Security guard licensing in the UAE and Saudi Arabia: an employer’s guide

Three regimes, and the employer carries the risk

In the Gulf, a security guard can’t simply apply for a licence and then look for work. In Dubai and Saudi Arabia the licensing system runs through the employer, and in the rest of the UAE a licensed company needs the authority’s approval before it appoints security staff. If a guard on your roster isn’t licensed, the problem is yours first.

There are three regimes to know. Dubai has its own regulator, the Security Industry Regulatory Agency (SIRA), under Dubai Law No. 12 of 2016. Abu Dhabi and the Northern Emirates fall under Federal Law No. 37 of 2006 on private security companies, administered by the Ministry of Interior. Saudi Arabia regulates guards under the Private Civil Security Guard Law of 1426 AH (2005), with the Ministry of Interior’s Public Security as the licensing authority.

Much of the legislation is published in Arabic only, or in Arabic with an English translation where the Arabic prevails; we translated the Arabic texts ourselves. Rules change, and Dubai issued a new implementing bylaw in 2026, so confirm the current position with the regulator before you rely on any figure here.

Side-by-side comparison

The figures below are for an individual security guard, checked against official laws, gazettes and regulator pages on October 18, 2026. Where the official texts we could open don’t state a figure, the table says so.

Fees are government fees as published and may change; SIRA also adds knowledge and innovation fees to some services. Links to every official page are at the end of this guide.

Dubai: SIRA

SIRA regulates the security industry across Dubai, including the free zones and the Dubai International Financial Centre. On June 10, 2026 its board issued Resolution No. (1) of 2026, a new implementing bylaw for Law No. 12 of 2016. It was published in the Official Gazette on July 4, 2026, took effect that day and replaced the 2018 bylaw. If your compliance notes predate July 2026, review them.

The bylaw lists 18 types of individual licence, from security guard and watchman to supervisor, operations manager and cash-transport guard. To be licensed, a person must be at least 18, hold a valid residence permit if not a UAE national, have basic Arabic or English, be of good conduct with no conviction for a felony or a crime of dishonesty, have the qualifications set for the licence type and pass SIRA’s theoretical and practical tests. There is no nationality restriction for guards.

• The employer applies, not the guard. SIRA’s “New Security Cadre Card” service is submitted by a licensed security company through the e-services portal. For the Security Guard category, SIRA lists an age range of 21 to 60, which is stricter than the bylaw’s minimum of 18, so plan hiring around SIRA’s figure. It also asks for an Emirates ID, a valid residence permit, a Dubai Police good conduct certificate addressed to SIRA, the Security Guard course from an approved centre, a physical fitness certificate valid for three months, and fire safety, life support and people of determination certificates.
• Residency must match. The guard’s residence permit must be with the company applying for the card, and the profession on the residence permit must match the licence. A company can’t license a guard whose visa is held by another firm.
• Two years, renew 30 days early. An individual licence lasts two years and the renewal must be filed at least 30 days before it expires. SIRA may set a shorter term for some licence types.
• Trainee permits are a one-off. Where a recruit doesn’t yet meet the requirements, the company can request a temporary licence of up to 90 days, provided the person is enrolled on a course at an approved centre. During that period the company is responsible for any violation the person commits. SIRA’s service page describes this as a trainee permit costing 120 dirhams that can’t be renewed and is issued only once.
• Only licensed, registered staff. A company may not appoint anyone as a security provider without a valid licence, and may only use people employed under a contract registered in SIRA’s systems or supplied under a manpower contract with another approved provider. Using an unlicensed security provider is prohibited for anyone, not only for security firms.
• Carry the card. Guards must carry and display their licence while working and report a lost, stolen or damaged card to SIRA.

Abu Dhabi and the Northern Emirates: the federal law

Outside Dubai, private security companies are governed by Federal Law No. 37 of 2006, with the Ministry of Interior as the competent authority. The law is short and leaves most detail, including guard qualifications, to executive regulations issued by ministerial decision (Ministerial Decision No. 557 of 2008). We could not find an official, openly published text of those regulations, so the age, training hours and licence term for guards are marked “not stated officially” in the table.

What the law itself says matters to employers:

• Approval before appointment. Appointing security staff requires the competent authority’s approval (Article 11). The law defines security staff broadly: managers, officers, trainers and guards of every kind, full-time or part-time.
• Training through an approved institute. The company must make sure its security staff complete a training course run by an approved training institute (Article 17).
• One emirate at a time. A company may operate only in the emirate that licensed it. Working in another emirate needs a separate licence, with exceptions for moving cash and valuables and escorting people between emirates (Article 9).
• Records on demand. The company must keep organised records of its work and employees, and the authority may inspect them at any time (Article 19).
• Government fees. Cabinet Resolution No. (48) of 2019 sets the Ministry’s fees: AED 500 to issue or renew a security guard licence, AED 1,000 for a security supervisor, AED 100 for an individual licence, AED 300 for the security officer test and AED 300 to replace a lost or damaged individual licence.

Saudi Arabia: a Saudi-only profession

The Private Civil Security Guard Law was issued by Royal Decree No. M/24 of 8/7/1426 AH (2005), with executive regulations issued by Ministerial Decision No. 170 of 5/5/1427 AH. The most important rule for employers is Article 5: every employee of a private security company must be Saudi, and so must every guard. The law gave existing companies 90 days to replace non-Saudi staff in 2005, and the Public Prosecution has repeated publicly that violations are prosecuted.

The law makes the company responsible for training: licensed companies must train and qualify their guards to do the job (Article 6), and security authorities may inspect companies and guards at any time (Article 7). A client that contracts guards directly and has more than 20 of them must set up its own security department (Article 3).

In December 2022, Royal Decree No. M/71 changed the licensing fees. A civil security guard licence now costs SAR 200 and is valid for one year, with renewal at the same price and SAR 100 for a replacement. The old five-year company licence was removed. The minimum age for a guard and the length of training are set in the executive regulations, which we could not find published officially, so we mark both as not stated officially.

In May 2025, Ministry of Interior Decision No. 5264 amended Article 2 of the executive regulations, which lists the sites that must have guards. Press reports of the published text describe round-the-clock guarding for sites such as hotels, banks, exchange houses, hospitals, jewellery shops and large malls, and guarding during opening hours for private schools, clinics, event venues and large restaurants. The amended article also says that only providers licensed by Public Security may supply guards.

Company licences

• Dubai. A company needs a SIRA security licence for each security activity before it can complete its trade licence. General guarding services carry a SIRA activity fee of 2,020 dirhams plus a 120-dirham service charge, and the company must assign a licensed Security Manager. SIRA says no activity may start until the required security personnel are in place. Company licences last one year, and renewals are due at least 30 days before expiry, with all fines paid first. Within five days of any change to an employee’s data, including the end of employment, the company must tell SIRA and request cancellation of that person’s licence, and it must report an employee’s conviction or judicial suspension within two days. Records must be kept for five years.
• Abu Dhabi and the Northern Emirates. Security approval from the competent authority comes first (AED 500), and the company must then complete its licensing within six months or the approval lapses. Licence fees depend on the type of security work, from AED 10,000 for hotel, bank, hospital or event security to AED 20,000 for airport or vital installation security. The law refers to annual renewals. A Ministry of Interior statement from 2010 explained that, under the executive regulations, entities other than family residences may hire guards only through a licensed security company.
• Saudi Arabia. The company must be wholly owned by Saudis, the applicant must be at least 25, must not have been convicted of a hadd offence or a crime of dishonesty (unless rehabilitated) and must not have been dismissed from public service for disciplinary reasons in the last three years. The company also needs sufficient capital and a bank guarantee. The licence fee is SAR 3,000, paid once.

How to verify a guard before the first shift

None of the three regulators publishes a public online register of guard licences that we could find, unlike the UK or Ontario. In Dubai and Saudi Arabia the employer is part of the licensing process, which makes your own records the check that matters.

1. 1Get the licence or card number, category and expiry date from the guard, with a copy of the card, the residence permit (UAE) or national ID (Saudi Arabia).
2. 2Confirm the licence is for your jurisdiction. SIRA’s card permits private security work in Dubai. A guard licensed for another emirate, or employed by another company, is not automatically cleared to work for you.
3. 3Check it with the regulator. In Dubai, the card is issued to your company through the SIRA e-services portal, so a guard who isn’t on your company’s records isn’t licensed to work for you. Elsewhere in the UAE, confirm the Ministry has approved the appointment. In Saudi Arabia, confirm the guard holds a current one-year licence and is a Saudi national; if in doubt, contact Public Security.
4. 4Keep proof of the check: a dated screenshot or the regulator’s reply in the guard’s file. Dubai requires records to be kept for five years.
5. 5Record every expiry date for the licence, the residence permit and any certificate the post needs, and check again at every renewal.

The expiry trap

We found no regime here that lets a guard work on an expired licence. In Dubai the renewal must be filed at least 30 days before expiry, so the real deadline is a month earlier than the date on the card. Saudi licences last only one year, which means a firm with 300 guards is processing renewals every week. Trainee permits in Dubai end at 90 days and can’t be extended, so a recruit who hasn’t passed the course and tests by then has to come off post.

Residency adds a second clock in the UAE. SIRA requires the guard’s residence permit to be with the employing company, so a lapsed visa or a transfer to another sponsor breaks the licence too. Track both dates. Use this tracker if you are still on a spreadsheet:

LICENCE TRACKER (one row per guard)

Guard | Country / emirate | Licence or card no. | Category (e.g. Security Guard) | Issued | Expires | Verified on (how) | Residency / work permit expiry | Other certificates (fitness, fire safety, life support) + expiry | Next action

ALERT RULES
90 days before expiry  -> remind guard; book any refresher course and a fresh good conduct certificate
60 days before expiry  -> renewal file complete; in Dubai, book the fitness test close to filing
                          (SIRA asks for a fitness certificate valid for 3 months on a new card)
30 days before expiry  -> Dubai: last day to file the renewal (at least 30 days before expiry);
                          everywhere: escalate to manager and plan cover for this guard's shifts
On expiry date         -> no shifts from 00:00 that day until the renewed licence is verified

TEMPORARY / TRAINEE PERMITS (Dubai)
Day 1                  -> record the 90-day end date; trainee permit is issued once, not renewed
Day 60                 -> course and tests passed? If not, plan to take the guard off post on day 90

WHEN A GUARD LEAVES
Dubai: withdraw the card and request cancellation in the SIRA portal within 5 days

CHECK BEFORE EVERY NEW ASSIGNMENT
[ ] Licence valid for the whole shift (not just the start)
[ ] Licence issued for the emirate or country of the site
[ ] Licence category matches the post (guard, supervisor, cash transport)
[ ] Saudi Arabia: guard is a Saudi national

What getting it wrong can cost

These are maximums and ranges, not a fixed fine for one unlicensed shift. Most guarding contracts also require licensed staff, so the contract and your insurance are at risk too.

• Dubai. Law No. 12 of 2016, as amended by Law No. 3 of 2018, sets fines of up to AED 500,000 for breaching the law, its bylaw or related resolutions, doubled for a repeat within a year to a maximum of AED 1,000,000. The fine for each specific violation is set by a separate schedule; the 2026 bylaw keeps the older schedule in force until a new one is approved, and we could not find that schedule published officially. Before imposing a penalty, SIRA must notify the company in writing and give up to 30 days to correct the violation.
• Abu Dhabi and the Northern Emirates. Under Article 20 of Federal Law No. 37 of 2006, providing security services without approval carries a fine of at least AED 500,000. Weapons offences carry imprisonment and a fine of at least AED 1,000,000. Other breaches of the law or its regulations carry imprisonment, a fine of AED 20,000 to AED 200,000, or both. Penalties double for repeat offences and the licence may be revoked. Minor violations can be fined up to AED 5,000 by ministerial decision.
• Saudi Arabia. Article 12 of the law allows a warning, closure of the premises for up to one month, a fine of up to SAR 50,000 (doubled for a repeat) and cancellation of the licence, which requires a ruling of the Board of Grievances. Penalties can be combined, and appeals go to the Board within 60 days. A 2022 draft amendment proposed fines of up to SAR 500,000; we found no official text showing it has been enacted.

A note on Qatar

Qatar licenses private security companies and guards through its Ministry of Interior. We could not find enough official, openly published detail to compare it reliably, so it is not covered here. If you operate in Qatar, confirm the requirements directly with the Ministry.

How GuardDesk handles licences

GuardDesk keeps each guard’s licence, card and certificates with their expiry dates, and checks them before a shift is assigned: a dispatcher can’t give a shift to a guard whose licence won’t be valid on that date. When a licence nears expiry, the affected shifts show up as exceptions before they become a problem.

See also: GuardDesk plans

Questions owners ask

Sources

General information for security firm owners and managers, not legal advice. Rules change: confirm with the regulator or your lawyer before relying on them. Checked October 14, 2026.

• UAE: Federal Law No. (37) of 2006 concerning private security companies
• UAE: Federal Law No. (37) of 2006, full text
• UAE: Cabinet Resolution No. (48) of 2019 on private security licensing fees
• Abu Dhabi Police: Ministry of Interior statement on unlicensed security companies (2010)
• Dubai: Law No. (12) of 2016 regulating the security industry
• Dubai: Law No. (3) of 2018 amending Law No. (12) of 2016
• Dubai: Resolution No. (1) of 2018, former implementing bylaw
• Dubai: Official Gazette No. 783, Resolution No. (1) of 2026 (Arabic)
• SIRA: New Security Cadre Card
• SIRA: New Security License
• Saudi Arabia: Private Civil Security Guard Law, Royal Decree M/24 (Arabic text, King Khalid University)
• Umm Al-Qura Gazette: Royal Decree M/71 amending the law and setting fees (2022)
• Umm Al-Qura Gazette: Council of Ministers Decision No. 359 (2022)
• Umm Al-Qura Gazette: Ministry of Interior Decision No. 5264 amending Article 2 of the executive regulations (2025)