treasury
Account of the Government of Dubai if:
1.
it is perishable, or prone to damage or
impairment;
2.
the cost of safekeeping the Lost
Property exceeds its value; or
3.
it is of insignificant value.
d.
Where the period stated in paragraph (a) of this Article lapses
without identifying the Owner of Lost Property that contains private
photographs or information, the DP must handle such property in the manner it
deems appropriate, otherwise the Lost Property will be destroyed.
e.
Where Lost Property cannot be sold due to its
nature or insignificant value, the DP may dispose of it in the manner it deems
appropriate, including by way of donation of the same to charities, museums,
public libraries, and other entities.
a.
An Owner has the right to reclaim his Lost Property before it is
disposed of by the DP.
b.
An Owner may claim the sale proceeds
of his Lost Property within the period mentioned in paragraph (b) of Article
(5) of this Law where it has been sold by the DP.
c.
Where the Lost Property is disposed
of without consideration in accordance with paragraph (e) of Article (5) of
this Law, its Owner will have the right to trace it in the hands of third
parties.
d.
Where more than one person claims the ownership of Lost Property,
it will be handed over, or its sale proceeds will be paid, to the person in
whose favour the competent court delivers a final judgment to this effect. The
court must issue such judgment on a summary basis.
e.
In
the absence
of a legitimate excuse, no claim for Lost Property or its price may be heard
after the lapse of three (3)
years from the date of the announcement of its finding.
f.
The Lost Property or its price will be
delivered to the Owner after payment of the cost of safekeeping and making announcements
in respect thereof, and the DP's estimation of this cost will be deemed final.
a.
A
Finder
may be honoured by awarding him any of the following:
1. a certificate
of appreciation from the DP in recognition of his honesty; or
2. a
financial reward amounting to ten percent (10%) of the value of the Lost
Property, but not exceeding fifty thousand dirhams (AED 50,000.00). This reward
will be deducted from the proceeds of the disposition of the Lost Property
regardless of whether its Owner claims it or not.
b.
The
conditions,
rules, and procedures for honouring Finders as stipulated in paragraph (a) of
this Article, will be prescribed by the relevant resolution issued by the
Commander-in-Chief.
a.
Notwithstanding
the provisions of this Law, a Finder may claim to retain the Lost Property one
(1) year after the date of finding it if the Owner is not
identified, in accordance with the relevant rules and guarantees prescribed by
the relevant resolution issued by the Commander-in-Chief.
b.
A
Finder must maintain the Lost Property delivered
to him by the DP and return it to its Owner upon request.
a.
The
DP will dispose of the property and items listed below without the need to make
announcements on them or wait for the period referred to in
paragraph (a) of Article (5) of this Law to lapse:
1.
property and items which are
prohibited from being carried or shipped on board aircraft, trains, ships, and
other means of public transport; and which are abandoned by their owners at
airports, stations, ports, and border crossing points for a period of sixty
(60) days, but excluding property and items abandoned at customs checkpoints
that are subject to customs procedures under the applicable legislation;
2.
property and items which are
abandoned by detainees and inmates of punitive and correctional institutions
and which remain unclaimed by these persons for sixty (60) days after the date
of their release;
3.
property and items which are
abandoned by their owners in public places or in the premises of government and
non-government entities, and which remain unclaimed for sixty (60) days after
the date of their abandonment;
4.
impounded or seized property and
items in respect of which a release or cancellation of seizure decision is
issued by the competent entity, and which remain unclaimed by their owners for
sixty (60) days from the date on which their owner is notified of the release
or cancellation of seizure;
5.
property and items which are
abandoned by their owners in respect of whom an administrative deportation
decision is
issued in accordance with the legislation in force, and which remain unclaimed
for sixty (60) days from the date of deportation; and
6.
property
and items which are not related to a crime and which are abandoned by their
owners during DP operations and raids, and which remain unclaimed for sixty
(60) days after the date of their abandonment.
b.
The
DP will issue a report containing the description of
the Abandoned Property stated in paragraph (a) of this Article, the entity from
which it is received, and any other information the DP deems important to
record.
c.
The
proceeds of sale of Abandoned Property will be paid to the Public Treasury
Account of the Government of Dubai.
All Government Entities and
private legal persons must fully cooperate and coordinate with the DP, and
provide it with the support required to enable it to perform its functions
under this Law, the resolutions issued in pursuance hereof, and other legislation in force in the
Emirate. This includes registering any Lost Property and Abandoned Property
that comes into their possession in the electronic system developed by the DP
for this purpose, and delivering the same to the DP within the time frames specified
under this Law.
a.
The DP must serve a written warning to any Person who violates the
provisions of this Law or the resolutions issued in pursuance
hereof. Such warning must require the violator to redress and remedy that
violation within the time frame prescribed by the DP.
b.
Without prejudice to any applicable civil or criminal liability,
or to any stricter penalty stipulated in any other legislation, any person who
violates the provisions of this Law or the resolutions issued in pursuance hereof will be
punished by a fine of not less than five hundred dirhams (AED 500.00) and not
more than one hundred thousand dirhams (AED 100,000.00). The Chairman of the
Executive Council will issue a resolution determining the acts that constitute
violations of this Law and the resolutions issued in pursuance thereof,
including failure to redress and remedy the violation within the time frame prescribed
by the DP; and the fine prescribed for each violation.
c.
Upon repetition of the same violation within one (1) year from the
date of the previous violation, the amount of the fine imposed on the violator
will be doubled, but must not exceed two hundred thousand dirhams (AED
200,000.00).
With the exception of the resolutions
which the Chairman of the Executive Council is exclusively authorised to issue
under this Law, the Commander-in-Chief will issue the resolutions required for
the implementation of this Law. These resolutions will be published in the Official
Gazette of the Government of Dubai.
a.
This
Law
supersedes the above-mentioned Law No. (5) of 2015.
b.
Any
provision
in any other legislation is hereby repealed to the extent that it contradicts
the provisions of this Law.
c.
The
resolutions
and bylaws issued in implementation of the above-mentioned Law No. (5) of 2015
will continue in force, to the extent that they do not contradict this Law,
until new superseding resolutions and bylaws are issued.
This Law will be published in the Official Gazette and will
come into force on the day on which it is published.
Mohammed bin
Rashid Al Maktoum
Ruler of Dubai
Issued in
Dubai on 17 November 2025
Corresponding
to 26 Jumada al-Ula 1447 A.H.
©2025 The Supreme Legislation Committee in the
Emirate of Dubai
[1]Every effort has been made to produce an
accurate and complete English version of this legislation. However, for the
purpose of its interpretation and application, reference must be made to the
original Arabic text. In case of conflict, the Arabic text will prevail.