UAE Jobs: Up To 10 Years In Jail, Immediate Termination For Employees Submitting Fake Documents

Question: I am heading an HR team in a small company in Dubai. Recently, a couple of new employees have submitted fake degrees. Could you please explain how to deal with this situation and what the penalties and fines are for employees submitting forged certificates?

Answer: If an employee submits a forged educational certificate, it may be considered a criminal offence under Federal Law by Decree No. (31) of 2021, Promulgating the Crimes and Penalties Law.

Article 251 of the UAE Penal Law defines forgery of a document as any act that changes the authenticity of a document through specific methods, with the intent to use it as a valid document, resulting in harm. Forgery includes altering an existing document by adding, deleting, or changing text, numbers, marks, or photographs. It also involves placing a forged or altered signature, seal, or thumbprint on a document. Obtaining someone's signature or seal through fraud or without their knowledge of the document's content is also considered forgery. Additionally, creating a fake document and attributing it to someone else, filling out a blank signed or sealed document without consent, impersonating another person in identity-related documents, or falsifying facts in documents intended to confirm truth all constitute forgery under this law.

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Furthermore, anyone who forges an official document may be subject to a penalty of imprisonment and/or a fine. This is under Article 252 and Article 253 of the UAE Penal Law, which reads as below:

Article 252 of the UAE Penal Law:“Forgery of an official document shall be punished with imprisonment for a period not exceeding (10) ten years, and forgery of a non-official document shall be punished with incarceration.”

Article 253 of the UAE Panel Law:” A penalty of imprisonment for a period not exceeding (5) five years shall be imposed on whoever forges a copy of an official document and such copy has been used, or uses a copy of an official document knowing of its forgery. The penalty shall be incarceration if such copy is of an unofficial document.”

Additionally, anyone using a forged document may also be imprisoned and/or fined as mentioned in the aforesaid Article 252 and Article 253 of the UAE Penal Law. This is in accordance with Article 258 of the UAE Penal Law, which states,” Whosoever knowingly uses a forged document shall be punished by the penalty prescribed for the crime of forgery as the case may be. Whosever unlawfully uses or benefits from a genuine document or the copy thereof in the name of another person shall be punished by the same penalty, as the case may be."

In the UAE, submitting a fake degree certificate to obtain a job may also be considered fraud or misrepresentation, which may lead to termination under Article 44 (1) of the Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulations of the Employment Relations. This article reads as follows:

“The employer may dismiss the employee without notice after conducting a written investigation with him and the dismissal decision shall be in writing and justified and the employer or its representative shall hand it over to the employee in any of the following cases:

1. It is proven that the employee impersonated another person, or submitted forged certificates or documents.”

In accordance with the aforementioned, if it is confirmed that your employees have forged their educational certificates you as an employer may explore appropriate measures, which may include disciplinary action, potentially leading to termination of such employees without notice and, reporting the matter to the police.

Additionally, you may register a complaint against the said employees with the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE).

It is recommended to consult a legal professional in the UAE to ensure any actions taken are compliant with the UAE Laws.

Ashish Mehta is the founder and Managing Partner of Ashish Mehta & Associates. He is qualified to practise law in Dubai, the United Kingdom and India. Full details of his firm on: Readers may e-mail their questions to: ... or send them to Legal View, Khaleej Times, PO Box 11243, Dubai.

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