Questioner from Dubai asks: One month ago I was driving without UAE license and I had a big accident. When the police investigated the accident it showed that it was my fault and also mentioned in their report that I had jumped the red light. I was jailed for driving without having UAE license and later they decided to release me on bail by retaining my passport with them. My case was referred to the public prosecution which forwarded the case to the traffic court. My first hearing with traffic court is on April 2013. My question here is; what is the penalty stipulated by the traffic law in respect with such accident and is it true that the competent court might issue an order for imprisonment? PS: I have a Pakistani license, will such license exempt me from the penalty if I submit the same before the court at least it shows that I’m holding a license? Please advise as per the UAE traffic law.
I would like to clarify to the questioner that article no. 51 of the Traffic Law No. 21 of 1995 states the following: a penalty of imprisonment not exceeding 3 months and a fine not more than AED 6000, or one of these penalties, shall be applied to those who drive in the road without driving license or having a license which is not authorized to drive this type of vehicle”. As for the Pakistan license, unfortunately there is no agreement between UAE and Pakistan in this regard and therefore such license is not allowed in UAE and it has no legal value before the court.
