UAE Dirham

About The UAE Dirham: The Currency of United Arab Emirates

Quick Facts About the UAE Dirham Notes

Country of Origin	United Arab Emirates (UAE)
Symbol	د.إ
Currency Code	AED
Nick Names
Minor units	Fils
Denominations (Banknotes)	5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, and 500 AED
Motto	In Tansourou Allaha Yansouroukoum (If you glorify God, He will glorify you)
Identification Feature	There are a great number of coins struck specifically to honour the rulers of the United Arab Emirates and to commemorate special occasions and their images are featured on these coins.
Issuing Bank	Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates
In Circulation Since	March 19, 1973
INR Exchange Rate	23.3894 🔄

The Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates has released a number of commemorative coins honouring various events and UAE presidents since 1976. The Greek word drachmae, meaning "handful," is where the term ‘dirham’ is derived from. The dirham survived the Ottoman Empire because of its long history of trade and use.

The live Dirham rate is INR (23.3894 🔄) . You can keep an eye on the real-time Dirham price.

History of the UAE Dirham

From 19th of May, 1973, this currency came into circulation, having replaced the Qatari riyal.

On May 20, 1973, the UAE Currency Board issued the first banknotes in the denominations of 1 dirham, 5 dirhams, 10 dirhams, and 100 dirhams.

On January 3, 1976, a banknote in the denomination of 1,000 dirhams was introduced. In 1982, a new series of notes was issued, but it did not include the Dirham 1 note or the Dirham 1,000 note. The bills looked very much like current bills. In 1983, 500-dirham bills entered circulation, and in 1989, their smaller-denomination counterparts appeared. In the year 2000, the circulation of 1000 dirham banknotes resumed.

In 1973, the first coins were produced, and their values were 1, 5, 10, 25, and 50 fils, in addition to 1 dirham. The 1 fils note and the 5 fils note are both struck with bronze, while the higher denomination notes are struck with cupro-nickel. The weight of the coins of the fils denomination, as well as the percentage of metal they contained, were the same as their counterparts in Qatar and Dubai. The size of the coins worth 5, 10, and 50 fils was reduced in 1995, and the shape of the coin worth 50 fils was altered to be in the shape of a curve-equilateral-heptagon.

The inscriptions on the coins are written in Arabic, while the values are represented by numerals based on Eastern Arabic script. Since 1976, the Currency Board of the United Arab Emirates has issued a number of commemorative coins honouring a variety of UAE landmarks and dynasties. These coins have been produced in limited quantities.

Countries Accepting the UAE Dirham

Amount in the UAE Dirham You Should Carry for Your Trip

In an effort to combat money laundering, the Central Bank of the UAE has set the amount of undeclared money to be brought into or out of the country at AED 100,000.

Travellers arriving in the UAE are needed to declare cash or other monetary instruments including travellers' cheques carried along in an amount exceeding AED 100,000 or its equivalent in other foreign currencies.

Depending on various factors such as accommodation options and transportation, a tourist may have to spend anywhere between AED 300 to AED 2,000 per person per day. On the other hand, the cost for two tourists will be somewhere around AED 800 to AED 5,000.

If you are on a budget trip, then the accommodation will cost you around AED 200 per person, but if you would like to stay in a lavish accommodation option, then it can stretch up to AED 2,500 per person per day. Depending on whether you’d like to hire a taxi or ride a bus, the cost of your everyday transportation will be around AED 30 to AED 150 per day.

You can check the Dirham rate today in order to plan a cost-effective vacation.