Administrative Resolution No. (39) of 2011 Issuing the Implementing

Administrative Resolution No. (39) of 2011 Issuing the Implementing Bylaw of Executive Council Resolution No. (20) of 2011

Regulating Social Work Professions in the Emirate of Dubai

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Administrative Resolution No. (39) of 2011

Issuing the Implementing Bylaw of Executive Council Resolution No. (20) of 2011

Regulating Social Work Professions in the Emirate of Dubai

_____________

The Director General of the Community Development Authority in Dubai,

After perusal of:

Law No. (12) of 2008 Establishing the Community Development Authority in Dubai and its

amendments; and

Executive Council Resolution No. (20) of 2011 Regulating Social Work Professions in the

Emirate of Dubai,

Does hereby issue this Resolution.

Article (1)

Pursuant to this Resolution, the attached Bylaw Concerning the Licensing of Social Work

Professions in the Emirate of Dubai, inclusive of the rules and procedures stipulated therein,

is approved.

Article (2)

Professionals licensed to practise Social Work Professions in the Emirate of Dubai by the

effective date of the above-mentioned Executive Council Resolution No. (20) of 2011 must

comply with its provisions and with those of the attached Bylaw within a period not

exceeding one (1) year from that effective date.

Article (3)

Any provision in any other bylaw will be repealed to the extent that it contradicts the

provisions of the attached Bylaw.

Every effort has been made to produce an accurate and complete English version of this legislation. However, for

the purpose of its interpretation and application, reference must be made to the original Arabic text. In case of

conflict, the Arabic text will prevail.

Administrative Resolution No. (39) of 2011 Issuing the Implementing Bylaw of Executive Council Resolution No. (20) of 2011

Regulating Social Work Professions in the Emirate of Dubai

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Article (4)

This Resolution comes into force on the day on which it is issued, and will be published in

the Official Gazette.

Khalid Al Kamda

Director General

Issued in Dubai on 21 November 2011

Corresponding to 25 Thu al-Hijjah 1433 A.H.

Administrative Resolution No. (39) of 2011 Issuing the Implementing Bylaw of Executive Council Resolution No. (20) of 2011

Regulating Social Work Professions in the Emirate of Dubai

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Bylaw Concerning the

Licensing of Social Work Professions in the Emirate of Dubai

ـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ

Title of the Bylaw

Article (1)

This Bylaw will be cited as “Bylaw Concerning the Licensing of Social Work Professions in the

Emirate of Dubai”.

Definitions

Article (2)

The following words and expressions, wherever mentioned in this Bylaw, will have the

meaning indicated opposite each of them unless the context implies otherwise:

UAE:

The United Arab Emirates.

Emirate:

The Emirate of Dubai.

CDA:

The Community Development Authority in Dubai.

Director General:

The director general of the CDA.

Department:

The Social Sector Regulatory and Licensing Department of the

CDA.

Social Work

Profession:

A profession which attends to the welfare of individuals and

groups, studying their conditions, rehabilitating them, and

providing them with therapy, with a view to improving their living

conditions through the provision of appropriate humanitarian

conditions. This includes Social Counsellors, Social Workers, Social

Therapists, and Special Education Teachers.

Resolution:

Executive Council Resolution No. (20) of 2011 Regulating Social

Work Professions in the Emirate of Dubai.

Registration:

The entry of a Professional on the Roll maintained by the CDA.

Professional:

A natural person licensed by the CDA to practise a Social Work

Profession in the Emirate.

Administrative Resolution No. (39) of 2011 Issuing the Implementing Bylaw of Executive Council Resolution No. (20) of 2011

Regulating Social Work Professions in the Emirate of Dubai

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Roll:

The paper-based or electronic register maintained by the CDA in

accordance with the provisions of this Bylaw for registering

Professionals.

Committee:

The Committee for Licensing Professionals in the Social Work

Sector.

Scope of Application

Article (3)

The provisions of this Bylaw will apply to all persons practising Social Work Professions in the

Emirate, including free zones and Special Development Zones.

Duties and Powers of the CDA

Article (4)

For the purposes of implementing this Bylaw, the CDA will have the duties and powers to:

1. establish the conditions, rules, and criteria that must be met, and the procedures that

must be followed, for licensing Professionals in the Emirate;

2. determine new licence, licence renewal, and licence reinstatement applications of

Professionals, in accordance with the conditions and requirements approved in this

respect;

3. maintain the Roll for registering Professionals according to the categories, conditions,

and requirements approved in this respect;

4. issue identification cards to Professionals registered with the CDA on the Roll, and issue

Registration certificates;

5. determine licensing applications of fresh graduates, and register them on the Roll in the

category of trainee Professionals;

6. establish the rules for suspending Professionals from practising Social Work Professions

and for revoking their licences, in accordance with the conditions stipulated in the

legislation regulating Social Work Professions, including the Resolution, this Bylaw, and

any other bylaws or instructions issued by the CDA;

7. prepare application forms for new licences, renewal of licences, and variation of licence

details of Professionals;

Administrative Resolution No. (39) of 2011 Issuing the Implementing Bylaw of Executive Council Resolution No. (20) of 2011

Regulating Social Work Professions in the Emirate of Dubai

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8. receive, investigate, and take the appropriate action concerning complaints filed against

practitioners of Social Work Professions;

9. impose the penalties prescribed in the Resolution on violators of its provisions and the

provisions of the bylaws and instructions issued by the CDA;

10. prepare and implement the programmes required for qualifying and training

Professionals; and

11. perform any other duties related to the licensing of Professionals, which fall within the

functions of the CDA.

The Roll

Article (5)

a. A Roll for registering the following categories will be created at the CDA:

1. Professionals who actually practise Social Work Professions in the Emirate, namely

Social Counsellors, Social Workers, Social Therapists, and Special Education

Teachers; and

2. trainee Professionals who are newly graduated UAE nationals.

b. The Director General will determine the form of the Roll and the data and information

that must be entered in it.

Practice of Social Work Professions

Article (6)

a. No person may practise a Social Work Profession in the Emirate or hold himself out, in

any manner or way whatsoever, to be a Professional unless that person is licensed by

the CDA and registered on the Roll; holds a valid licence; and practises through a social

work establishment licensed by the CDA.

b. A licence will be valid for a period of two (2) years, renewable for the same period. The

licence holder must submit a renewal application at least one (1) month prior to the

date of expiry of his licence.

c. Where a Professional fails, without a reason acceptable to the Committee, to renew his

licence within the period prescribed in paragraph (b) of this Article, the penalties

stipulated in the Resolution will be imposed on him.

Administrative Resolution No. (39) of 2011 Issuing the Implementing Bylaw of Executive Council Resolution No. (20) of 2011

Regulating Social Work Professions in the Emirate of Dubai

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General Licensing Requirements

Article (7)

For a person to be licensed to practise a Social Work Profession and be registered on the

Roll, he must:

1. have full legal capacity;

2. be of good character and repute and not have been convicted of any felony or other

crime affecting honour or trustworthiness unless he has been pardoned or rehabilitated;

3. for non-UAE nationals, be a resident of the UAE;

4. have work experience of no less than one (1) year in the Social Work Profession to be

practised;

5. successfully pass the theoretical and practical tests or training courses accredited by the

CDA in this respect;

6. work through a social work establishment licensed by the CDA;

7. practise the Social Work Profession on a full-time basis; and

8. meet any other conditions prescribed by the CDA.

Particular Licensing Requirements

Article (8)

In addition to the technical requirements approved by the CDA, a person wishing to practise

any of the following Social Work Professions must meet the relevant requirements as

follows:

a. A Social Counsellor must hold a bachelor’s degree in social counselling if he is a UAE

national, or a master’s degree in social counselling if he is a non-UAE national.

b. A Social Worker must hold a bachelor’s degree in social work.

c. Social Therapists:

1. A behavioural therapist must hold a bachelor’s degree in behavioural sciences if he

is a UAE national, or a master’s degree in behavioural sciences if he is a non-UAE

national.

2. A psychological and emotional disorder therapist must hold a master’s degree in

psychology.

Administrative Resolution No. (39) of 2011 Issuing the Implementing Bylaw of Executive Council Resolution No. (20) of 2011

Regulating Social Work Professions in the Emirate of Dubai

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d. A Special Education Teacher must hold a bachelor’s degree in special education if he is a

UAE national, or a master’s degree in special education if he is a non-UAE national.

New Licence Application Mandatory Attachments

Article (9)

An application for a licence to practise a Social Work Profession will be submitted to the

Department on the relevant form approved by the Department, together with the following

documents:

1. for UAE nationals, copies of valid passport and family book (Khulasat Qaid); and for non-

UAE nationals, copies of valid passport and valid residence permit;

2. the résumé of the applicant;

3. copies of academic and work experience certificates attested by the competent entities,

together with a certificate issued by an entity recognised by the CDA confirming the

authenticity of such academic qualifications and work experience;

4. a certificate of good conduct issued by the competent entities in the Emirate; and

5. any other documents required by the CDA.

Licence Renewal Requirements

Article (10)

For a licence of a Professional to be renewed, the Professional must:

1. be actually working for a social work establishment licensed by the CDA;

2. for non-UAE nationals, have a valid UAE work permit and be sponsored by the social

work establishment through which he practises the Social Work Profession;

3. provide the CDA with a report that contains a summary of the work and activities he

conducted during the previous licensing period;

4. practise the Social Work Profession on a full-time basis; and

5. meet any other requirements prescribed by the CDA.

Administrative Resolution No. (39) of 2011 Issuing the Implementing Bylaw of Executive Council Resolution No. (20) of 2011

Regulating Social Work Professions in the Emirate of Dubai

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Licence Renewal Application Mandatory Attachments

Article (11)

An application for renewal of the licence to practise a Social Work Profession will be

submitted to the Department on the relevant form approved by the Department, together

with the following documents:

1. for UAE nationals, copies of valid passport and family book (Khulasat Qaid); and for non-

UAE nationals, copies of a valid passport and valid residence permit;

2. a letter issued by the social work establishment through which the applicant practises

his Social Work Profession certifying that the applicant is still employed by that

establishment;

3. a certificate of good conduct issued by the competent entities in the UAE;

4. evidence of completion of at least forty (40) hours of continuing professional education

in the Social Work Profession which he is licensed to practise;

5. where the applicant receives a new academic qualification, a certificate issued by an

entity recognised by the CDA confirming the authenticity of that qualification; and

6. any other documents required by the CDA.

Rejection of New Licence or Licence Renewal Applications of

Non-UAE National Professionals

Article (12)

Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles (7) and (8) of this Bylaw, the CDA may, in

accordance with the exigencies of public interest and for the purpose of Emiratisation of

Social Work Professions in the Emirate, reject new licence or licence renewal applications of

non-UAE national Professionals to practise Social Work Professions in the Emirate.

New Licence and Licence Renewal Procedures

Article (13)

When issuing or renewing the licence of a Professional, the following procedures will apply:

a. A new licence or licence renewal application will be submitted to the Department on the

form prescribed for this purpose, together with the required documents.

b. The Department will record the new licence or licence renewal application on a register,

and the applicant will be given notice of his application submission date.

Administrative Resolution No. (39) of 2011 Issuing the Implementing Bylaw of Executive Council Resolution No. (20) of 2011

Regulating Social Work Professions in the Emirate of Dubai

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c. The Department will consider the new licence application or licence renewal application

and verify that it meets the relevant conditions and requirements and that it is

accompanied by all required documents.

d. The Department will submit to the Committee its recommendations on the new licence

or licence renewal application within fourteen (14) days from the date on which all

required documents are provided.

e. The Committee will issue its decision on the new licence or licence renewal application

within fourteen (14) days from the date of submission of the same to it. The application

will be deemed rejected if no decision is issued by the Committee within this period.

f. Once the Professional is granted a licence to practise a Profession, the Department will

Taking the Social Work Profession Oath

Article (14)

a. A Professional may not practise a Social Work Profession in the Emirate unless he takes

the following oath before the Director General or his authorised representative:

“I swear by Allah the Almighty to perform my duties in full compliance with the

legislation in force in the Emirate, and to observe the code of conduct and ethics of

the Social Work Profession.”

b. An oath-taking report will be drafted, of which a copy will be deposited in the file of the

Professional maintained by the Department.

Identification Card

Article (15)

a. The Department will grant each Professional an identification card confirming that its

bearer is licensed to practise a Social Work Profession in the Emirate.

b. The identification card is an official document which a Professional must protect from

damage and loss, and use only for its intended purposes. In particular, the Professional

must:

1. not permit others to use his identification card;

2. when requested, produce the card to the individuals and public and private entities

dealing with him;

3. notify the Department if the card is lost or damaged;

Administrative Resolution No. (39) of 2011 Issuing the Implementing Bylaw of Executive Council Resolution No. (20) of 2011

Regulating Social Work Professions in the Emirate of Dubai

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4. not make any variation, erasure, or deletion of, or addition to, the information

included in the card; and

5. surrender the identification card to the Department where the Professional is struck

off the Roll or is suspended from practising the Social Work Profession, or where any

of the details of the identification card is modified by the Department.

Reinstatement of Licences

Article (16)

a. Upon a written request submitted by a Professional whose licence has been revoked, the

Committee may reinstate his licence after the lapse of three (3) years where the licence is

revoked pursuant to a court judgement or disciplinary decision, or after the lapse of one

(1) year where the licence is revoked as a result of failure to renew it. The Committee

may reinstate the licence where it is satisfied that the Professional has remedied his

situation and redressed the violations he committed. The Committee may also exempt

any Professional from compliance with the periods stipulated in this paragraph.

b. The requirements stipulated in Articles (7) and (8) of this Bylaw will apply to

reinstatement of licences of Professionals.

Obligations of Professionals

Article (17)

A Professional must comply with all legislation regulating Social Work Professions, including

the Resolution, and the bylaws and instructions issued by the CDA, failing which he will be

subject to the appropriate disciplinary action and prescribed penalties.

Khalid Al Kamda

Director General