Middle East and North Africa
United Arab Emirates.
The UAE federal government has a Ministry of Tolerance and Coexistence that oversees the Cabinet-endorsed National Tolerance Program, a federal law on volunteering (Federal Law No. 13 of 2018), and a national volunteering platform, Volunteers.ae. The government also declared 2017 the Year of Giving.
Is there a legal duty to help a stranger?
Varies by regionIt was not possible to retrieve the official text of the current Penal Code (Federal Decree-Law No. 31 of 2021) and so could not confirm whether it contains a general duty to help a stranger in danger. Secondary search results pointed only to duties to report crimes and to endangerment offenses, which are not the same thing.
Are people who help protected?
Not verifiedNo official source that could be opened confirms a specific good-faith helper protection. One secondary legal commentary mentions a provision on good-faith first aid in the older 1987 Penal Code, but It was not possible to verify it against the statute, so it is not relied on here.
How the government promotes giving and service
Ways to give and volunteer
Charity in the UAE is closely regulated: fundraising is allowed only through licensed charities and official channels. Give and volunteer only through those, and use the official government portal as your starting point.
Check a charity before you give
The federal ministry that issues fundraising permits and requires fundraising to run through licensed, authorized charities; use it to confirm a group's status.
Give your time
Give money, blood or a donation
In an emergency or a crisis
Before you act
- Collecting donations without a license is illegal in the UAE and can bring heavy fines, so never give to or help with street, social media or messaging-app appeals from unlicensed people. Donate only through the licensed charities and official platforms above, and do not start a fundraiser yourself without a permit. Visitors should also check that any volunteering fits their visa.
This list does not cover every licensed charity or each emirate's own rules. Checked 2026-10-28. Listing an organization is not an endorsement, and none of them has endorsed this site. Some official sites block automatic checks, so a link may need a second try.
One thing worth knowing
The government pairs a tolerance ministry with a volunteering law and a single national volunteering platform, so promotion of giving and volunteering is organized through named federal bodies.
What this does not mean
This guide describes what official pages say these programs are for, not how they work in practice. The federal anti-discrimination law of 2015 was replaced by Federal Law by Decree No. 34 of 2023 (per u.ae); it is about discrimination, hatred and extremism, not about helping strangers. Not legal advice. This is a plain-language summary of public sources, not legal advice, and it does not rank countries. No government named here has endorsed this site. Not reviewed by a lawyer. Statutes were read in public sources and may have changed. Last checked October 26, 2026.