The Department of Community Development is committed to the social welfare of everyone who calls Abu Dhabi home. The Department’s foundations are based on the vision of our nation’s Founding Father, His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, who recognized that social welfare and community development are important enablers of prosperity and growth. We are guided by the values of respect, credibility, empathy, responsibility, passion for giving and kindness and our aspiration is to ensure a dignified life for all.

The Volunteering Policy in Abu Dhabi promotes a culture of Volunteering to enhance social cohesion and beneﬁt the community as a whole, through increasing volunteering engagement and participation, in addition to enhancing skills-based and service-based Volunteering. The policy encourages professional and consistent standards for Volunteering, where the Volunteers, Volunteering Teams and Volunteering Involving Organizations (VIOs) are adequately supported, protected and recognized for their achievements through technology, which leads to increase the accessibility and quality of government social services.

Types of Volunteering:

Traditional Volunteering:

Volunteering by individuals or entities that do not employ specialized skills and that require obtaining the necessary permits from the concerned authorities. This type of volunteering includes a myriad of volunteer activities (such as beach cleaning, orientation and sports training).

Volunteering in Events:

Volunteering in activities, events and initiatives for one occasion (such as the National Day, Special Olympics, Formula One, etc

Institutional Volunteering:

In which the entity’s employees participate, whether from the public, private, or third sector, which is usually part of the Corporate Social Responsibility “CSR” program. These activities are usually charitable or community-based initiatives.

Volunteering for Social Affairs:

Volunteering to assist or support the efforts of a public, private, or third sector institution that is engaged in social welfare services (such as public care for the elderly).

Virtual Volunteering:

Volunteering activities that are performed remotely using the internet in whole or in part. Virtual Volunteering is also known as online volunteering, remote volunteering, or electronic volunteering.

Specialist Volunteering:

Volunteering that relies on specialized skills that require obtaining the necessary permits from the relevant authorities, including professionally-licensed persons (such as doctors, lawyers, engineers, consultants).

Volunteering in Emergencies:

Voluntary activities that are short term or of for a required period, to be exercised in emergency situations, crises and disasters.

Visitor Volunteering:

Volunteering of non-residents in the UAE in favor of specific entities or specific community issues in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.

Overseas Volunteers:

Volunteering by UAE citizens or residents of the UAE, representing the Emirate of Abu Dhabi or the United Arab Emirates in volunteering activities abroad.

To register and apply for a license, please visit https://www.volunteers.ae/abudhabi/default.aspx

Volunteering Policy

15 Jul 2021

Volunteeting Policy

Other Category

5391915

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Frequently asked questions

What are the terms and conditions and how to apply for licenses for volunteers and volunteering teams?

You can now apply by entering the web page of Volunteer in Abu Dhabi through www.volunteers.ae/abudhabi where you can find and view all the terms and conditions and how to apply.

What is the limit number of members to apply for a volunteering team?

You're able to apply for as a volunteering team with an unlimited number of members but no less than five members in each team.

Terms and conditions apply

How to apply in available volunteering opportunities?

You must be a registered member on the platform, after registration and acquiring the reference number you are now able to access Abu Dhabi‘s Page for volunteering and apply to any volunteering policy available in the ‘opportunities' section.

When will the volunteering permits be issued?

Permits will be issued in the second stage after all volunteering individuals, groups and organizations are registered and have completed the procedures and the required data.

Is it possible to volunteer to register or does it require a permit first?

Yes, the volunteer or volunteer group registered on the platform can apply to any volunteer opportunity registered on the platform, taking into account all the terms and conditions listed and defined by the entity offering the volunteer opportunity until the permits are issued.

Are there specific ages for volunteers?

The volunteer must be at least 18 years old, and anyone under the age of 18 may volunteer with the written consent of his guardian.

What types of permits are available?

There are 3 types of permits that are given to each of the following:

Volunteer permit:
issued to individuals who wish to volunteer.
Volunteering Group permit:
issued to a group of 5 or more people who wish to volunteer.
Organization volunteer recruitment:
the permit of organizations that use volunteers, which is issued to legal authorities from any sector (public, private, and third) that would like to involve volunteers in its operations and programs.

What are the advantages of the permits provided?

The presence of a clear legal form for the volunteers to guarantee their rights, duties and responsibilities.

Documentation of volunteering opportunities and volunteers and their working hours.

Give volunteers written and reliable proof of their contributions and participation to the volunteer opportunities.

Existence of a reference for volunteers, including groups, individuals and organizations volunteer recruitment.

Volunteers, individuals and groups, can practice volunteering activities directly without the need to register and obtain approvals to every opportunity.

Does the license given to volunteers authorize them to practice volunteer work within the emirate of Abu Dhabi or UAE as a whole?

The license holder is only permitted to volunteer within the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, only. For other Emirates, approvals must be acquired from the relevant authorities.

What is Specialized volunteering?

It is volunteering that relies on specialized skills that require obtaining the necessary licenses from the concerned authorities and includes professionally licensed persons such as doctors, lawyers etc..

Is it obligatory for any organization that recruit volunteers to obtain a license?

Yes, all entities in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, whether they have licenses or not, must apply and obtain license from the Department of Community Development within a period not exceeding 12 months, and all procedures that are applied to those organizations during the transitional period in the second stage will be clarified.

The exception is the federal government Departments or institutions or the departments of the Abu Dhabi government or its institutions that’s authorized to perform volunteer work in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi according to their laws assigned to them, where they will be provided with exceptional licenses.

How can you contact us?

You can contact us via email at info@volunteers.ae

What are the procedures required by entities to issue a license to engage in volunteer work?

Firstly they must visit the website www.volunteers.ae/abudhabi and apply for license request, licenses will be issued to the entities . As for the required procedures, we would like to inform you that on the page you can find all the requirements and needed procedures outlined clearly.

Is the entities license cover the employees also, which we mean by that as an entity when we organize volunteering activity, and the participants are the entity’s employees is it required by every employee to obtain license?

If the event is organized by the entity and the target segment are its employees, the organization has the right to organize the event without the need to issue licenses for its employees that are part of the organization, and if volunteers are recruited outside the organization’s scope, the volunteer must be licensed to do so.

As for the entities’ license, we would like to inform you that the purpose of issuing licenses to entities is to enable them to attract volunteers in the entity, whether for their activities or the programs provided.

Does the employee have the right to participate in volunteering activities (not related to his workplace, its manage by other entities) can he use the entities involve volunteers license(his workplace license)?

If the employee wishes to participate in any volunteering opportunities organized by other entities and the employee was not representing his or her entity, we would like to advise that the employee must obtain a license to practice volunteer work

Events that are organized on different occasions (e.g: National Day, Flag Day etc.) and the use of volunteers from various universities, colleges, and volunteer teams (do we, as a government entity, have to use only volunteers who have individual volunteering licenses)? Or is it permissible to use volunteers who do not have personal licenses but work for a licensed organization and groups to practice volunteer work?

We would like to state that the entities license is for the organization that recruit volunteers, which are issued to legal authorities (whether from the public sector or the private sector or the third sector) that wish to involve volunteers in their operations or programs and not the entities that provide volunteers, so we would like to report that the authority must seek volunteers that hold an volunteering individual or team license.

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Volunteering in Abu Dhabi