The Minister of Economy explained further those amendments that lift penal protection of the cheque, scheduled to come into force at the beginning of 2022, are part of a series of efforts undertaken by the UAE over the past months to accelerate economic recovery, particularly in the private sector activities, and to bring about qualitative transformation of the current economic model, based on the principles of pro-activity and sustainability.

These efforts also include enhancing the flexibility of economic policies and raising the UAE’s ranking in the Global Competitiveness Index, associated with the ease of establishing and doing business, and increasing the country’s attractiveness to foreign direct investment and international companies.

This move keeps pace with latest global trends on digital transformation, modern digital payment systems and advanced financial technology, supports the continuity and growth of economic activity, increases confidence in the business environment, and provides rapid, advanced, civil alternatives to commercial and financial transactions.

Bin Touq added, “The decriminalisation of cheques issued without funds and confining criminalisation to cases of fraud, forgery and bad faith, while creating more efficient and effective legal mechanisms for collecting the cheque value, contributes to maintaining economic dynamism and diversity, the effectiveness of the judicial system and the efficiency of the commercial environment in the nation, by revitalising commercial dealings and protecting existing companies, especially start-ups and SMEs. It also avoids the negative consequences of criminalisation for returned cheques without funds, and the back-log of related cases before the courts to resolve debts that affect the financial, banking and commercial sectors in the country negatively.”

Abdullah bin Sultan bin Awad Al Nuaimi, Minister of Justice, stated, “Within the framework of the UAE’s keenness to improve the business environment and the legislative and judicial structure to boost competitiveness at both regional and international levels, reinforce its attractiveness to foreign investment and to enhance national economic resilience to achieve the UAE’s strategic vision in this field, amendments introduced to the Federal Commercial Transactions Law on the procedures regulating use of cheques, collection of their value and penalties, have been unified in one law. Criminalisation has been confined to cheque forging and their illegal use, deliberately writing or signing cheques in a way that render them unpayable, the criminalisation referred to in the Penal Code on issuing cheques without funds, or the phenomenon known commonly as returned or ‘bounced’ cheques, was cancelled, similar to adopted practice in a large number of jurisdictions, such as France and the United States of America.”

The Minister of Justice also explained that the cheque is one of the most important commercial papers, most used in business, which represents a well-known payment or negotiation tool instead of money. Such an instrument can only play its role as a payment tool if dealers are assured of it, and trust that obtaining it in exchange for their rights is as good as a cash payment. The only way to enhance confidence in cheques is to reinforce the bearer’s rights and to strengthen their associated guarantees. For this reason, recent legislative amendments to the Commercial Transactions Law provide new alternatives and mechanisms to ensure collection of the cheque value in the fastest and simplest way possible. These include requiring the drawee bank to pay the cheque’s value at least partially, debiting the entire amount available with the drawer, and making the returned cheque a writ of execution to be executed directly by the execution judge, placing an executive formula on the returned cheque and collecting its value without resorting to civil or criminal lawsuits. This will lead to increased confidence in cheques as a commercial document that ensures prompt payment of its values.