Can you file a criminal complaint against a doctor in the UAE?

Can you file a criminal complaint against a doctor?

Yes, with the Public Prosecution, but it goes to the health authority first. The Medical Liability Law says the Public Prosecution refers complaints about medical errors directly to the competent health authority.¹ The Executive Regulations say courts and the Public Prosecution hand over lawsuits and complaints about medical malpractice, with copies of the attachments, to the health authority for its Medical Liability Committee.²

The committee examines the case either way. Use the complaint finder to see which health authority covers the facility.

Can the doctor you complain about be arrested?

Not at the start. No practitioner may be investigated, arrested or held in temporary detention because of a complaint until the health authority’s final medical report confirms a gross medical error.¹

A gross error has a two-part test set by the Executive Regulations.² The gross medical error page explains it.

What penalties could the doctor in your case face?

Article 34 of the Medical Liability Law sets maximum penalties. Table 1 sets them out.¹

Penalties in other laws do not apply to acts this law penalises.¹

Ask the Public Prosecution which charge it is considering.

Can you settle with the doctor?

Yes. The victim, the victim’s lawyer, the heirs or their lawyer can ask for reconciliation with the accused for a gross medical error, at any stage of the case and even after a final judgment.¹ You can ask before the health authority, which refers the request to the Public Prosecution, or before the Public Prosecution itself.¹

• Reconciliation ends the criminal action. If the penalty is already being served, the Public Prosecution orders it suspended.¹
• It does not affect your right to go to the civil courts for compensation.¹
• It is not valid if the same acts are repeated.¹

Make the request to the health authority or the Public Prosecution handling the case.

Does a criminal case affect your compensation claim?

It can. If your compensation claim arises from a crime and the criminal case can still proceed after three years, the three years for a civil claim start only when the criminal case ends.³

Reported cases include:

• Gulf News reported on 30 December 2025 that four doctors were convicted of gross medical negligence after a death in childbirth, fined Dh50,000 each and ordered to pay blood money. A civil court then awarded Dh2 million and said it was bound by the criminal ruling on the error.⁴
• Gulf News reported on 20 November 2025 that a Dubai civil court held an earlier criminal judgment confirming the errors binding on the civil case, and ordered three doctors and two medical centres to pay Dh1 million.⁵
• Khaleej Times reported on 21 January 2021 that a lower criminal court fined a doctor Dh100,000 for negligence after laser burns, and an Abu Dhabi civil court later awarded Dh170,000.⁶
• Khaleej Times reported on 11 October 2025 that an Al Ain court awarded Dh100,000 against a dentist who had been acquitted in a criminal case on the same incident. The court said the civil court can still find her liable.⁷

The compensation page covers the civil claim and the time limits page lists every deadline.

The small print

• Articles. Article 24 of Federal Decree-Law No. 4 of 2016 covers complaints to the Public Prosecution and the bar on investigation, arrest and temporary detention. Article 34 sets the penalties. Article 35 covers reconciliation. Article 36 excludes penalties in other laws for the same acts.¹
• Executive Regulations. Article 8(3) of Cabinet Resolution No. 40 of 2019 requires courts and the Public Prosecution to pass medical malpractice cases to the health authority.²
• Civil time limit. Article 258(2) of the 2025 Civil Transactions Law.³