UAE Data Office
United Arab Emirates federal data regulator established by Federal Decree-Law No. 44 of 2021 under the Cabinet. It prepares data protection policy and oversees the Personal Data Protection Law; reported in 2026 as merged into a new AI and data authority.
Industry: Government (data protection) | Location: United Arab Emirates | Founded: 2021
About UAE Data Office
The UAE Data Office, formally the Emirates Data Office, is a United Arab Emirates federal body established by Federal Decree-Law No. 44 of 2021, which Lexis Middle East dates to 20 September 2021. The decree gives it legal personality with financial and administrative autonomy and places it under the UAE Cabinet. The decree text uses the name UAE Data Bureau.
The UAE government portal describes it as the federal data regulator. It prepares data protection policies and legislation, proposes and approves standards for monitoring the Personal Data Protection Law, prepares systems for data-related complaints and grievances, and issues guidelines for implementing the law. That law, Federal Decree-Law No. 45 of 2021, took effect on 2 January 2022. Commentary from the law firm Addleshaw Goddard in December 2021 added that the Data Office would receive breach notifications and could impose administrative penalties on a proposal from its Director General, who was to be appointed later.
Gulf News reported on 14 June 2026 that the Data Office is one of three bodies combined into the new Federal Authority for Artificial Intelligence and Data, which reports to the Cabinet.
The sources read do not name the Data Office's leadership or give its headcount or website.