Why notification matters

The current law is the UAE Civil Transactions Law, Federal Decree-Law No. 25 of 2025, in force from 1 June 2026 (official text). Two of its articles matter here. English renderings of the Arabic text:

Article 898: “The principal may dismiss or restrict his agent whenever he wishes, unless a third party’s right is attached to the agency or it was issued for the benefit of the agent, in which case the principal may not terminate or restrict it without the consent of the beneficiary.”

Article 144: “If the agent and the person with whom he contracted are both unaware at the time of concluding the contract that the agency has expired, the effects of the contract concluded by the agent shall accrue to the principal or his successors.”

Article 898 establishes the right to revoke. Article 144 is why notification matters in practice: a contract the former agent concludes with someone who, like the agent, does not know the agency has ended still takes effect against the principal. Neither article prescribes a form of notice. The protection comes from making sure the agent, and the people the agent has dealt with, actually know.

The practical consequence is that a cancellation correctly executed and notarised, but not communicated, does not protect the principal against transactions concluded by the agent with parties unaware of the revocation.

Notice to the Agent

Notice to the agent must be formal and documented. Recognised methods include service through the notary that issued the cancellation, where the notary effects formal service of the revocation deed; service through Tableegh, the official legal notification service approved by the UAE Ministry of Justice (tableegh.ae); registered post with acknowledgement of receipt; and judicial notice through Dubai Courts or the relevant court of jurisdiction.

The law does not lay down a notification procedure or say when an attempted notice counts as given. The practical aim is evidence: a record showing that the agent, and each party the agent has dealt with, was told of the revocation through a channel that can be proved. Where the agent refuses service or cannot be located, take advice on the appropriate court route rather than assuming an attempted notice is enough.

Notice to Third Parties

The category of third parties to whom notice must be given is determined by the use that the agent has made or could make of the authority. The principle is that wherever the Power of Attorney was used, presented, or could plausibly be presented, formal notification is required to remove practical reliance.

In ordinary practice this includes banks where the agent has transacted on accounts or facilities held by the principal; real estate developers, brokers, and registrars where property has been the subject of the authority; government departments and licensing authorities where the agent has filed or could file on the principal’s behalf; courts where the agent has appeared or could appear in proceedings; counterparties to contracts entered into through the agent; and auditors, accountants, and corporate registries where the agent has signed in a corporate capacity.

The form of notice to third parties typically combines the notarised cancellation deed with a covering communication identifying the original Power of Attorney and confirming its revocation.

The Good Faith Doctrine

Where a third party contracts with the former agent and neither of them knows the agency has ended, Article 144 of the Civil Transactions Law provides that the contract’s effects accrue to the principal. That is the practical risk the principal carries until the people who relied on the document know it has been revoked.

The implication is straightforward. The cost of notification, properly carried out, is small relative to the cost of being bound to a transaction concluded by an agent whose authority the principal believed had ended.

The DLD and Property Powers of Attorney

If the power of attorney has been used for property dealings, ask DLD or the relevant transaction authority what notification or record-update steps apply. Keep any submission and acknowledgement with the cancellation record. Do not assume that notarisation alone updates every other organisation’s records.

The procedural detail for property powers of attorney is set out at poaforproperty.ae.

Documentation of Notice

Keep a dated record of the cancellation document, the notices sent, the channels used and any acknowledgements or service records received. Evidence of sending is not the same as confirmation of receipt or a legal determination that notice was effective. Confirm the required notification steps with the issuing authority or a qualified legal adviser.

Keep a notification record

Download a blank notification record

For organising your own records. This is not a legal notice, a service certificate or proof that cancellation is effective. Keep completed records privately; this page does not upload them.

The Practical Test

Treat cancellation paperwork, notification and the effect on a particular transaction as separate checks. Keep the documents and communications together, and obtain case-specific confirmation where another person may still rely on the power of attorney.

Execution

Need help preparing a cancellation request? Discuss the documents and coordination you need with POAS. Confirm any official notification or legal-advice requirements before agreeing the scope.

Discuss POA cancellation preparation