On 20 April 2026, the United Arab Emirates ("UAE") Council of Ministers issued Resolution No. 59 of 2026,1 which provides the long-awaited executive regulations ("Executive Regulations") to Federal Decree-Law No. 36 of 2023 ("Competition Law"). The Competition Department of the UAE Ministry of Economy and Tourism ("Ministry") oversees compliance with this regime.
The UAE overhauled its antitrust regime when it enacted the Competition Law in 2023, and the regulations were expected to be issued within six months of the enactment to complete the overhaul.2 In the interim, the regulations, decisions, and decrees issued under the prior competition regime (Federal Decree-Law No. 4 of 2012) were to remain in force until replaced. The Executive Regulations have now been issued and will enter into force on 30 July 2026, which is when the previous executive regulations will be repealed.3
The Executive Regulations provide additional clarity and some changes to several concepts in the Competition Law, such as the merger control filing requirements and review process, the determination of a dominant position in the market, and the procedures for complaints and settlements in the context of violations, among other topics. We highlight below some of the key features of these regulations and their practical implications for businesses.
Merger control: key changes and practical implications
The UAE merger control regime underwent significant changes in the 2023 overhaul of the Competition Law, including the introduction of a turnover-based threshold in addition to the market-share threshold (see: UAE issues new Competition Law with new merger control regime | White & Case LLP, and UAE announces new thresholds for merger filings | White & Case LLP). However, in the absence of new regulations, the Ministry continued to apply the requirements and procedures of the old regulations and the old filing form that were in place under the 2012 law. The new Executive Regulations introduce a number of key changes that streamline the merger control process under the 2023 Competition Law. The Ministry also released a new online filing form to facilitate the process.
Fewer formalities
Article 10 of the Executive Regulations provides the required information and documents to be submitted with the filing requesting merger clearance (known in the UAE as an "Economic Concentration Application"). Notably, the filing now requires fewer formalities, which is a welcome development that should reduce the administrative burden on filing parties and facilitate a more efficient filing process.
For example, the Executive Regulations now require only the power-of-attorney to be certified and attested, which is consistent with other jurisdictions in the region.4 Under the prior regime, merger control filings required certification also for the constitutional and corporate documents of each party.
Additionally, the Executive Regulations permit filing documents to be submitted in their original language, accompanied by a translation in either English or Arabic.5 This removes the prior requirement to submit a certified Arabic translation for all foreign language documents.
Clearer merger review timeline
The Executive Regulations provide further clarity on the timeline for the Ministry's review of merger control filings.6 This helps transaction parties plan for their deal timetables with greater certainty, although parties should note that requests for additional information and documents may still extend the overall review period.
Specifically, once a filing is submitted, the Ministry will have 10 working days (which may be extended by an additional 10 working days) ("Formal Examination") to conduct a preliminary review of the filing to determine whether the filing is complete and issue a notice concluding the formal examination. If the filing is incomplete, the Ministry can request additional information or documents to be submitted within 10 working days, which stops the clock on the statutory period for merger review.7
Following completion of the Formal Examination, the Ministry will begin the substantive review of the merger control filing ("Objective Study"), which can take up to 90 days.8 This period may be further extended by 45 days at the Ministry's discretion.
At the end of the Objective Study, the Ministry will issue a decision to either: (1) approve; (2) approve with conditions; or (3) reject the economic concentration. The Ministry can also issue a decision that no filing is required if the conditions for filing are not met.9 If the Ministry fails to issue a decision during that period, the transaction at issue will be deemed rejected.10
Third-party objections
The Executive Regulations also detail the process for "stakeholders to express their opinion about the economic concentration."11 After the Ministry publishes an announcement regarding the transaction on its website, if any interested third-party has concerns about the proposed transaction, they can submit an objection request within 15 working days from the date of the Ministry's announcement.12 The objection application, along with supporting documents and evidence must be signed by the entity raising the objection by virtue of a duly authenticated power of attorney.13
The Ministry will undertake a formal examination of the objection within 5 working days to verify that the conditions for objection have been met.14 The Ministry will then conduct a substantive review of the objection and prepare a report. It must notify the objecting party within 20 working days of its decision.15 This may be extended by another 7 working days in the event that the Ministry considers that acceptable reasons have been provided for the objections – the transaction parties will then be invited to submit their responses and defenses within 10 working days from when they are notified.16
The Ministry will then continue to review the economic concentration request in the event: (i) the objection is rejected; (ii) the response to the objection has been accepted; or (iii) the duration for the parties to provide responses to the objection has expired without a response.17 The Competition Department team will then prepare a report to be submitted to the Minister for consideration.18
Meetings and site visits
Another notable addition in the Executive Regulations is a new provision specifying the Ministry's power to conduct site visits to the business premises of the parties as part of the Ministry's assessment of the transaction. However, this power may only be exercised when the Ministry's assessment "necessitates on-site inspections."19 During these visits the Competition Department team may review business records, documents, and files, including electronic documents and files; and take certain samples when necessary.20 The Ministry may also invite transaction parties and other interested third-parties for meetings to present their views on the transaction and address the Ministry's questions or any concerns about the transaction.21
Reinstating the filing fee
The Executive Regulations now require submission of proof of payment of the filing fee with the filing.22 The amount of the fee will be announced in a Ministerial resolution, which has not been issued yet. To date, the filing fee requirement had been suspended pending issuance of the new Executive Regulations.
Determination of dominant position
The Competition Law prohibits a business that holds a "dominant position" in the market – defined as "a position that any undertaking holds, making it capable, either individually or in collaboration with other undertakings, of controlling or influencing the Relevant Market"23 – from abusing such position to "distort, lessen, restrict or prevent competition."24 Article 6 of the Competition Law includes examples of such abusive practices. The Executive Regulations provide additional clarity by explaining how to determine when a company is in a dominant position.
For instance, a dominant position is established through an undertaking's ability to influence that is likely to cause harm in the relevant market as follows: "(A) strong indicators of the undertaking's technological leadership, the advantages of its business model, the extent of its financial resources, or its geographic concentration, enabling it to impose conditions on, or exercise control, over the relevant market in a manner that distorts competition. […], (E) the extent to which the undertaking's practices, agreements or participation in economic concentrations affects consumer choice, the quality and availability of products or services […] at fair prices […],"25 among other examples.
The Executive Regulations also explain the factors which can infer that a party has the ability to exercise such influence on the relevant market, including "the significance of the party's market share in the relevant market, even if it does not exceed the [40% threshold],. . . the significance of the undertaking's sales in the domestic market," and the "undertaking's activities in adjacent or related markets,"26 among other considerations.
Complaint procedures
The Executive Regulations provide the rules and details for how interested parties may submit complaints to the Ministry regarding alleged violations of the Competition Law.27 Complaints can be submitted by any interested party (which includes consumers and public authorities) and must include a detailed description of the alleged anti-competitive practices, the relevant factual background, and the specific legal provisions which have been infringed, as well as evidence supporting the allegation.28 The Regulations do not provide an option for anonymous complaints, as they require the complainant to include their identification details, but also provide that all information will be kept confidential.
The Ministry will first examine if the complaint satisfies the formal legal requirements within 15 working days from the date of its submission. The Ministry will then issue a notice indicating whether a formal investigation into the alleged violation will be launched or if the complaint was rejected for insufficient grounds or lack of jurisdiction.29
Settlement procedures
In addition, the Executive Regulations provide details for how an undertaking that is found by the Ministry to be in violation of the Competition Law may reach a settlement agreement with the Ministry before the matter is referred to the courts.30 Such settlement agreement must be agreed in writing with the Ministry and include an explicit acknowledgment by the violating party of its offenses, as well as an undertaking to pay the settlement amount within 30 working days from the date of the agreement. The settlement amount can be no less than double the minimum fine for the violation.31
Conclusion and key takeaways
The long-anticipated Executive Regulations bring more clarity and notable improvements to UAE's Competition Law regime. The changes to the merger control filing formalities and the clearer review timelines are welcome improvements that are expected to reduce some of the administrative burdens and streamline the process. Furthermore, the additional details on the Ministry's assessment of dominant positions and its procedures for receiving complaints and negotiating settlement agreements enhance the predictability and transparency of the system.
Businesses operating in the UAE are advised to assess the implications of these rules for their investments and operations. White & Case is monitoring these developments closely and our team is ready to assist in navigating the new regulatory framework.
1 Published in the Official Gazette on 30 April 2026.
2 UAE issues new Competition Law with new merger control regime | White & Case LLP
3 Executive Regulations, Article 32.
4 Executive Regulations, Article 10 (2).
5 Executive Regulations, Article 10 (3).
6 Executive Regulations, Article 13.
7 Executive Regulations, Article 13 (2).
8 Competition Law, Article 13 (2).
9 Competition Law, Article 15.
10 Competition Law, Article 13 (2).
11 Competition Law, Article 13 (4).
12 Executive Regulations, Article 16.1(a).
13 Executive Regulations, Article 16.1(b).
14 Executive Regulations, Article 16.2.
15 Executive Regulations, Article 16.3.
16 Executive Regulations, Article 16.3(a).
17 Executive Regulation, Article 16.4.
18 Executive Regulations, Article 17.2.
19 Executive Regulations, Article 14.2.
20 Executive Regulations, Article 14.2.
21 Executive Regulations, Article 14.1.
22 Executive Regulations, Article 10.1 (g).
23 Competition Law, Article 1.
24 Competition Law, Article 6(1).
25 Executive Regulations, Article 2.
26 Executive Regulations, Article 2.
27 Executive Regulations, Article 19.
28 Executive Regulations, Article 19.2.
29 Executive Regulations, Article 21.4.
30 Executive Regulations, Article 27.
31 Competition Law, Article 33.
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