Share Transfer Power of Attorney in Dubai and the UAE

When you need one

A power of attorney for a share transfer is useful whenever a shareholder cannot personally attend the signing of the share transfer and the related company paperwork, for example amending the memorandum of association. Common situations include a shareholder living outside the UAE, an investor holding shares across more than one company, or a shareholder who prefers a lawyer or the company manager to handle the transaction directly with the licensing authority.

What the document must name

A share transfer power of attorney should be specific, not a general grant of authority. It should name:

• The company, including its trade licence number.
• The shares involved, and whether the shareholder is buying or selling.
• The agent’s authority to sign the share transfer agreement and any amendment to the memorandum of association.

A power of attorney written only in general terms grants the agent authority to manage and preserve, not to carry out a specific act like transferring shares. This is why a share transfer power of attorney is drafted as a special power of attorney naming the company and the transaction.

Mainland and free zone companies

Mainland companies fall under the Department of Economy and Tourism, while free zone companies answer to their own free zone authority. Each one sets its own requirements for what a share transfer power of attorney must say and what supporting documents it wants alongside it. Check with the specific authority handling your company’s transfer, or ask us and we will confirm before you sign anything.

Steps to get one

1. Draft the document. We prepare it naming the company, the shares and the agent’s authority to sign the transfer.
2. Notarise it. Sign before a notary public in Dubai, who checks identity and applies the seal.
3. Attest it if signed abroad. A shareholder abroad signs before a notary or accredited UAE consul there, then the document is attested by that country’s foreign ministry, the UAE embassy or consulate, and MOFAIC in the UAE.
4. Translate it if needed. A document not already in Arabic needs a certified legal translation by a translator registered with the Ministry of Justice.
5. Submit it with the transfer file. The power of attorney goes to the company and the licensing authority together with the rest of the share transfer paperwork.

Arabic translation

Where the power of attorney is drafted in English or another language, a certified Arabic translation is needed before the licensing authority will accept it with the transfer file. Bilingual drafting is common practice for company documents and makes the paperwork easier to check on both sides.

Sample outline

This is a structure to discuss with us, not a legal template to copy:

• Identification of the principal (shareholder) and the agent.
• The company name and trade licence number.
• Description of the shares and the transaction, buying or selling.
• The specific powers granted: signing the share transfer agreement, signing the memorandum of association amendment, submitting documents to the licensing authority.
• Signature, date and place of signing.

Get help with your share transfer power of attorney

Call or WhatsApp us at +971 54 380 1094, or email support@notaryservicesdubai.com, and we will talk you through what your share transfer power of attorney needs to say and notarise it with our in-house notary public. Office open Monday to Friday, 9:00 am to 6:00 pm. WhatsApp and online requests answered 24/7.

Related reading: our guide to company power of attorney, corporate notary services, addendum to the memorandum of association, the memorandum of association, and our main power of attorney in Dubai page for an overview of every type.