UAE Strengthens Cross-Border Asset Recovery: What Faster Judicial Cooperation Means for Fraud and Disputes

The UAE has highlighted the growing speed and reach of its international judicial cooperation framework, including a case in which coordination with French authorities led to the tracing of assets and seizure of 82 properties in the Emirates.

Speaking at the 15th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice in Abu Dhabi, UAE Minister of Justice Abdullah Sultan bin Awad Al Nuaimi outlined how the country is seeking to prevent international borders from being used to conceal criminal proceeds or frustrate legal action.

The comments, reported by Emirates News Agency on 27 September 2026, provide a useful illustration of an issue that frequently arises in complex fraud, debt and commercial disputes: finding an asset is only one part of the process. Effective recovery may also depend on evidence, jurisdiction and cooperation between authorities in different countries.

UAE-France Cooperation Led to 82 Properties Being Seized

One of the examples given by the Minister involved judicial cooperation between the UAE and France concerning four individuals.

Direct coordination between authorities reportedly led to assets being identified and traced, followed by the seizure of 82 properties in the UAE in November 2025 after a request was executed through Dubai Public Prosecution.

The case demonstrates the significance real estate can have in international asset matters.

Funds originating in one jurisdiction may ultimately be converted into property or other assets elsewhere. By the time a dispute, fraud or enforcement action begins, the connection between the original transaction and the asset may no longer be obvious.

Establishing those connections can therefore require a wider examination of individuals, companies, transactions and ownership structures across several jurisdictions.

Cross-Border Asset Tracing Often Begins Before Recovery

Asset tracing and asset recovery are closely connected, but they should not be treated as the same process.

Asset tracing focuses on identifying and understanding assets and the relationships surrounding them.

Depending on the circumstances, this can include:

• Real estate.
• Corporate interests.
• Vehicles and other high-value assets.
• Shareholdings.
• Business relationships.
• Digital and virtual assets.
• Associated companies.
• Relevant individuals and family members.
• Historical ownership information.
• Links between entities across different jurisdictions.

Conflict Advisory Group's Asset Tracing Services UAE support businesses, individuals and professional advisers seeking intelligence concerning assets in the Emirates and internationally.

The purpose is to develop a clearer picture of what exists, how assets may be connected to the subject and where further legal enquiries may be appropriate.

Actual freezing, seizure or recovery of an asset normally requires the appropriate legal process.

Why Jurisdiction Matters

Cross-border cases can become significantly more complicated when the individual concerned, the underlying transaction and the relevant assets are located in different countries.

For example, a commercial dispute may involve a company incorporated in one jurisdiction, payments made through another and property ultimately acquired in the UAE.

That creates several practical questions.

Which courts have jurisdiction?

What evidence is available?

Can information obtained in one country support proceedings in another?

What legal mechanism may be required to obtain further disclosure or protect an identified asset?

The answers depend on the facts of the individual case and the relevant legal frameworks.

For this reason, asset intelligence is often most useful when gathered with the wider legal strategy in mind.

UAE Says Mutual Legal Assistance Is Becoming Faster

The Minister of Justice also provided figures indicating how the UAE is seeking to accelerate formal international cooperation.

According to the Ministry, a complete mutual legal assistance request is now executed within an average of 35 days.

This compares with the 60-to-180-day timeframe contained in the International Judicial Cooperation Guidelines.

The UAE has also introduced a fully digital International Cooperation Assistance System, known as ICAS, which authorities say has significantly reduced the time required for some administrative procedures.

For cross-border fraud and asset recovery matters, speed can be particularly important.

Property can be transferred.

Companies can change ownership.

Funds can move between accounts or jurisdictions.

Digital assets can be transferred within minutes.

The longer the gap between identifying potential assets and taking the appropriate legal action, the greater the possibility that circumstances may change.

Building the Evidential Picture

Asset tracing should not simply produce a list of property or companies that appear to have some connection with a subject.

The value lies in establishing why the information is relevant and how different findings connect.

Depending on the case, this may involve examining:

• Corporate records.
• Property information.
• Litigation history.
• Company directorships.
• Shareholdings.
• Business associates.
• Historic addresses.
• Public financial information.
• Open-source intelligence.
• Digital footprints.
• Cryptocurrency transactions where relevant.

An individual data point may reveal relatively little.

Several independently sourced pieces of information, however, may establish a relationship between a person, company, property or transaction that was not previously apparent.

This intelligence can then assist legal advisers in determining which findings are relevant to potential disclosure, freezing, enforcement or recovery proceedings.

Following Assets Across Borders

International asset matters rarely follow a straightforward geographical path.

An individual may reside in one jurisdiction while controlling companies elsewhere. A company may own another entity, which in turn holds property or other valuable interests in a third country.

Funds may also move through several intermediaries before being used to acquire an asset.

That is why cross-border tracing often requires examination of the wider ownership and relationship network rather than searching for assets solely in a person's own name.

Our guide to Asset Tracing for Investment Fraud in the UAE explains how asset tracing can support recovery strategies where funds have been moved through companies, jurisdictions or different asset classes.

The same principles can be relevant to commercial disputes, judgment enforcement, insolvency matters and other situations in which the location or ownership of assets is unclear.

Identifying an Asset Does Not Guarantee Recovery

A distinction must also be made between locating an asset and being legally entitled to recover it.

The identification of a property, company interest or other asset does not establish that it belongs beneficially to the subject, that it represents proceeds of wrongdoing or that it can automatically be frozen.

Those are legal questions.

Further evidence may be required and the appropriate application may need to be made before the relevant court or authority.

For this reason, effective asset tracing should provide information that can be assessed alongside legal advice rather than making assumptions about ownership or recoverability.

The Importance of Acting Early

Where there is a serious concern about concealed or transferred assets, early assessment can help establish whether there is a realistic basis for further action.

Waiting until after proceedings have concluded to begin looking for assets can sometimes leave a successful claimant with a judgment but limited information about what may be available for enforcement.

Pre-litigation asset enquiries can therefore help parties and their advisers understand the potential position before significant legal costs are incurred.

Depending on the circumstances, early work may help identify:

• Whether a subject appears to hold identifiable assets.
• Which jurisdictions may be relevant.
• Whether companies are connected to the subject.
• Whether ownership appears to have changed.
• Whether further disclosure may be required.
• Potential areas for more detailed enquiries.

The appropriate scope should always be proportionate to the value and circumstances of the matter.

International Cooperation and Asset Recovery in the UAE

The UAE-France case involving 82 properties provides a clear example of what coordinated cross-border action can achieve once relevant assets have been identified and the appropriate legal mechanisms are engaged.

It also illustrates why international asset matters require more than a simple property or company search.

Tracing may need to establish relationships across individuals, companies, jurisdictions and transactions before legal advisers can determine the appropriate next step.

Conflict Advisory Group provides corporate intelligence, asset tracing and legal-support coordination for businesses, individuals and professional advisers dealing with complex financial and commercial matters in the UAE and internationally.

Where a dispute, fraud matter or enforcement action involves potentially concealed or cross-border assets, contact Conflict Advisory Group in confidence to discuss the information available and the appropriate scope of enquiries.