Short answer: in the UAE an individual may not use a personal mobile or landline number for marketing. Not "should not" — may not. The regulator has already disconnected 9,433 numbers and issued AED 19.19 million in fines under that rule. If one of those numbers was a VIP number someone paid five figures for, the money went with it.
This guide sets out what Cabinet Resolutions No. 56 and No. 57 of 2024 require, what the enforcement figures actually show, and why the rule matters more to someone who owns a premium number than to someone renting an ordinary line. It is written for business buyers, not to talk anyone out of buying.
Quick answer
- Individuals are strictly prohibited from using personal landline or mobile numbers for marketing purposes.
- As of June 2026 the TDRA recorded 3,301 violations by individuals, AED 19.19 million in fines and 9,433 numbers disconnected.
- The public flagged 92,748 numbers for suspected marketing misuse.
- For an individual, the first penalty is a AED 5,000 fine plus suspension of every number registered to them — not only the one used.
- Companies face AED 10,000 to AED 150,000, possible licence cancellation and up to one year without service.
- Licensed marketing calls are limited to 9am–6pm, may not follow up after a rejection, and must respect the Do Not Call Register.
What the Enforcement Figures Show
Telemarketing rules are easy to dismiss as paperwork. The published enforcement data makes that harder. Figures reported for the period up to June 2026 record:
| Measure | Figure | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Numbers disconnected | 9,433 | Lines switched off, not merely fined |
| Total fines issued | AED 19.19 million | Across individuals and companies |
| Violations by individuals | 3,301 | Private people, not just call centres |
| Numbers reported by the public | 92,748 | Enforcement is complaint-driven |
Two things in that table deserve a second look. The first is the ratio: 92,748 numbers were flagged and 9,433 were cut off. Roughly one in ten reports ends with a disconnection. That is a far higher conversion from complaint to consequence than most people assume when they decide a few marketing messages are harmless.
The second is the 3,301 figure. These are violations by individuals. The rule is not aimed only at call centres with headsets and dialler software. It reaches the sole trader sending offers from the phone in their pocket.
What the Rules Actually Require
The framework comes from Cabinet Resolutions No. 56 and No. 57 of 2024, in force since mid-August 2024. Three operating rules matter most in day-to-day practice:
- Calling hours. Marketing calls are restricted to 9am–6pm. Outside that window they are a violation regardless of what the customer might have said earlier.
- No second attempt after a rejection. If a consumer declines a product on the first contact, a follow-up call about that product is prohibited. The familiar sales habit of "circling back next week" is exactly what the rule removes.
- No pressure tactics. The resolutions specifically ban pressuring a consumer into a decision.
Alongside these sits the Do Not Call Register (DNCR). Numbers on the register may not be contacted for marketing — and consent given earlier does not override a later registration. Our guide on checking who is behind a UAE number covers the register from the receiving side, which is where most readers first meet it.
This article summarises published regulatory reporting. It is not legal advice. Before running any outbound campaign in the UAE, confirm your position with the TDRA or with counsel.
The Line That Catches Number Buyers
Of everything in the framework, one sentence does the damage:
Individuals are strictly prohibited from using personal landline or mobile numbers for marketing purposes.
Read that against how a premium number is usually sold. A memorable number is bought precisely because it will be seen, remembered and dialled. The buyer is frequently a broker, a dealer, a clinic, a recruiter — someone whose business depends on reaching people. The number and the prohibited use point in the same direction.
The distinction the regulator draws is not between "nice marketing" and "aggressive marketing". It is between a licensed entity marketing from a number registered for that purpose and an individual marketing from their own line. The second is prohibited outright, however polite the message.
This is also why the rule surprises people. Nothing about a personal number looks different after you start using it for outreach. There is no warning banner, no blocked send. The first signal is often the disconnection itself.
The Penalty Ladder
| Who | First offence | Repeat offence |
|---|---|---|
| Individual | AED 5,000 fine plus suspension of all registered phone numbers | Fines up to AED 50,000 and a 12-month service ban |
| Company | AED 10,000 – AED 150,000 depending on severity | Partial or complete activity suspension, licence cancellation, up to one year disconnected |
The phrase to sit with is "all registered phone numbers". The penalty is not scoped to the line that sent the message. It attaches to the person. Every number registered to that Emirates ID goes down together — the ordinary line, the second SIM, and the premium number that cost more than the fine.
Why the Fine Is Not the Real Cost
For a normal line, a suspension is an inconvenience. You lose service, you sort it out, you carry on with the same number. For a number bought as an asset the arithmetic is different, and worse in three ways.
The number is the investment. On this marketplace the 8,033 listings from private sellers currently sit at a median asking price of AED 325, but that median hides the top of the market: the highest price ever recorded here is AED 1,050,000 for a 058 number. Premium buyers are not risking a AED 5,000 fine against a AED 30 SIM. They are risking it against the number itself.
A suspended number cannot be sold. Ownership transfer happens in person at an authorised carrier store, on a working line. A line under a service ban is not a line you can hand to a buyer, which means the asset is frozen for as long as the ban runs — up to twelve months for a repeat offence.
Recycling is a real endpoint. UAE numbers do not stay reserved indefinitely once service stops; our guide to expiry and recycling rules sets out the timelines. A disconnection is the start of that clock, not a pause on it.
Put plainly: the risk attached to a premium number is not the penalty. It is losing the thing the penalty is attached to.
What Buying Guides Leave Out — Including Ours
We publish sector guides recommending memorable numbers to real estate agents, car dealers, clinics, salons, recruiters, insurance brokers, lawyers and more than a dozen other trades. Every one of them argues that a number people remember is a business asset.
None of them mentions these rules. We checked all seventeen. That is a real gap in our own library, and this article exists to close it.
The advice in those guides is not wrong. A memorable number genuinely helps a business that people call. What was missing is the other half: the same number, used for the wrong kind of outbound contact, is the one thing a regulator can take away from you. If you read the broker guide or the car dealer guide and went straight to buying, read this before you start dialling.
Seven Questions Before You Buy for Outreach
- Will this number make outbound marketing contact? If yes, the rules apply to it. Inbound-only use is a different situation.
- Is the number registered to a person or to a licensed entity? The prohibition on marketing from a personal line turns on this.
- What else is registered to the same Emirates ID? A suspension reaches all of it. Registering a premium number to the same ID as your outreach line concentrates the risk.
- Do you have a process for the Do Not Call Register? Consent obtained earlier does not survive a later registration.
- Can you enforce the 9am–6pm window? Scheduling tools that send outside it create the violation for you.
- Is there a rule against a second approach after a rejection? Most CRM follow-up sequences assume the opposite by default.
- What happens to the asset if the line is suspended? Answer it before you buy, not after.
None of this argues against owning a good number. It argues for separating the number you want to keep from the activity that can cost you a number. If you are still deciding what to buy, our guide to the legal position on buying VIP numbers covers ownership and transfer, and you can browse listings or list a number you already own.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use my personal UAE mobile number for marketing?
No. Individuals are strictly prohibited from using personal landline or mobile numbers for marketing purposes. The prohibition is on the activity from a personal line, not on the tone or volume of the messages, so a small number of polite messages is still within scope.
How many numbers has the TDRA actually disconnected?
Reported figures for the period up to June 2026 record 9,433 numbers disconnected, AED 19.19 million in fines and 3,301 violations by individuals. The public had flagged 92,748 numbers, so roughly one report in ten ended in a disconnection.
If I break the rule, do I lose only the number I used?
No. For a first offence by an individual the published penalty is a AED 5,000 fine plus suspension of all registered phone numbers. The suspension follows the person, so every number registered to that Emirates ID is affected, including a premium number bought as an investment.
What are the calling hours for marketing calls in the UAE?
Licensed marketing calls are restricted to 9am–6pm. Calls outside that window are a violation. The rules also prohibit a follow-up call about a product the consumer has already declined, and ban pressure tactics.
Which regulation sets these rules?
Cabinet Resolutions No. 56 and No. 57 of 2024, in force since mid-August 2024. They introduced the telemarketing framework including the national Do Not Call Register administered by the TDRA.
Does earlier consent let me call a number on the Do Not Call Register?
No. A later registration on the Do Not Call Register overrides consent given before it. Any list you bought or collected previously has to be screened against the register rather than treated as permanent permission.
Can I still sell my number if it has been suspended?
Not while the suspension runs. Ownership transfer is completed in person at an authorised carrier store on a working line, so a suspended number cannot be handed over. For a repeat offence the ban can run up to twelve months, during which the asset is frozen.
Does this apply to WhatsApp messages as well as calls?
The published rules address marketing contact from personal numbers rather than one specific app, and enforcement has centred on the use of personal numbers for marketing. Because the boundaries matter commercially, confirm your specific case with the TDRA or with counsel rather than assuming a messaging app sits outside the framework.