A change in the UAE's law to allow couples to marry and divorce in non-Sharia civil ceremonies is expected to lead to a rush of marriages in the coming months.
Dubai Courts said on Wednesday it was ready to welcome couples looking to tie the knot, on the same day a federal law came into effect. Ras Al Khaimah's court service confirmed the same.
The decision was made in December and took effect on February 1. Men and women will marry in short civil ceremonies run by the UAE's court services.
The new law is effectively a nationwide extension of Abu Dhabi's civil marriage system, under which 5,000 expatriate couples tied the knot in the capital’s Civil Family Court court last year.
“Anything that eases the process for non-Muslim expats to get married here is to be welcomed,” said Liz Nunez, co-founder of Easy Wedding.
“This is positive news as it will allow a lot more people who live here to get married in the courts here.”
In 2019, Ms Nunez, from Paraguay, wanted to get married in a civil ceremony in Dubai but was unable to do so because she was a non-Muslim.
This led to her and her now-husband, Florian Ughetto from France, tying the knot in a ceremony in Georgia.
The couple run the wedding planning company together.
“We built the company that we wished was there to help us at time,” said Mr Ughetto.
“The challenge for us [when planning a wedding] is usually more a case of sorting the couple’s legal situation than arranging the flowers.”
The new family law that came into effect in the UAE on Wednesday allows non-Muslims to marry and divorce through a simple civil procedure and in a non-Sharia process.
The newly introduced laws also cover a raft of family matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance and child custody.
It is expected that there will be a huge rush to book dates at civil courts as expatriate couples take advantage of the new law and get married in the UAE instead of flying out to their home countries for a civil marriage.
The Abu Dhabi court's standard service, which costs Dh300, is fully booked until the end of April for civil marriages.
Another wedding planner said the move would greatly reduce the number of Dubai residents travelling elsewhere to get married.
“Previously most non-Muslims would have chosen locations in the likes of Europe to get married because they couldn’t have a civil ceremony here,” said Owais Khan, an Indian events planner who has consulted on several weddings in the UAE.
“Now they can just get married here because things have been made a lot easier for them.
“These new laws ensure there is equality for all men and women living in the UAE.
“Residents will now say to themselves ‘why don’t we just get married here instead of going somewhere else’.”
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Starring: Tom Cruise, Val Kilmer, Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, Miles Teller, Glen Powell, Ed Harris
ENGLAND TEAM
Alastair Cook, Mark Stoneman, James Vince, Joe Root (captain), Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Craig Overton, Stuart Broad, James Anderson
England 12-man squad for second Test
v West Indies which starts Thursday: Rory Burns, Joe Denly, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root (captain), Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali, Ben Foakes, Sam Curran, Stuart Broad, Jimmy Anderson, Jack Leach
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
HOSTS
T20 WORLD CUP
2024: US and West Indies; 2026: India and Sri Lanka; 2028: Australia and New Zealand; 2030: England, Ireland and Scotland
ODI WORLD CUP
2027: South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia; 2031: India and
Bangladesh
CHAMPIONS TROPHY
2025: Pakistan; 2029: India
ASHES FIXTURES
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List of officials:
Referees: Chris Broad, David Boon, Jeff Crowe, Andy Pycroft, Ranjan Madugalle and Richie Richardson.
Umpires: Aleem Dar, Kumara Dharmasena, Marais Erasmus, Chris Gaffaney, Ian Gould, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Nigel Llong, Bruce Oxenford, Ruchira Palliyaguruge, Sundaram Ravi, Paul Reiffel, Rod Tucker, Michael Gough, Joel Wilson and Paul Wilson.
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Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
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What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
