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Travellers to Dubai and UAE will now be required to fill in an electronic form to carry medication into the country
23 October 2018
| Last updated on 14 January 2020
A new electronic service will help tourists and UAE residents travelling into the country to declare their personal medicines.
Confirmed by a top official from the Ministry of Health and Prevention at this year's Gitex Technology Week 2018, this new service means travellers will now need prior approval to bring personal medicines into the country.
SEE ALSO: A visitors guide to bringing medicine into the UAE
In order to gain approval, travellers will be required to fill in an electronic form to declare any kind of medication they require for personal use.
The service, which comes as part of the ministry's strategy to enhance community health, will provide more supervision in the approval of medicines being brought into the country, through direct and indirect means.
Declare personal medicines being brought into UAE
Firstly, you should make sure that what you're bringing into the country is not on the list of banned and controlled medicines in Dubai and UAE.
Once you're sure that your personal medications are not on the UAE's banned list, you can then activate the service by creating a profile on the ministry's website (here).
On here, you will then upload the required documents, which includes submitting a doctor's prescription, your passport details or Emirates ID, and share details of the duration of your stay and other verification details. These will be reviewed and approved within one working day by the ministry.
Upon arrival, your medicines will then be checked at the country's entry ports by a ministry inspector with the cooperation of customs.
Dr Ameen Hussain Al Amiri, assistant undersecretary for Licencing and Public Health Policy at the ministry told Gulf News: “In order to carry personal medication, both control and regular medication, it is now mandatory for all passengers entering UAE to get this prior approval from the ministry to carry their prescription-based medication. We are doing this to control drug threats that hinder the economy and public health.”
The UAE laws on importing medicines
As well as this new service, the ministry has created a special law for importing medicines by passengers entering the country.
Supervised medicines with a prescription are allowed for one-month entry. Other medicines with a prescription are allowed for three-months entry.
Any medicines that do not meet these requirements will be seized at the airport.
Travellers should be mindful of checking in advance before travelling to the UAE, as medicines legal in their country of origin may not be permitted for entry here.
You may need to attest your prescription, too...
Additionally, any passengers that have medicines with narcotics or psychotropic substances should check with their country's health authorities and ensure that the prescription is attested by official authorities.
Full guidelines for carrying personal medicines as a travel into the UAE can be found here.
