UAE legal Q&As: Are you fined by police or courts over a bounced cheque?

One reader questions bounced cheque punishments, while another queries if he can travel days before his residency visa is due to expire.

Is there a fine collected by police or a court when someone’s cheque bounces? If so, how much is the fine?

There is no such fine collected by police or the court with regard to bounced cheques. If a person issues a cheque that then bounces when deposited by the beneficiary, the person who issued the cheque can face charges in the Court of Misdemeanours but only if the beneficiary lodges a complaint with police, which then gets referred to prosecution and court but no fees are collected from the police or the court.

My residence visa expires on March 30 and I plan to travel home to Pakistan on March 15, returning to the UAE on March 27, three days before my visa expires. I would like to know if this travel is possible? Is there any kind of non-travelling period before a visa expires, like 30 days or something? Do you think I would have any issues when exiting/ reentering the UAE?

There is no legal reason that would stop you from travelling, since you will be back in the country three days before the expiry of your residency visa. However, it would be safer that you check with the General Directorate of Residency & Foreigners Affairs about this matter anyway, just to be certain that there are no issues.

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