Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Dubai Administrative Council, has issued a resolution to implement the plastic ban in phases.
From January 1, 2024 the import and trade of single-use plastic bags will be banned.
Starting June 1, 2024, non-plastic disposable products, including single-use plastic bags, will also be included in the ban.
Starting January 1, 2025, single-use plastic products, including plastic stirrers, table covers, cups, plastic straws and plastic swabs will be banned.
Beginning January 1, 2026, the ban will be extended to other single-use plastic products, including plastic plates, plastic food containers, plastic cutlery, and drink cups and plastic lids.
What else does the ban cover?
The ban also includes food delivery packaging materials, thick plastic bags, plastic containers, and packaging materials made partially or wholly of plastic, such as plastic bottles, snack bags, wet wipes, and balloons.
If a business continues to use single-use plastic bags, it will be fined 200 dirhams in the event of a breach of the ban The fine will be doubled for consecutive breaches within a 12-month period, with a maximum fine of 2,000 dirhams.
The ban excludes plastic bags made from recycled materials, thin cling bags for packaging meat, fish, vegetables, fruit, cereals and bread, garbage bags, single-use plastic products that are exported or re-exported abroad, such as shopping bags or disposable items.
The resolution is effective from January 1, 2024 and will be published in the Official Gazette.
The UAE government decided in early 2023 to ban single-use plastic bags in all emirates. Dubai and Abu Dhabi banned most plastic bags in 2022 by imposing a nominal fee of 25 fees on plastic bags.
In Abu Dhabi, a plastic ban was implemented from June 1, 2022, and six months later, 87 million single-use plastic bags were reduced, a reduction of about 90%.
