Federal Decree by Law Concerning Trust

Article 1 — Definitions ¶

In application of the provisions of this Law by Decree, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings assigned to each of them: State; Minister; Competent Authority; Person; Trust; Settlor; Trustee; Professional Trustee; Professional legal person; Trust Instrument; Terms of the Trust Instrument; Trust Property; Dividends of the Trust; Beneficiary; Record; Purpose of the Trust; Trust Protector; Interested Party; Competent Court; Trust's Validity Certificate; Registration Certificate; Financial Free Zones; Initial Registration.

Article 2 — Scope of Application of the Law by Decree ¶

1. The provisions of this Law by Decree shall apply to every trust created in accordance with its provisions... [full text truncated in source capture]

Article 3 — Legal Personality of Trust and Ownership of Trust Property ¶

1. The Trust shall acquire the legal personality as of the initial registration date and shall have full legal capacity... [truncated]

Chapter Two: Creation of the Trust

Article 4 — Trust Property Requirements ¶

1. The property transferred to the Trust must meet the following conditions: a. The property must... [truncated]

Article 5 — Trust Instrument ¶

1. The Trust Instrument shall fulfil the following conditions: a. It must be approved by the Competent Authority... [truncated]

Article 6 — Purpose of the Trust ¶

The purpose of the Trust stated in the Trust Instrument must be clearly defined, legitimate and achievable... [truncated]

Article 7 — Increasing Trust Property ¶

1. The Settlor may add additional property to the Trust, unless the Trust Instrument stipulates otherwise... [truncated]

Article 8 — Trust Period ¶

1. Subject to Clause (2/D) of Article (5) of this Law by Decree, the end of the Trust period may be linked... [truncated]

Chapter Three: Settlor

Article 9 — Conditions of Settlor ¶

1. If the Settlor is a natural person, he must meet the performance eligibility conditions in accordance with... [truncated]

Article 10 — Multiple Settlors ¶

1. If there are multiple Settlors: a. They shall take all decisions unanimously, without consideration... [truncated]

Article 11 — Obligations of the Settlor ¶

The Settlor shall be committed to: 1. Transferring the property to the Trust and transfer the authority... [truncated]

Article 12 — Powers of the Settlor ¶

1. The Settlor may keep for himself the following powers related to the Trust if the Trust Instrument... [truncated]

Chapter Four: Trustee

Article 13 — Condition for Appointing the Trustee ¶

1. The Trustee who is a natural person must meet the following conditions: a. To have the eligibility... [truncated]

Article 14 — Multiple Trustees ¶

1. The Trust may have one Trustee or more as stipulated by the Trust Instrument. 2. If the Trust Instrument... [truncated]

Article 15 — Accepting or Rejecting the Appointment of Trustee ¶

1. The person who has been named Trustee may accept or reject his appointment in this capacity... [truncated]

Article 16 — Trustee's Resignation, Relief from Duty, or Suspension ¶

1. The Trustee may resign or request to be relieved from his position as Trustee after accepting... [truncated]

Article 17 — Dismissal of Trustee ¶

Any of the Trustees shall be dismissed or a request to replace any of the members of the board of directors... [truncated]

Article 18 — Expiry of Trustee's Powers ¶

1. The powers of the Trustee shall expire in any of the following cases: a. Upon his death or loss... [truncated]

Article 19 — Effect of Expiry of Trustee's Powers ¶

1. If the powers of the Trustee expire for any reason and no other Trustee is appointed, the Trust shall... [truncated]

Article 20 — Trustee Fees and Trust Management Expenses ¶

1. The Trustee is entitled to fees for carrying out the tasks specified in the Trust Instrument... [truncated]

Article 21 — Authorities and Powers of Trustee ¶

1. The Trustee shall have all authorities and powers over the Trust Property, and he may manage, use... [truncated]

Article 22 — Delegation of Trustee's Authorities and Powers ¶

1. The Trustee may not authorise another person to carry out any of his duties, whether that person is... [truncated]

Article 23 — Obligations of the Trustee ¶

The Trustee shall: 1. Cooperate with the Settlor with regard to transferring authorities and powers of... [truncated]

Article 24 — Restrictions on Trustee ¶

Without prejudice to the provisions of the Trust Instrument, the Trustee may not: 1. Use the Trust Property... [truncated]

Article 25 — Reporting ¶

The Trust Instrument must stipulate the Trustee's obligation to prepare a report specifying the data... [truncated]

Article 26 — Record Keeping and Disclosure ¶

1. The Trustee must keep and maintain paper and electronic accounting books and records audited by an... [truncated]

Article 27 — Independence of Trustee ¶

The Trustee shall exercise his authorities and powers specified in the Trust Instrument and the provisions... [truncated]

Article 28 — Responsibility of Trustee ¶

1. The Trustee shall bear responsibility for any loss or destruction of the value of the Trust Property... [truncated]

Article 29 — Cases of Non-Responsibility of Trustee ¶

1. Any provision of the Trust that exempts the Trustee in whole or in part from personal responsibility... [truncated]

Chapter Five: Beneficiary

Article 30 — Determining the Beneficiary ¶

1. The Beneficiary of the Trust must be identified either through his name or capacity, or by reference... [truncated]

Article 31 — The Beneficiary's Right to Trust Dividends ¶

1. The Beneficiary shall have the right to receive the Trust Dividends, and he has the right to demand... [truncated]

Article 32 — The Beneficiary Assignment of His Right to the Dividends of the Trust ¶

1. The Beneficiary who has reached the age of puberty or the legal representative of the incapacitated... [truncated]

Article 33 — The Beneficiary's Creditors Rights to Trust Property ¶

Subject to the applicable legislation and the provisions of the Trust Instrument, the rights of third... [truncated]

Chapter Six: Trust Protector

Article 34 — Appointment of Trust Protector ¶

1. The Settlor may appoint a Trust Protector or stipulate in the Trust Instrument the method of appointing... [truncated]

Article 35 — Trust Protector Restrictions ¶

Subject to the provisions of this Law by Decree and the Trust Instrument, the Trust Protector is prohibited... [truncated]

Article 36 — Expiry of Trust Protector's Powers ¶

1. The Trust Protector may resign from his position, pursuant to a written notice submitted to the Settlor... [truncated]

Chapter Seven: Competent Court

Article 37 — Authorities of Competent court ¶

1. The Competent Court shall have jurisdiction over matters related to the Trust, as stipulated in this... [truncated]

Chapter Eight: Withdrawal from Amendment Nullification and Termination of the Trust

Article 38 — Withdrawal from the Trust and Amendment of the Trust Instrument ¶

1. Subject to the provisions of Clause (2) of this Article, the Settlor or his authorised representative... [truncated]

Article 39 — Nullification of Trust ¶

1. The Competent Court may, at the request of any interested party or the Law by Decree enforcement authority... [truncated]

Article 40 — End of Trust ¶

1. The Trust shall end in any of the following cases: a. Withdrawal from the Trust or part thereof... [truncated]

Article 41 — Consequences of End of the Trust ¶

1. When it ends, the Property of the Trust shall be disposed of according to the method of disposal specified... [truncated]

Chapter Nine: Approval and Registration of Trust

Article 42 — Approval of Trust ¶

1. The Trust Instrument shall be approved and registered by the Competent Authority in the relevant Emirate... [truncated]

Article 43 — Record ¶

1. Subject to the provisions of Clause (2) of this Article, a record shall be established by a decision... [truncated]

Article 44 — Registration of Trust Instrument ¶

1. After issuing the Trust Validity Certificate in accordance with Clause (2) of Article (42) of this Law... [truncated]

Article 45 — Registration of Trust Property ¶

1. Any transactions occurring on Trust Property in the name of the Trust shall be entered in the official... [truncated]

Article 46 — Accessing the Record and Obtaining a Certified Certificate thereof ¶

1. Subject to the relevant provisions of the Trust Instrument, the Settlor, the Trustee, and the Trust... [truncated]

Article 47 — Confidentiality ¶

1. The Trustee is prohibited from disclosing to any person any data, information or documents related... [truncated]

Article 48 — Respect of the Trust ¶

1. The Trust is deemed to have been created pursuant to the Trust Instrument immediately upon completion... [truncated]

Chapter Ten: Penalties

Article 49 — Applying the severer penalty ¶

The penalties stipulated in this Law by Decree shall not prejudice any severer penalty stipulated by... [truncated]

Article 50 Penalty for Harming the Trust or Settlor and Violating Certain Provisions of this Law by Decree
Without prejudice to civil liability, a penalty of imprisonment and/or a fine not exceeding one million... [truncated]

Article 51 — Penalty for Impersonating the Trustee ¶

Without prejudice to civil liability, a penalty of imprisonment and/or a fine not exceeding five thousand... [truncated]

Chapter Eleven: Supplementary and Final Provisions

Article 52 — Non-Hearing of the Lawsuit ¶

1. The lawsuit filed by any interested party against the Trustee regarding the Trustee's breach of his... [truncated]

Article 53 — Resolutions Necessary to Implement the Provisions of this Resolution. ¶

The Cabinet shall, upon the presentation of the Minister, issue the Resolutions necessary to implement... [truncated]

Article 54 — Repeals ¶

1. Federal Decree by Law No. (19) of 2020 Concerning Trust shall be repealed, and the resolutions issued... [truncated]

Article 55 — Publication and Entry Into Force of Law by Decree ¶

This Law by Decree shall be published in the Official Gazette and shall enter into force as of the date... [truncated]

Translated in cooperation with