UAE: New law issued on marriage, divorce, inheritance for non-Muslims

Abu Dhabi has issued a new law regulating and governing family matters for non-Muslims including marriage, divorce and inheritance.

His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE in his capacity as ruler of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi on Sunday issued a law to regulate personal status for non-Muslims in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.

The aim is to provide a flexible and advanced judicial mechanism for the determination of personal status disputes for non-Muslims.

The move will further enhance the Emirate's position and global competitiveness as one of the most attractive destinations for talent and skills.

The law also intends to confirm Abu Dhabi’s leadership by issuing the first civil law governing non-Muslim family matters in line with international best practices. This guarantees the right of non-Muslims to be subject to an internationally acknowledged law that is familiar to them in terms of culture, customs and language, as well as to achieve and protect the best interests of children, particularly in the case of parental separation.

Youssef Saeed Al Abri, Undersecretary of the Abu Dhabi Judicial Department (ADJD), noted that the new legislation is the first of its kind in the world as it deals with the smallest details regarding non-Muslim family life.

He added that the Judicial Department has been working according to the direction of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Presidential Affairs and Chairman of Abu Dhabi Judicial Department, in order to provide solutions to non-Muslims’ personal status issues that are brought before the courts.

The law was thoroughly studied and analysed to come up with a legislative solution that provide a modern judicial framework for foreigners residing in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi to resolve family disputes in line with international best practices.

The new law applies civil principles in the regulation of family matters, explained Al Abri.

The official also announced that the AD Judicial Department has established the first court dedicated to non-Muslim family matters.

A new court to handle non-Muslim family matters will be set up in Abu Dhabi and will operate in both English and Arabic.

This will facilitate the understanding of judicial procedures by foreigners and to improve judicial transparency.

Law consists of 20 articles

The new law consists of 20 articles divided into several chapters covering civil marriage, divorce, joint custody of children and inheritance.

The first chapter of the law regulates the marriage procedures of foreigners before the court by introducing the concept of civil marriage based on the will of both the husband and wife.

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The second chapter defines the divorce procedures for non-Muslims, the rights of the spouses after divorce and the discretion of the judge in assessing the financial rights of the wife based on several criteria, such as the number of years of marriage, the age of the wife, the economic standing of each of the spouses and other considerations that the judge takes into account in determining the wife's financial rights.

The third chapter introduces a new concept in post-divorce child custody, namely, the sharing of custody equally between the father and mother, or what is known in in some Western countries as joint or shared custody, in order to safeguard the cohesion of the family after divorce and to preserve the psychological health of the children.

The fourth chapter addresses inheritance issues, the registration of wills for non-Muslims, and the right of a foreigner to draw up a will devolving all his/her property to whomever he/she wishes.

The fifth chapter of the law regulates the proof of paternity for non-Muslim foreigners, providing that the proof of paternity of the newborn child is based on marriage or recognition of paternity.

• Abu Dhabi