Abu Dhabi: Members of the Federal National Council on Tuesday passed an anti-begging draft law.
The new legislation, which requires final approval of President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, carries three-month jail term and a Dh5,000 fine for those found guilty of begging.
Able-bodied offenders and those with a clear source of income will face tougher penalties, according to the draft law.
Under the draft law, those who run organised, mafia-like criminal groups of beggars will face a jail term of not less than six months and a fine of not less than Dh100,000.
The draft law states that the same penalty will be applicable to those who bring in people to run organised begging.
Those forced into begging by the mafia-like criminal groups may face a jail term of three months and a fine of Dh5,000, according to the draft law.
The court may also order confiscation of the money and other proceeds from begging.
The law will take effect one month after it is published in the official gazette.
