The licensing route depends on the emirate and, in Dubai, on whether the facility sits inside Dubai Healthcare City. Each route has its own authority, portal and health-information requirements.
The UAE does not have a single healthcare licensing authority. The route depends on where the facility sits. Dubai mainland facilities are regulated by the Dubai Health Authority, while facilities inside Dubai Healthcare City follow DHCC's own regulatory route. Abu Dhabi facilities are regulated by the Department of Health. Sharjah has its own health authority. Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain fall under the Ministry of Health and Prevention.
This matters beyond the application itself. Each authority runs a different portal, requires connection to a different health record platform, and applies its own facility design standards. A layout approved in one emirate is not automatically approvable in another.
For Sharjah and the northern emirates, confirm the exact portal and health-record platform with the authority directly before you rely on it. Ras Al Khaimah in particular should be confirmed with the current licensing authority rather than assumed. Separately, any facility using radiation-generating equipment answers to the Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation, the federal radiation regulator, on top of its health-authority licence.
| Emirate or zone | Authority | Application portal | Health record platform |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dubai, mainland | Dubai Health Authority (DHA) | Sheryan | NABIDH |
| Dubai Healthcare City | DHCC regulatory authority | DHCC portal | DHCC health-information system |
| Abu Dhabi | Department of Health (DOH) | TAMM | Malaffi |
| Sharjah | Sharjah Health Authority (SHA) | SHA route | Confirm with SHA |
| Ajman, Fujairah, UAQ | Ministry of Health and Prevention (MOHAP) | MOHAP portal | Riayati |
Every facility needs a commercial licence from the economic department of its emirate, alongside the clinical licence from the health authority. In Dubai that is the Department of Economy and Tourism. In Abu Dhabi it is the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development. In Sharjah it is the Sharjah Economic Development Department.
The two must agree with each other. The business activity registered on the commercial licence has to correspond to the clinical scope the health authority is being asked to approve. Where they do not match, the facility application stalls until the activity is corrected, which means going back to the economic department.
No. There is no automatic transfer of a facility licence from one authority to another. Opening a second site in a different emirate means a fresh application to that emirate's authority, against that authority's standards, through that authority's portal.
This is a common and expensive assumption among groups expanding from Dubai into Abu Dhabi or the northern emirates. The playbook transfers. The licence does not.
Radiation-generating equipment sits with a federal body regardless of emirate. Any facility with X-ray, CBCT or similar imaging equipment requires separate authorisation from the Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation, in addition to its health authority licence.
This is a separate application on its own timeline, and it is one of the most commonly missed requirements in dental and imaging projects. It must be planned in parallel from the start, not discovered when the facility inspection is booked.
No. Dubai Healthcare City operates under its own regulatory authority, separate from DHA, within the UAE federal health framework.
Yes, but each facility requires its own licence from the authority for its emirate, and its own commercial licence from that emirate's economic department.
No. Each authority publishes its own facility design requirements. A layout approved in Dubai should be treated as a starting point elsewhere, not an approved design.
The same authority that licenses the facility. Professional licences are emirate-specific and do not transfer automatically between authorities.