How to get a Carnet de Passage in UAE

Getting ready for our road trip from Dubai to AlUla meant getting the car ready too. We are not overland experts (yet), so almost forgot the main thing needed for overland travel: a Carnet de Passage.

What’s a Carnet de Passage?

It’s like a passport for your car. It shows that you are the owner of the car and allows the car to cross certain borders.

Where can I go with my UAE Carnet de Passage?

Supposing you also have a valid visa to travel to these countries, you’re allowed to enter Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Iraq (but specifically not Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon or Yemen).

What should I bring?

You’ll need your Emirates ID and the car registration. Note that the car has to be under your name and you have to be the one to cross with it. We also brought our passports and driver’s licenses and copies of everything just in case, but didn’t need it.

The Process:

Getting one is quick and easy, all of our paperwork was done in a few hours. Start out at the Emirates Motorsports Organization (EMSO). They open at 9am, and I would suggest getting there early to avoid any lines. Google got us there easily, and you enter through the side door. The small room had a couple of guys still drinking their first cup of tea and a few rows of seats for waiting. They only accept cash, as you can see from the photo (but we didn’t know that). There’s an ATM nearby, so we ran to grab cash and came back to still no line. The total was 925 AED. Of that final number, 500 AED is a refundable deposit. They just want to make sure you’re bringing the car back, not illegally exporting it. You’ll get a receipt and your beautiful Carnet de Passage.

You’re not done yet though. Just down the road is the CARS Vehicle Testing Centre licensed by RTA. There you have to show your Carnet de Passage and get a Trip Ticket. Again, they only accept cash, so we ran again to the ATM because we were just short of the 365 AED payment. This Trip Ticket tells RTA that you’re traveling with your car, so it updates on their system, allowing for an easy exit out of UAE.

Now you’re ready to hit the road!