Money & duty free for United Arab Emirates
Exchange rates:
UAE DirhamC$1 = AED2.74
€1 = AED3.82
£1 = AED4.55
US$1 = AED3.67
Currency & Money
UAE Dirham (AED, also written as Dhs) = 100 fils. Notes are in denominations of AED1,000, 500, 200, 100, 50, 20, 10 and 5. Coins are in denominations of AED1, and 50, 25, 10 and 5 fils (10 and 5 fils coins are rarely used).
The Dirham is tied to the US Dollar.
American Express, Diners Club, MasterCard and Visa are widely accepted. ATMs are found across the UAE, mostly in the major cities of Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
ATMs accept foreign debit and credit cards including Switch, Maestro, Visa, Union Pay and Cirrus, and can be found throughout the UAE, in shopping malls, hotels and petrol stations. However, cash back is not commonly available in the UAE. Plan ahead if you are taking taxis, they will only accept cash and often only small notes and change.
These are widely accepted, though not often used. To avoid additional exchange rate charges, travellers are advised to take traveller's cheques in US Dollars or Pounds Sterling.
These vary depending on the branch and bank, however a rule of thumb is Sat-Wed between 0800-1300 and Thursdays 0800-noon. Some open later in the evening from 1600-1830. All are closed on Fridays and public holidays.
Travellers can carry a maximum of AED100,000 (or the equivalent in foreign currency) into or out of the country undeclared. Anything over this amount must be declared at customs.
United Arab Emirates duty free
Travellers entering the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are permitted certain duty-free allowances for personal items. These include:
• Personal belongings and gifts: Items with a total value not exceeding AED 3,000, provided they are for personal use, in non-commercial quantities, and the traveller is not a frequent visitor carrying goods regularly.
• Tobacco products: Up to 200 cigarettes, 50 cigars, or 500g of tobacco (including minced or pressed tobacco for pipes, tumbâk, or hookah molasses).
• Alcoholic beverages: A maximum of 4L of alcohol or 2 cartons of beer (each carton containing 24 cans, with each cannot exceeding 355 ml).
Duty-free allowances are subject to change, sometimes at short notice due to policy updates or external factors. Information is correct at the time of writing; travellers should verify current allowances with official customs authorities before departure. We accept no liability for any inconvenience or loss arising from changes to these regulations.
Prohibited Items include controlled substances (all kinds of narcotic drugs), items contrary to Islamic values, gambling devices, counterfeit currency, pirated content, goods of Israeli origin, radiation and nuclear fallout contaminated substances, used tyres, live swine, nylon fishing nets, paan and betel leaves.
Travellers must carry the prescription for the quantity of the medicine that they are bringing into the UAE.
This list is not exhaustive. Travellers should consult the official customs website or contact the embassy or consulate near you for the most up-to-date information.
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