For companies wishing to offer therapeutic alternatives to their patients, or to expand into the Middle East market, the general trend is for these companies to start by importing into the UAE, then to look towards expanding into other markets in the region, depending on the success of their products in the UAE.

The importation of medical devices and pharmaceuticals into the UAE is controlled by the Ministry of Health.  The Ministry regulates the importation of both medical devices and pharmaceuticals for all of the emirates; there are no separate, individual, local emirates departments. In this article we will look at the procedure by which a company can import medical devices or pharmaceuticals into the UAE, with the intention of then selling these products to UAE hospitals or health care clinics.  The regulations that apply to hospitals wishing to import drugs and medical devices are different and will not be addressed in this article.