General Information » Money » Local Currency

The monetary unit is the dirham (Dhs.), which is divided into 100 fils. The currency is also referred to as AED (Arab Emirate Dirham). Notes come in denominations of Dhs.5 (brown), Dhs.10 (green), Dhs.20 (light blue), Dhs.50 (purple), Dhs.100 (pink), Dhs.200 (brown/green), Dhs.500 (blue) and Dhs.1,000 (browny-purple). The denominations are indicated on the notes in both Arabic and English. However, coins are a bit trickier because the amount is written in Arabic only. Fortunately, there are only three different coin denominations in regular use: the Dhs.1, the 50 fils, and the 25 fils. All are silver in colour. The Dhs.1 coin is nearly 2.5cm in diameter and almost always has a traditional coffee pot imprinted on one side. On the other side, you will be able to read the English words 'United Arab Emirates', but everything else is in Arabic. The 50 fils coin is seven-sided rather than circular, and usually has a picture of an oil refinery on one side. The 25 fils coin is circular but smaller than the Dhs.1 coin and usually has a picture of a small antelope on one side. There are older versions of the Dhs.1 and 50 fils coins that are still in circulation, and this can be confusing because the old Dhs.1 coin is bigger than the new one, but the old 50 fils coin is the same size as the new Dhs.1 coin. Because five and ten fil coins are rarely available, you will often not receive the exact change – sometimes this will work in your favour, sometimes it will work against... but it probably averages out in the end!

The dirham has been pegged to the US dollar since the end of 1980, at a mid rate of US$1 ~ Dhs.3.6725. Exchange rates of all major currencies are published daily in the local newspapers.