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How do I file a case for a bounced cheque I received in the UAE?

Asked by Anonymous·Jun 10, 2026·1 answers
A customer paid my small trading business with a cheque that bounced when I presented it, and he has stopped responding to calls. This is the first time it's happened to me and I don't know whether to go to the police, the court, or the bank first, or what documents I need to keep from the bounced presentation.

This answer is AI-generated and editorially reviewed. It is general legal information, not legal advice — verify anything you act on with a licensed UAE lawyer. How LEXAI uses AI

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LEXAI

Editorially reviewed by LEXAI

Jun 11, 2026
In most cases you no longer need a full court case at all. Since the 2022 reforms to the law governing cheques, a cheque returned for insufficient funds is treated as an executive document — meaning you can take it directly to the execution court and enforce payment, without first suing to prove the debt. The documents that matter are the original cheque and the bank's return memo stating the reason for dishonour; keep both safe, because they are the foundation of the claim. The sensible sequence: send the customer a final written demand with a short deadline — payment sometimes appears once the request looks formal — and if nothing comes, file an execution case with the competent court, which can be done online or through a typing centre or lawyer. The execution judge can then order account freezes and asset attachment to recover the amount. The police become relevant only if the dishonour involved fraud-type conduct, such as deliberately closing the account; for an ordinary bounce, the civil execution route is the effective one. A lawyer can file and follow the execution for you, which generally speeds the process for a small business.
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