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Currency in Dubai  

Saturday 07 November 2009 (UAE)   
 
   
      
 

Currency in Dubai and UAE is the United Arab Emirates dirham

The UAE dirham is fixed at the rate of Dh3.67 = US$1.00 (or 1 UAE dirham = 0.273 US dollars).

  • The currency unit in Dubai and other emirates is the United Arab Emirate dirham, divided into into 100 fils.
  • Common abbreviations include AED or Dh before the number, and dh or dhs after the number.
  • Shops in the larger shopping centers may accept some foreign currencies. Usually other Gulf (GCC) currencies, US dollars, Euros, and British pounds).
  • Up until the mid-1960s, the Indian rupee was used in the UAE, before being replaced with the UAE dirham. You will occasionally hear older residents talk about "rupees" in place of "dirhams".
Money Changers in the UAE
  • Foreign currency exchange is available at banks and money changers for most of the common currencies.
  • Shopping centers usually have a money changer that is open the same hours as shops are (banks hours are shorter).
  • Al Ansari Exchange, Al Rostamani (Thomas Cook), and UAExchange are popular money changers in the UAE.
Banknotes in Dubai and the UAE
Coins in Dubai and the UAE
  • 5 dirhams - brown
  • 10 dirhams - green
  • 20 dirhams - turquoise
  • 50 dirhams - purple
  • 100 dirhams - red
  • 200 dirhams - orange (older ones are brown)
  • 500 dirhams - blue
  • 1000 dirhams - brown (larger than the 5 dh note)
  • 1 fil - (very rarely seen)
  • 5 fils - (very rarely seen)
  • 10 fils - (very rarely seen)
  • 25 fils - (common)
  • 50 fils - (common)
  • 1 dh - (common)
  • All banknotes are issued by the UAE Central Bank and are printed in English on one side, and Arabic on the other. Coins have "United Arab Emirates" and the denomination in Arabic on one side, and a picture and date on the other.
  • Chicklets are not an official UAE currency unit issued by the Central Bank, but an irritating replacement common at petrol stations and small supermarkets in lieu of change. Chicklets are a one-way transaction only, you can't use them for purchases (although if enough people tried, maybe that would encourage shops to give proper change).
  • The 200 dh bank note was updated in May 2008 to reduce confusion with the 5 dh and 1000 dh banknotes.
UAE commemorative coins

Since 1976, the UAE Central Bank has issued commemorative coins on a regular basis, annually from 1998. In 1976 two coins were issued in denominations of 500 dhs and 1000 dhs, made of gold. You probably won't get one as change from your shopping trip to Carrefour. In subsequent years a range of denominations have been issued, including 1 dh, 5 dhs, 10 dh, 50 dh, and 100 dhs coins. Materials include copper-nickel alloy, silver, and gold.

This information last updated Thursday 30-Apr-2009
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