Food Trade in the UAE – Importer’s Guide This guide seeks to give food exporters more insight into the UAE’s import regulations, paperwork, and labeling requirements. Currently, many food items shipped are not compliant with the regulations, leading to wasted time, and resources, and in some cases, the entire shipment is lost. Knowing and following the rules should help reduce these violations and be beneficial to exporters, importers, as well as all UAE parties involved. Food Import Regulations For any interested party, trading of food consignments is bound to follow all the regulations specified by the Dubai Municipality. Some of the requirements need to be fulfilled at all the ports of entry include: Registration with Dubai Municipality E-Government The process for the importers begins with filling out an electronic application on the website of Dubai Municipality to register. After that the company must come to the E-Government counter and submit their copy of trade license, the registration request number along with the official company stamp. Register with Food Import & Re-Export System (FIRS) Program to Activate the Service For this process, the importers are required to register with E-government (as mentioned above), submit company’s trade license, provide company’s telephone, fax numbers, and Post Office Box, the name and number of the company’s representative, and details of warehouse of the company in Dubai. Register with Food Import & Re-Export System (FIRS) Program to Activate the Service The Food Import and Re-Export System (also known as FIRS) allows countries to track, monitor, and control the import and export of food products. The system was designed to help prevent the spread of food-borne illnesses and promote food safety by ensuring that food products comply with safety regulations. FIRS provides detailed information on food products, including the origin, destination, quantity, and quality of the products. It also allows countries to track shipments and manage the import and export of food products by generating reports and issuing certificates of compliance. FIRS also enable countries to monitor and enforce food safety regulations, maintain data on food products, and coordinate with other countries for the import and export of food products. Approval of Food Label During the process of applying to FIRS, there comes a step for approval of food labels where you’ll have to provide certain information about the food product, including brand name, product name, barcode, and much more. Later, the samples of each food product and its label are submitted to the Food Studies & Planning Section office, where the label will be studied thoroughly, and the necessary modifications shall be noted. Once this process is completed, an electronic payment must be paid to the Food Studies and Planning Office for approval. FIRS Registration and Classification System’s Other Requirements Another thing to make the importation process a successful one is to add production and expiration dates on the products. It is mandatory to follow these instructions to get yourself registered with FIRS. For any guidance related to the labeling of packaging food, GCC standard 9-2007 is what you should refer to. The Process of Food Product Registration in Dubai Municipality? Food Product Registration in Dubai