UAE authorities offer Covid rule-breakers 50% discount on fines

Reduction will stay in place for two months

Al Hosn Green Pass awareness sign at the Al Wahda Mall, in Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National

UAE residents who broke Covid-19 rules during the pandemic have been offered a 50 per cent discount on the fines they were given.

Unpaid fines will be discounted by 50 per cent from Wednesday for two months.

The Emergency, Crisis and Disasters Prosecution Office urged all those who have outstanding fines to pay through the Ministry of Interior or police websites and apps.

Covid-19 safety rules were introduced at various stages of the pandemic.

These included Dh3,000 fines for not wearing a face mask, a Dh20,000 fine for providing incorrect information to evade quarantine or precautionary measures and a Dh20,000 fine introduced for promoting or publishing coronavirus-related rumours or misleading information about precautionary measures.

In September, authorities announced that masks were no longer mandatory in most indoor public places.

Face coverings in indoor public places were mandatory for two and a half years.

About all Covid restrictions were removed in November, including the need to wear a face mask.

The removal of the requirement to have green status on Al Hosn app ― proof of a recent PCR test and vaccination status ― to enter the majority of public places in Abu Dhabi was among changes.

About 199 million PCR tests have been conducted nationwide since the beginning of the pandemic in January 2020, and almost 25 million vaccine doses administered.