What must you be told before treatment, and when is your consent needed?

What must your doctor tell you?

You must be told about your condition and your treatment options, and warned of complications before treatment starts. Article 4 of the medical liability law says a doctor must:¹

• keep you aware of the treatment options available
• tell you the nature of your condition and how serious it is, unless your interest or your psychological state requires otherwise
• tell you, or your family, of the complications that may result from a diagnosis, treatment or surgery before it starts
• write your prescription with the medicine, dose and use, and the doctor’s name, signature and date.

Your family, relatives or companions must be told instead if you lack legal capacity, or if your condition does not allow you to be told and you have not named someone.¹ The regulations add that complications must be explained “in a clear and simplified manner”.²

Before you agree to a procedure, ask the doctor to list its complications, and write down what you were told.

When does your doctor need your consent?

For any treatment, with exceptions for emergencies and for diseases that threaten public health. A doctor may not treat you without your consent unless urgent intervention is needed and your consent cannot be obtained for any reason, or your disease is infectious or threatens public health or safety (Article 5(1)).¹

• If you lack legal capacity, your own consent is accepted for examination, diagnosis and the first dose of treatment, as long as a relative or companion is told the treatment plan.¹
• A doctor may not examine a patient of the other sex without a third party present and without the patient’s prior consent, unless required (Article 5(7)).¹
• A doctor may not carry out unnecessary procedures or surgery without your informed consent (Article 5(10)).¹

If you are asked to agree to something you do not understand, say so and ask for it in writing.

What must written consent for surgery cover?

The nature of the surgery, the success rate and the possible complications. Article 8 of the law requires written consent after you are told the possible effects and complications.¹ Article 3 of the regulations says consent must follow an explanation of “the nature of the surgery, the success ratio, and the potential complications”.²

The same article applies these rules to chemotherapy, radiotherapy and any other treatment the Minister names.² Before surgery, Article 8 also requires a surgeon qualified for the operation, tests showing the surgery is necessary and suitable and that your condition allows it, and a facility equipped for it.¹

Ask for a copy of your signed consent form. It belongs in your medical file, so see medical records.

Who consents for you if you cannot?

Your spouse or a relative up to the fourth degree. Anyone aged 18 or over can consent to surgery unless they lack legal capacity (Article 8).¹ The regulations say a spouse or relative consents for an adult whose consent cannot be obtained, for example because of unconsciousness, loss of perception from a mental or psychological illness, or a condition that does not allow it.²

The order of relatives is followed as far as possible. If relatives of the same degree disagree, the view in favour of consent prevails where the treating doctor and another doctor judge it to be in the patient’s interest (Article 3).² If no consent can be obtained from the patient, spouse or relatives, the treating doctor, another doctor at the same facility and the facility’s director must confirm the need for surgery in a report (Article 8).¹

If you signed for a family member, keep a copy of what you signed.

What happens in an emergency?

The Article 8 conditions for surgery, written consent among them, do not apply where surgery is needed immediately to save the life of the patient or the fetus and to avoid dangerous complications (Article 8).¹ A doctor may not refuse to treat a patient in an emergency (Article 5(2)).¹

If you later complain, record whether staff told you at the time that it was an emergency.

What if you had a procedure you did not need?

The law forbids unnecessary procedures or surgery without your informed consent, and Article 32 sets a fine for it.¹ Emirates 24|7 reported on 1 July 2026 that the chairman of the Supreme Committee for Medical Liability named unnecessary or unjustified procedures as one of three main causes of medical errors.³

The National reported on 21 December 2023 that a Dubai court ordered a hospital and a doctor to pay Dh7 million to a woman given a hysterectomy she had not requested, and Dh1 million to her husband. A medical liability committee had found that the surgeon’s failure to confirm the type of surgery, and the lack of a consultation before it, amounted to severe negligence.⁴

Find the authority to complain to with the complaint finder.

The small print

• Article 32. The English text sets a fine of not less than AED 10,000 for breaching Article 5(2) or 5(10), unless the breach affects the safety of the patient’s body.¹ The Arabic text sets AED 10,000 to AED 100,000, and the Arabic text prevails.⁵
• Records. The regulations require every action to be documented in your medical file with its type, date and time (Article 2(5)).²
• Leaving hospital. You may leave at your own request if you are fully competent, after being told the consequences, and must sign a written acknowledgment. No one may be kept in a health facility without their consent without justification (Article 9).¹
• Facility standard. The facility must have the staff, equipment and supplies for the type of surgery and for dealing with its complications (Article 3(1) of the regulations).²