Notice after a revocation
Power of attorney cancellation notice in the UAE
Signing a revocation ends the authority on paper. A power of attorney cancellation notice is how the agent, and everyone still relying on the document, finds out, and until they know the old paper keeps being used.
- Names the exact document
- Reaches the agent first
- Proof kept of everything
What a power of attorney cancellation notice has to do
It is the written message that tells the agent, and the banks, registries and counterparties still relying on the document, that the authority granted in it has been revoked. It matters because the law treats knowledge as the dividing line, so until the people holding a copy know, the old document is still being acted on.
What makes it bite
Knowledge on the agent’s side
Governing article
Article 898, Federal Decree-Law 25/2025
Who else needs telling
Everyone still relying on the document
Why a signed revocation is not the end of it
Most guidance on cancelling a power of attorney stops at the notary counter. You sign the revocation, the file is stamped, and the job feels finished. It is not finished. The agent still holds a document that looks exactly as valid as it did the week before, and so does every bank, registry and counterparty who was ever handed a copy of it.
The notice is the part that closes that gap. It is not a formality bolted on at the end. It is the step that turns a revocation on paper into something that changes what other people do. Everything on this page is about that half of the job: who has to be told, what the message has to say, and how to keep proof that it went.
Why the law turns on who knows what
Revocation itself sits in Article 898 of Federal Decree-Law 25/2025, the law that repealed the 1985 Civil Code. It lets the principal revoke or restrict the agent’s authority at any time, unless the agency involves a right of a third party or was issued in the interest of the agent. Article 899 adds compensation where revocation comes at an inappropriate time or without acceptable justification. Article 902 puts the knowledge point plainly, for an agent authorised for litigation.
Federal Decree-Law 25/2025, Article 902
If the agent authorized for litigation acts within the scope of the agency after acquiring knowledge of their dismissal, they shall be liable. If they act before becoming aware, their act shall be effective.
Who has to hear about it
Work from the document outwards rather than from memory. Start with the agent, then take in everyone the power of attorney was ever shown to, because a copy sitting in a file somewhere is a copy that can still be presented.
- The agent named in the power of attorney
- Any sub-agent appointed under the original document
- Banks and finance providers holding a copy on file
- Registries and authorities where the document has been used
- The other side of any transaction still in progress
- Anyone who was handed a copy for their own records
Two notices, not one
The message to the agent and the message to everyone else do different jobs, and they rarely read the same way.
Inside the agency
The notice to the agent
This one ends the relationship. It names the revoked document, states what authority has stopped, and asks for the original and any copies to come back.
Outside the agency
The notice to those relying on it
This one protects you. It tells a bank, a registry or a counterparty that the document in their file has been revoked, and asks them to confirm they hold your notice.
Getting the notice out, and proving it went
Four stages, and the order matters. A notice sent before you know who is holding the document always leaves somebody out.
1
List everyone acting on the document
Before anything is written, build the list. Go through the original power of attorney and note what it allowed, then work through where it was actually used: the bank that opened an account on it, the registry that recorded a transaction, the counterparty part way through a deal, the sub-agent appointed under it. A notice is only as good as the list behind it.
2
Write it so the document cannot be mistaken
The notice has to identify one document and no other. That means the date it was issued, its reference number, the notary or authority that attested it, and the names of the principal and the agent exactly as they appear on the face of it. Then say plainly what authority has ended, and whether any part of it survives.
3
Choose a route that reaches that particular person
The method has to suit who must be reached. A resident agent, a relationship manager at a bank and a counterparty’s lawyer are not reached in the same way, and an agent who has left the country is reached differently again. Pick the route that puts the message in front of that person and leaves a record behind it.
4
Keep proof, then go back and check
Keep what was sent, who it went to and when it went. Then follow up on each one. The whole point of the notice is that somebody now knows, and a message that was sent but never landed has not achieved that. Ask every holder of the document to confirm in writing that your revocation has reached them.
What goes into the file before you send
Most of this comes off the face of the original power of attorney, so gather it first. A notice that describes the wrong document is worse than no notice at all, because it invites an argument about which document you meant.
Identifying the document
So nobody can claim doubt
- The date the power of attorney was issued
- Its reference number
- The notary or authority that attested it
- The emirate it was attested in
Identifying the people
Names exactly as written
- The principal’s full name as it appears on the document
- The agent’s full name as it appears on the document
- Emirates ID number, or passport for a non-resident
- Any sub-agent appointed under the original
If it has to reach someone abroad
Extra steps once it leaves the UAE
- Arabic translation by a legal translator registered with the Ministry of Justice
- Both language versions signed by the parties
- MOFAIC attestation, published at AED 150 for individual affairs documents
- AED 2,000 where the document is classed as commercial
Mistakes that leave the old document alive
Each of the first three leaves a revoked power of attorney still working. The second list is the version that holds up.
- Telling the agent and stopping there
- Describing the power of attorney loosely, with no date or reference
- Sending the notice and never checking that it arrived
- Notify every holder of the document, not only the agent
- Name the date, the reference number and the attesting authority
- Ask for written confirmation, and keep it with the revocation
Frequently asked questions
The questions we are asked most often on this one.
What is a power of attorney cancellation notice in the UAE?
It is the written message telling the agent, and everyone still relying on the document, that the authority granted in it has been revoked. The revocation itself is signed before a notary public, under Article 898 of Federal Decree-Law 25/2025. The notice is the separate step that makes the revocation known to the people who would otherwise go on acting on the old document.
Is there a set wording or channel for the notice?
Nothing we can point to sets a prescribed form, wording or channel. What the notice has to achieve is fixed: identify the revoked document beyond argument, state what authority has ended, and actually reach the person who must know. Anyone offering you an official notice format should be asked which authority published it, and on what date.
When should the notice go out?
As soon as the revocation is signed. We cannot quote you a deadline, and a deadline is not the useful way to think about it. Article 902 shows the principle for an agent authorised for litigation: acts done after they learn of their dismissal make them liable, while acts done before they knew are still effective. Every day without notice is a day the old document works.
Who counts as a third party that needs telling?
Anyone who has acted on the power of attorney or still holds a copy of it. In practice that is the bank where an account was opened on it, the registry where a transaction was recorded, the counterparty in a deal part way through, and any sub-agent appointed under the original. Work outwards from the document rather than from memory.
What if the agent is outside the UAE?
The route has to suit where they are. If the notice itself has to be attested for use abroad, the MOFAIC attestation service covers the Ministry’s attestation and the UAE mission in the destination country, published at AED 150 for individual affairs documents and AED 2,000 for commercial ones. The UAE is not a party to the Apostille Convention, so an apostille does not replace that chain.
What if the agent keeps the original document?
Ask for it back in the notice, but do not treat its return as the thing that matters. The authority ended when the revocation was notarised, and what stops the old paper being used is that the people it would be presented to already know. Put your effort into the list of holders rather than into retrieving one copy.
Does an agency ever end without anyone sending a notice?
Yes. Article 897 of Federal Decree-Law 25/2025 lists the events that extinguish an agency: completion of the work entrusted to the agent, expiry of the term specified for the agency, and the death or loss of legal capacity of either the principal or the agent. Even then the same problem appears, because nobody holding a copy necessarily knows.
What do you do on a cancellation notice, and what do you not do?
We draft the notice, arrange the Arabic legal translation, check the two versions against each other, help you build the list of people who must be told, and attend the notary appointment for the revocation with you. The notarisation is carried out before a notary public. Notarial duties are performed only by public notaries, private notaries and accredited UAE consuls.
Start here
Send us the revocation and your list of holders
We are lawyers and legal consultants, not notaries. We read the power of attorney you have revoked, draft the notice in language that identifies it beyond argument, arrange the Arabic legal translation and check the two versions against each other. We help you work out who is still holding the document, and we keep a record of what went where. Tell us who needs to know.
Tell us what the document has to do
Say who will receive it and what you need it to allow, and you will get a straight answer on the wording, the government fees and what to bring. You can also send it through the contact form.
Call us
Speak to the person who will handle your file and get an answer on the same call.
Send photographs of your passport, your Emirates ID and anything the matter attaches to.
Best for a company matter, or anything that runs to several documents.
Visit the office
Jebel Ali area, Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai. Come in, or have it handled remotely and only turn up to sign.
Opening hours. Monday to Thursday, 9:00 to 18:00. Friday, 9:00 to 12:00. Saturday, 9:00 to 18:00. Sunday, closed.