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Part One General Provisions: General Provisions
المادة 1
Article (1) Definitions In application of the provisions of this Decree-Law, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings assigned to each of them, unless the context otherwise requires: State : The United Arab Emirates. The Ministry : Ministry of Health & Prevention. The EDE : The Emirates Drug Establishment (EDE) Minister : Minister of Health & Prevention. Board of Directors (BOD) : The Emirates Drug Establishment Board of Directors. Chairman : EDE Chairman BOD. Competent Health Entity : Any local government body concerned with health affairs, each within their jurisdiction. Medical Product : The product described in Article (2) herein. Pharmaceutical Product : Any product that contains an active substance or group of active substances that achieves the intended purpose of use thereof in or on the human or animal body through a biological effect, and which is manufactured, sold, or offered for use in the following cases: 1. Diagnosis, treatment, cure, relief, or prevention of a disease. 2. Restoring, renewing, modifying, or correcting the physiological functions. The following shall also be included in Pharmaceutical Products: 1. BioPharmaceutical Products; 2. Food Supplements; 3. Cosmetics. Biopharmaceutical Products : Pharmaceutical Products obtained by biotechnology from a living organism, and are divided into several categories such as
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Federal Decree-Law of 2024 Governing Medical Products, Pharmacists and Pharmaceutical Establishments 3 vaccines, monoclonal antibodies, growth factors, blood derivatives, plasma derivatives, advanced medical therapy products, and allergy detection products. Advanced Medical Treatment Products : Pharmaceutical Products based on modern and innovative technologies such as gene and cell therapy, stem cell therapy, genetic engineering, and engineered tissues, which are designed to treat, prevent, or diagnose complex and genetic diseases and injuries by modifying genes or replacing abnormal cells and tissues. Local Product : It is a Pharmaceutical Product that has obtained Marketing Approval from the Marketing Rights holder within the State and is manufactured in local factories at manufacturing rates determined by the EDE. Food Supplements : Products taken orally that support the human diet and do not treat, diagnose, or prevent diseases. They consist of natural or partially manufactured products, or both, and do not require a prescription or direct medical supervision when used. Cosmetics : Products with a medical effect that are used on the human body to produce a desired local effect on the skin, hair or nails and do not require a prescription or direct medical supervision for their sale when used. Innovative Product : A Pharmaceutical Product that is the first of its kind in its category, either because it contains new components or formulations that have not been used before to treat a specific condition or is used in new ways, or it was developed and marketed for the first time by the developing company and has not previously obtained Marketing Approvals in the State, and the Marketing Approval for the product was submitted to the EDE by the company that invented it or through someone it authorized for this purpose, while the product enjoyed valid patents at the time of submission.
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Federal Decree-Law of 2024 Governing Medical Products, Pharmacists and Pharmaceutical Establishments 4 Orphan Pharmaceutical Product : A Medical Product intended to treat, diagnose, or prevent a rare disease or condition. Alternative Product : A Pharmaceutical Product that is similar to another Pharmaceutical Product, having the same qualitative and quantitative composition of active ingredients, the same Pharmaceutical Form, and being bioequivalent thereto. It may have the status of pioneer, so it will be the first generic Pharmaceutical Product to obtain Marketing Approval in the State, similar to the innovative product that has not obtained Marketing Approval in the State in terms of indication, Pharmaceutical Form, active ingredients, and Bioequivalence, without prejudice to the intellectual property laws in force in the State. Compassionate Use : Use of a Medical Product for a patient with a serious illness or life-threatening condition outside of Clinical Trials when no alternative treatment options are available. Medical Equipment : A Medical Product that contains a substance, device, instrument, engine, implant, detector, or system, including accessories, and operating software thereof. It shall include wearable devices and products based on AI technology, which shall achieve the intended purpose of its use in or on the human or animal body without a pharmaceutical, immune, or metabolic effect. In addition, it is manufactured, sold, or offered for use in the following cases: 1. Diagnosis, treatment, cure, relief, or prevention of a disease, an injury, or a disability; 2. Detection, modification, or replacement of anatomical position. 3. Birth Control.
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Federal Decree-Law of 2024 Governing Medical Products, Pharmacists and Pharmaceutical Establishments 5 Health Care Product : Any Medical Product that is used for the general health care of humans or is not intended for the diagnosis, treatment, cure, or prevention of any disease, and does not require a prescription or direct medical supervision when used. Pharmaceutical Product : A Medical Product manufactured in a specific Pharmaceutical Form and has specific uses in humans or animals. Veterinary Product : A substance, a composition of substances, or a material intended for the treatment, prevention, or diagnosis of medical conditions in animals, or for the repair or modification of physiological functions in animals. Personalized Medicine : A personalized or precision medicine model that considers variation in genes, environment, and lifestyle to determine treatment and prevention of disease and more accurately predict which product treatment and prevention strategies will work best for each individual patient. Defective Product : Any Medical Product that does not meet the quality requirements and does not meet the requirements specified in this Decree-Law, its Executive Regulations, and the decisions issued in implementation thereof. Counterfeit Product : A Medical Product that has been deliberately prepared with the intent to deceive or mislead, including: 1. Providing its packaging, packaging, identification card or internal leaflet with false or incorrect information concerning its identity or source, in a manner that does not correspond to reality. 2. Imitating another Medical Product using the same artistic shapes and colours of the original product packaging, package, and label. 3. Adding or deleting one or more active or inactive ingredients from the composition stated on its packaging, package,
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Federal Decree-Law of 2024 Governing Medical Products, Pharmacists and Pharmaceutical Establishments 6 identification card or internal leaflet without the approval of the EDE. 4. Changing the quantity or size of one or more of its active and inactive components without the approval of the EDE. Preliminary Materials : Materials used in the composition or manufacture of a Medical Product or any other products. Pharmaceutical Raw Materials : The basic components used in the pharmaceutical industry that aim to achieve the desired therapeutic effect when manufactured in a suitable Pharmaceutical Form. These materials include the chemical elements and active compounds that form the effective basis of the drug, in addition to inactive materials used to improve the form and properties of the drug, such as solvents and excipients of all kinds. Excipients and Solvents : Inactive ingredients used to improve the form and properties of a medicine Active ingredient : Any one or more substances responsible for the primary effects of a Medical Product, and which may be obtained from humans, animals, plants, microorganisms, chemicals, or other sources. Marketing Approval : The approval granted by the EDE to a legal entity licensed in the State to market a specific Medical Product. This legal entity shall be responsible for all aspects of marketing, promotion, and follow-up of the product in the State. Annex to the Marketing Approval : Attached to the Marketing Approval is a document containing all details related to the Medical Product, its description, the composition of the active and inactive ingredients and their quantities, uses, dosages, methods of use, side effects and any other details specified by the Decree-Law, its Executive Regulations and the decisions issued in implementation thereof. Product Brochure : A paper or electronic leaflet containing important and concise information for the Marketing Approval supplement intended for users of the Medical Product.
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Federal Decree-Law of 2024 Governing Medical Products, Pharmacists and Pharmaceutical Establishments 7 The Main Effects of the Medical Product : The effects on the user of the Medical Product that are positive for its uses included in its Marketing Approval. New Use : A newly added use to the list of previously authorized uses of a Medical Product that has previously been approved for marketing in the State, provided that the new use results from effects separate from those basic effects of its previous uses. Approved Pharmacopoeia : A set of documents and standards that define the basic requirements for the quality of pharmaceutical and Pharmaceutical Products in the State and are concerned with providing precise guidelines for pharmaceutical manufacturing Establishments to ensure that Pharmaceutical Products produced in the State comply with strict standards of safety, effectiveness and quality. Pharmaceutical Form : The form of a Medical Product that is prepared or manufactured into its final form and taken by the patient. New Way to Use : A new method of administration of a Medical Product for which there is no previous Marketing Approval in the State in order to obtain the product main effects. Side View : The sum of the indications and symptoms documented in the product internal leaflet and expected to occur in some patients, which may appear in the patient while using the Medical Product in accordance with the uses, doses and methods of use stated on the packaging or card of the Medical Product or in its internal leaflet and specified in the Marketing Approval. Reverse Reaction : Any unintended or unwanted effect or symptom that appears in the user of the Medical Product within the doses documented in the internal leaflet and the uses authorized in the Marketing Approval and which occurs as a result of effects separate from those of the primary effects of the Medical Product.
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Federal Decree-Law of 2024 Governing Medical Products, Pharmacists and Pharmaceutical Establishments 8 Opposite Event : An undesirable medical event that occurs to a user of a Medical Product or to a person exposed to a specific health intervention and which does not necessarily have a causal relationship with taking the product. It is also called an adverse effect if the Medical Product is a medical device. Adverse Reaction : Adverse reactions that are not expected to occur during the use of the Medical Product and whose nature or severity exceeds those documented in the Marketing authorization annex. Serious Side Effect or Serious Adverse Event : An undesirable medical event not intended for treatment that leads the user of the Medical Product or an adverse event, at any dose or by any method, to one or more of the following results: 1. Death. 2. Serious, life-threatening illness or injury. 3. Permanent or substantial impairment of body structure, body function, or organs. 4. Causing an abnormality, birth defect, disability or permanent impairment. 5. Chronic Disease. 6. Causing a life-threatening condition that requires hospitalization or prolonged hospitalization. 7. A medical or surgical intervention to prevent life-threatening disease or injury or permanent impairment of body structure, function, or organs. 8. Fetal distress, fetal death, congenital or organic malformation, or any negative effects on the fetus. Non Clinical Research : Pharmaceutical research and toxicity research to evaluate the safety of a Medical Product and its readiness for the Clinical Research stage that is not conducted on humans. This research yields preliminary information about the effectiveness, toxicity, effect of the drug in the body and its level of safety. It is conducted through laboratory experiments (test tube or cell
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Federal Decree-Law of 2024 Governing Medical Products, Pharmacists and Pharmaceutical Establishments 9 culture In Vitro) or experiments on animals (in vivo experiments), or using computer models of interactions between the drug or the targeted treatment (In Silico). Clinical Research : It is research conducted on groups of people or the study of their data, samples, or tissues for understanding health and disease, for the most important reasons: 1. Explore the cause of a disease or group of symptoms. 2. Test effectiveness, efficiency and quality on a specific Medical Product that are conducted on groups of humans to determine how it is absorbed, metabolized, distributed, and eliminated from the body, to identify basic effects, side effects, and adverse interactions thereof. With the aim of confirming the effectiveness, efficiency, quality, and safety of using the Medical Product within the approved uses in accordance with the Marketing Approval granted to the Medical Product, or for new uses or drugs under research and development 3. Testing the effectiveness of a therapeutic procedure in treating symptoms or conditions. 4. Learn how a particular intervention or factor affects people health. Clinical Research consists of two basic types of research: 1. Clinical Trial. 2. Other Clinical Research: Any Research Projects that do not fall within Clinical Trials and include: a. Research Projects on humans that involve procedures for taking samples of biological material or collecting personal health data on individuals, such as health survey projects of various types. b. Research Projects involving the further use of biological materials or personal health data of individuals.
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Federal Decree-Law of 2024 Governing Medical Products, Pharmacists and Pharmaceutical Establishments 10 c. Research Projects carried out on deceased persons. d. Research Projects carried out on stillbirth. Bioavailability : The speed, extent and availability of the active ingredient of a Medical Product or any of its active metabolites in the blood or at its site of action in the body. Bioequivalence : There is no statistically significant difference in the bioavailability of the active ingredient in a Pharmaceutical Product compared to another product with the same active ingredient. Research Information : Any information obtained as a result of research in chemistry, manufacturing, controls, Non-Clinical and Clinical Research to support the safety, efficacy and quality of a new Medical Product for Marketing Approval. Equivalent Alternative : A Pharmaceutical Product that is an alternative to another product and is therapeutically equivalent to it and provides the same therapeutic effect, benefits and drug safety limits for the patient in accordance with its approved uses. Stability studies : Tests conducted under conditions similar to approved storage conditions or under conditions that are more severe than those used to increase the rate of chemical or physical degradation of the Medical Product in order to detect degradation reactions or any indications of unsuitability of the product in order to estimate the shelf life of the product under approved storage conditions. Batches : A specific quantity of a Medical Product that has been manufactured in a single batch and carrie
