Guide · updated 16.10.2026 · 12 min read · Lucent Legal team

Interpol Red Notices and Extradition From the UAE: How It Works

The UAE does extradite people to other countries, but only through a court and under Federal Law No. 39 of 2006. A Red Notice on its own is neither a conviction nor an arrest warrant: it asks police to find and provisionally arrest someone. This guide walks through the process, the rights you have at each step, and what to do if you think a country is looking for you.

What a Red Notice is, and what it isn't

INTERPOL publishes a Red Notice at a member country's request. It rests on an arrest warrant or court order from that country. INTERPOL itself doesn't want anyone: the person is wanted by a country or an international tribunal.

Each country decides what legal weight to give a Red Notice. One country may detain you at the border while another lets you through. Before publication, INTERPOL's Notices and Diffusions Task Force reviews every request against the organisation's rules.

Most Red Notices are restricted to law enforcement. The public search on INTERPOL's website shows only extracts a country agreed to publish. If your name isn't there, that proves nothing.

When a Red Notice is not allowed

Article 83 of INTERPOL's Rules on the Processing of Data bars Red Notices for:

• administrative violations and private disputes, such as traffic offences, defamation, or an unfunded cheque issued without fraudulent intent;
• family and private matters;
• offences that turn on cultural or behavioural norms.

Article 3 of INTERPOL's Constitution forbids any intervention of a political, military, religious or racial character. Lawyers rely on it when a prosecution looks political.

For UAE expats, the cheque rule matters most. Since 2020–2022, an ordinary missed loan or cheque payment in the UAE has been a civil matter (see can you leave the UAE with debt). A Red Notice over a debt like that breaks INTERPOL's rules, and you can take it to the CCF.

How the UAE extradites someone: steps under Law No. 39/2006

The article numbers below follow the 2006 text. Federal Decree-Law No. 38/2023 amended the law, so a lawyer should check the current wording against your case.

1. Request. The foreign state sends a written request through diplomatic channels. It attaches the warrant or judgment, the text of the law and details on the person, all translated into Arabic (Art. 11). A foreign state cannot go straight to UAE courts or police (Art. 3).
2. Provisional arrest. In urgent cases the Public Prosecutor can arrest a person on a foreign warrant before the formal request arrives (Art. 15). Release on a personal or financial guarantee stays possible; see our guide on bail in the UAE.
3. Prosecution. The detainee must be brought before the Public Prosecution within 48 hours. Prosecutors explain the reason for the arrest, the request and the evidence. You have the right to a lawyer when you give your statement (Art. 17).
4. Referral. The Public Prosecutor sends the request to the Court of Appeal within 15 days of examining it (Art. 18).
5. Hearing. The court sits in a closed session with the prosecutor, the person and their lawyer (Art. 19). It must give reasons (Art. 20). A refusal means immediate release (Art. 21).
6. Appeal. Both the prosecutor and the person can appeal within 30 days. The appeal court sets a hearing no later than 10 days after filing (Art. 22–23).
7. Approval and handover. Extradition happens only on a final decision (Art. 24) and with the Minister of Justice's approval (Art. 26). If the requesting state doesn't collect the person within 30 days, they go free (Art. 28).

There is a shortcut. If you consent in writing to surrender to one state, the Minister can decide on the prosecutor's proposal without a full court process (Art. 13–14). Talk to a lawyer before you sign: you can't take it back.

When the UAE will refuse

Article 9 of Law No. 39/2006 bars extradition when:

• the person is a UAE citizen;
• UAE courts have jurisdiction over the offence;
• the offence is political (terrorism, war crimes and attacks on the country's leadership don't count as political);
• the offence is purely military;
• there are serious grounds to believe the request targets you for your ethnicity, religion, nationality or political opinions;
• UAE authorities already investigated or tried you for the same act, or a UAE court issued a final judgment on it;
• the case or sentence has lapsed under a statute of limitations;
• you face torture, degrading treatment or a disproportionate sentence in the requesting state.

The rule of speciality also applies (Art. 29). The receiving state can't try you for other, earlier offences without fresh UAE consent.

Russia, the CIS and treaties

The UAE cooperates under international treaties and, without one, on the basis of reciprocity (Art. 2). Russia and the UAE signed an extradition treaty in Abu Dhabi on 25 November 2014, and the State Duma reviewed its ratification in 2016. Even with a treaty, every case still goes through a UAE court and the Article 9 checks.

In March 2022 INTERPOL put Russia's National Central Bureau under heightened supervision: the General Secretariat now reviews its requests before they go out. If the case back home ties to politics, the war or a business dispute, raise that both in the UAE court and at the CCF.

How to check whether you're wanted

1. INTERPOL's public list (View Red Notices). Quick and free, but most notices don't appear there.
2. An access request to the CCF. The Commission checks whether INTERPOL holds data on you and replies in writing. Under its Statute it decides within 4 months of finding the request admissible. It consults the country that supplied the data first, so that country may learn you asked.
3. UAE checks. A local criminal case, travel ban or wanted status inside the UAE shows up in Dubai Police and Estafser services; see how to check if you have a case in the UAE.

How to challenge a Red Notice at the CCF

The CCF is an independent INTERPOL body. It checks whether a record complies with INTERPOL's rules. It does not weigh evidence, rule on guilt or decide on extradition: national courts do that.

• Filing. Since 26 March 2026, only through the CCF's secure online portal. Email and post are no longer accepted except in exceptional circumstances.
• Cost. The Commission charges no fee.
• What to submit. Written arguments and documents only; the CCF rarely holds hearings. Typical grounds: Article 83, Article 3 of the Constitution, the civil nature of the dispute, an expired limitation period, a closed case.
• Timeline. A decision on deletion or correction within 9 months of the request being found admissible.
• Revision. You can ask for a revision only on a newly discovered fact, within 6 months of learning it.

If the CCF deletes a notice, INTERPOL tells member countries. National databases and the case back home remain a separate problem.

If you're detained on a Red Notice in the UAE

• Don't sign consent to extradition before you see a lawyer. Signing gives up the court process.
• Ask for a lawyer at the prosecution interview: Article 17 gives you that right.
• Tell your consulate and your family. Our guide on what to do in the first 48 hours after an arrest covers the first steps.
• Ask for release on a guarantee: the law allows it even during provisional arrest.
• Prepare a CCF complaint in parallel if the notice breaks INTERPOL's rules.

If border officers stopped you and you don't know why, read detained at Dubai airport. All criminal law topics sit in our UAE criminal law hub.

How a lawyer helps

Lucent Legal is a consultancy licensed by DET (No. 1192929). We review your situation, check what UAE systems show about you, and prepare the documents and the CCF complaint. Before the Public Prosecution and the Court of Appeal, a partner advocate licensed in the UAE represents you. Nobody can honestly promise a deleted notice or a refused extradition: the CCF and the court decide.

Topic: UAE Criminal Law 2026

Get a lawyer's help: Criminal lawyer

This material is for information only and is not legal advice. UAE law changes — a lawyer will assess how it applies to your situation.