Running a car in Dubai

Rules and fees are as of 6 November 2026. Traffic law is federal and the unified policy is the same in every emirate, so this page covers only what changes with Dubai plates or Dubai roads. The linked guides hold the full rules.

Who do you call after an accident in Dubai?

Call 999 if anyone is hurt. For a minor accident with no injuries, use the Dubai Police app or website, or a petrol station running Dubai Police’s On the Go service. You have 3 hours to report under the federal Decree-Law.³

Dubai Police posted on 23 March 2026 that minor accidents do not require waiting for a patrol.⁴ Dubai.ae, last modified 15 April 2026, still says to wait for the police.⁵ On the Go staff at ENOC, ADNOC and Emarat stations submit the report when both cars can be driven, there is no dispute, no injury and only light damage.⁶ Emirates 24|7 counted 167 stations on 20 October 2026.⁷

The report fee is the one figure Dubai Police does not publish. Gulf News gives Dh520, paid by the liable party,¹⁵ Emirates 24|7 gave Dh520 in August 2026 and Dh420 in June 2026,¹⁶ and MOI shows the federal AED 500.¹¹ Ask Dubai Police on 901 before you pay. After rain, request the certificate as Natural Disasters, type Rain; Dubai Police issued 720 in one week in March 2026.¹⁷ The accident report guide has the MOI flow and every emirate’s channel.

Where do you register, test and renew your car?

At RTA, online for most renewals and at a registration and inspection centre for a new car or a used one that needs a test. Pay every traffic fine first; RTA lists that as the first step for both registration and renewal.¹⁸¹⁹

Six RTA rules bite only in Dubai.

• Your visa. With a residence visa from another emirate, RTA registers a car in Dubai only if you hold a Dubai trade licence, an Ejari tenancy or final sale contract, a job at a company with a Dubai branch, or a special plate bought before 27 January 2007 or at auction. Golden Visa holders who do not work in Dubai get no exemption.¹⁸ A car registered in another emirate on that emirate’s visa cannot be renewed in Dubai.¹⁹
• How many cars. RTA’s FAQ: residents a maximum of 3, Emiratis unlimited.¹⁸ From 1 January 2027, Article 89(2) of Cabinet Resolution 174 allows two, charges a fee for each extra vehicle and caps licences at five.²¹
• Insurance length. At least 6 months including the 30-day grace period, and the insurer updates the traffic system before you can pay.¹⁹ From 2027, the licence period plus 30 days.²¹
• Inspection. A new dealer car with no mileage is exempt for 3 years from manufacture or registration, whichever comes first. Used, imported and privately sold cars are tested at an RTA-listed centre such as Tasjeel, Shamil, Wasel or Al Mutakamela.¹⁸
• Paperwork from elsewhere. A Possession Certificate from another emirate is not accepted, and a company import must be transferred from the company’s emirate.¹⁸
• Late renewal. 12 months, then a 30-day grace period. Two months after expiry the Traffic File is blocked.¹⁹ Driving on expired registration is AED 500 and 4 points, schedule item 25.²²

Right-hand drive cars need a classical plate.¹⁸ Exchanging a foreign licence at RTA totals AED 1,050.²³ The steps are in the registration renewal guide.

What do you pay at Salik gates?

AED 6 plus VAT at peak, AED 4 plus VAT at low-peak and nothing from 1am to 6am, at each of the ten gates.²⁴²⁵ VAT has applied since 1 June 2026, so a peak crossing is AED 6.30.²⁶ Peak is 6am to 10am and 4pm to 8pm, Monday to Saturday; Sunday peak hours are charged at AED 4 plus VAT.²⁴

A tag costs AED 102.5 including AED 50 of balance. Violations: AED 50 a day for trips on insufficient balance not topped up within 5 working days, and AED 100, 200 then 400 per trip with no registered tag after 10 working days.²⁷ A car registered in another emirate can be added to a Dubai Salik account.²⁷ Gates, VAT cases and the Darb comparison are in the Salik guide.

What is the limit and radar setting on your road?

Read the sign. Dubai Police lists 62 roads at 60 to 120 km/h, on a page updated 4 January 2026, with the radar set 21 km/h above the sign, or 31 km/h above on 60 km/h sections.²⁸ Each emirate sets its own limits.²⁹ The sign remains the legal limit; the margin is not permission to exceed it.³⁰

Five streets changed on 1 November 2026: Al Asayel up to 80, Al Mustaqbal and Latifa bint Hamdan up to 70, Al Rebat down to 90 and Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah Street down to 70. RTA did not give new radar speeds.³¹ From 1 January 2027, Article 14(2) of Resolution 174 calculates speeding fines from the sign.²¹ Dubai Police moved from warning messages to radar fines for tailgating in March 2025.³² The full list and the fine bands are in the speed limits guide.

Will your fine be discounted, and what does Dubai add?

No discount. Dubai Police publishes none, and its Assistant Commander-in-Chief for Operations told Emarat Al Youm in March 2026 that discounts were stopped because accidents rose after each one.³³³⁴ Abu Dhabi and Sharjah give 35% within 60 days;³⁵³⁶ see the fine discounts guide. Treat any Dubai discount offer online as fake unless it is on a police, RTA or MOI channel.³⁷³⁸

Dubai adds AED 10 knowledge and AED 10 innovation to each violation,³³ and offers instalments: card plans over 3 to 12 months for totals above AED 3,000, per Emirates 24|7 in August 2026,³⁹ and Tabby.⁴⁰

Dubai also has its own impound rules on top of the federal schedule.

Smart impound keeps the car at home with a tracker. Gulf News reported AED 400 plus AED 20; Dubai Police’s page gives no fee.⁴³³³ In the first nine months of 2026 Dubai Police impounded 333 vehicles for noise and 1,297 for engine or chassis modifications.⁴⁴ Points and the federal schedule are in the traffic fines guide.

Where can you park, and what does it cost?

Parkin runs public parking. Rates run from AED 2.1 to AED 6.3 an hour by zone, free on Sundays and public holidays.⁴⁵ Since 4 April 2025, premium zones in areas such as Deira, Bur Dubai, Downtown Dubai, Business Bay and Jumeirah, and within 500 m of a metro station, charge AED 6 plus VAT for the first hour at peak, 8am to 10am and 4pm to 8pm. Parking is free from 10pm to 8am.⁴⁶

A car left in a public place is a separate matter. Dubai Municipality gives 3 to 15 days’ warning, by SMS or WhatsApp for Dubai plates and a sticker for others, then an AED 500 fine at release and towing to the Al Awir yard.⁴⁸⁴⁹ It removed 306 cars in the first quarter of 2026.⁴⁹ Under Law 23 of 2015 an uncollected car can be disposed of three months after impound, after 30 days’ notice.⁵⁰ Before a long trip, clean the car, cover it and park in a designated area.⁴⁸

How many accidents happen on Dubai roads?

The Ministry of Interior’s 2025 cause workbook holds 6,014 accidents in seven blocks with no emirate column. Read in the Ministry’s emirate order, the Dubai block holds 3,306, or 55.0%, up from 2,176 in 2023.⁵¹⁵² On Digital Dubai’s end-2025 population of 4.58 million that is 72.2 accidents per 100,000 residents, a calculation by this site.⁵³ How the blocks were identified is set out in the UAE traffic statistics study.

Deaths are counted separately by RTA and Dubai Police.

• 1.8 deaths per 100,000 people in 2024, down from 21.7 in 2007. Pedestrian deaths fell from 9.5 to 0.3 per 100,000, and deaths per 10,000 registered vehicles from 4.2 to 0.45.⁵⁴
• 36.8% lower death rate in October to December 2025 than in the same quarter of 2024, with pedestrian deaths down 50% and collision deaths down 44%.⁵⁵
• 19% fewer road deaths in 2025 than in 2024, as Dubai Police told Emarat Al Youm in June 2026.⁵⁶

Does your insurance change because the car is registered in Dubai?

No. The policy is the unified form issued under Central Bank regulation, whichever emirate issues the plates.¹ The Decree-Law requires insurance from a UAE-licensed insurer to license or renew any vehicle.³ What Dubai changes is the paperwork around the policy.

• RTA checks the insurer’s record. The insurer updates the traffic system and RTA verifies it before taking payment.¹⁹
• A new car’s registration can follow the policy. RTA registers a new dealer car for 1, 2 or 3 years based on the validity of its insurance.¹⁸
• Rain claims use the Dubai Police certificate at AED 95, 2 working days.⁹ Whether rain counts as a natural disaster under the policy is on the flood insurance guide.
• Taking the car abroad. A resident with Dubai plates needs an RTA tourism certificate, AED 120, valid 6 months, after an NOC from the Automobile and Touring Club of the UAE.⁵⁷ The unified policy does not apply outside the UAE.¹
• Which insurers are in Dubai. The Central Bank’s September 2026 register lists name, licence type, category and number, with no head office or emirate column.⁵⁸ Company pages are on the insurers index.

Ask your insurer for the start and end dates before you renew. RTA refuses a policy that starts after the ownership and the old policy have expired.¹⁹