What is the wire transfer threshold that triggers customer due diligence in the UAE?
Under the Executive Regulations of the UAE AML law, financial institutions must apply customer due diligence measures when conducting occasional transactions in the form of wire transfers that amount to or exceed three thousand five hundred dirhams. The same three thousand five hundred dirham threshold applies to occasional transactions handled by virtual asset service providers.
The regulations also set out detailed obligations for the information that must accompany wire transfers. Financial institutions must ensure that wire transfers at or above three thousand five hundred dirhams are always accompanied by required originator and beneficiary information. They are prohibited from executing transfers that fail to carry the required data, and intermediary institutions must keep that information with the transfer. Institutions must apply freezing measures and comply with targeted financial sanctions obligations when processing transfers, and must have procedures to identify, reject, or suspend transfers that lack the required originator or beneficiary details.
Legal Reference (UAE):
· Cabinet Resolution No. 134 of 2025, Article 7 — AED 3,500 wire transfer CDD threshold.
· Cabinet Resolution No. 134 of 2025, Article 28 — information accompanying wire transfers.
For more details, consult the full text of Cabinet Resolution No. 134 of 2025 or seek guidance from your AML compliance officer.