Is flag burning illegal in the United Arab Emirates?

Criminal offense

Desecrating the UAE flag or flags of other countries is illegal in the UAE.

The United Arab Emirates is one of 55 countries classified “Criminal offense” for flag desecration — 82% of the 67 with data. (Also searched as flag burning.)

Source

Taken from
Wikipedia: Flag desecration
Last checked
17 September 2026
How it was classified
Classified by a language model from the source text, then checked against hand-verified reference countries.

Nearby countries

Iran
Criminal offense Desecration of the national flag is a crime in Iran.
Saudi Arabia
Criminal offense Desecrating the national flag is considered blasphemy and is strictly prohibited.
Azerbaijan
Criminal offense Desecration of the national flag is penalized in Azerbaijan.
Armenia
Criminal offense Insulting the national flag is a criminal offense in Armenia.
Israel
Criminal offense Deliberately burning the Israeli flag is a criminal offense punishable by up to three years in prison.
Uzbekistan
Criminal offense Desecration of the national flag is a criminal offense punishable by fines, community service, or correctional labor.

Other laws in United Arab Emirates

Blasphemy Laws
Criminal offense
Apostasy Laws
Death penalty possible
Holocaust Denial
No specific law
Conversion Therapy
No ban

Every law in the United Arab Emirates → · Where is burning the flag illegal? →

A visual reference compiled from Wikipedia’s law-by-country articles, not legal advice. Laws change and summaries simplify — check a primary source before relying on anything here.