Labeeb reference · every requirement traced to the committee’s or regulator’s own document · Last checked 29 September 2026

Research Ethics Application Checklist for UAE & GCC Theses (2026): Which Committee, What to Submit, and Why Applications Come Back

For master’s, PhD, DBA and clinician researchers: which committee reviews your study, what goes in the application pack, what a consent form must say, and the fixable reasons applications are returned. The committee decides; this page helps you submit a complete application.

Which committee?Application checklist Why applications come back

Read this first: three rules that apply everywhere

The documents we checked agree on three things.

No data before approval, pilots included. Zayed University says clearance should be sought before any research work, and this “includes pilot studies and/or focus groups” (ZU).
The committee decides the review level. Under the Abu Dhabi DoH standard, the committee sets the tier (exempt, expedited or full) “even if the Investigator believes the research is exempt” (DoH, 3.6.1.2).
You write the application. Your supervisor signs where the form asks, but the documents are yours. Download your committee’s current form when you start; forms change.

Which committee reviews your study?

Ask two questions: is it health research, and where are the participants or records? Many theses need more than one approval.

Your study	Committee(s)	What the source says
Surveys, interviews, focus groups or observation outside healthcare (business, education, social science)	Your university’s research ethics committee (REC) or institutional review board (IRB)	ZU covers people as “subjects of surveys or interviews” and has an exemption form (ZU). UAEU PhD students obtain approval “through the Office of Research in advance” (UAEU GP-03). AUS points to its IRB on iLearn (AUS catalog).
Abu Dhabi K-12 schools	Your university committee, plus an ADEK application	ZU tells researchers wanting access to Abu Dhabi K-12 schools to “submit an online application” through ADEK (ZU).
Biomedical research in Abu Dhabi, including observational studies and registries	A DoH-authorised facility IRB/REC and the DoH IRB, submitted concurrently	Scope includes “observational studies, registries” (DoH, 1.2.2). The programme director or Designated Institutional Official approves student applications first (3.5.6.4). Single-institution retrospective studies need only the facility committee (3.5.8.1).
Abu Dhabi multicentre, clinical trial, industry, genetic or significant-risk research, or data processed outside the UAE	DoH’s Abu Dhabi Health Research and Technology Committee (ADHRTC)	Listed by DoH (DoH research page). NYU Abu Dhabi still requires its own REC/IRB approval “in addition to ADHRTC approval” (NYUAD).
Research in Dubai at DHA-governed institutions or within DHA jurisdiction	Dubai Scientific Research Ethics Committee (DSREC)	DSREC’s scope includes “access to health information, as well as epidemiological, social, and psychological investigations” (DHA SOP, 8-2).
Health research in MOHAP-regulated settings	MOHAP’s ethics route; confirm the current form with your ethics office	MOHAP’s 2014 Research Ethics Review Form excludes “student research projects for academic purpose” (MOHAP form). Approvals must come before the research (MOHAP).
Any research on humans in Saudi Arabia	Your establishment’s local research ethics committee, registered with the National Committee of Bioethics (NCBE)	No establishment may conduct research “except after registration of a local committee” (NCBE Regulations, Art. 3.1). Multi-site: the principal investigator’s committee approves first, then collaborators’ committees (Art. 10.13).

Approval from one institution “does not automatically give you ethical clearance” from others involved (ZU), so a student collecting data in a hospital should expect two reviews. This page does not summarise rules for Qatar, Oman, Kuwait or Bahrain; ask your ethics office.

The application pack: what to submit

A pre-submission check. Your committee’s list overrides it; items no source requires are good practice.

Item	What it should contain	Where a source requires or names it
Application form, signed	The committee’s current form for your study type (student, full, exempt). Signed by you and, where required, your supervisor.	ZU has a separate “Students’ Full Application for Ethical Clearance” (ZU); DoH requires a form “filled and signed” (DoH, 3.5.3.2.2).
Protocol	Aims, design, sample and its justification, eligibility criteria, recruitment, procedures, risks and safeguards.	DoH: “a fully developed research plan” (3.5.6.3). NCBE lists contents, including sample size calculations and ethical considerations (Art. 10.15).
Participant information sheet	The study in plain language, often combined with the consent form.	DSREC’s records include “Information given to human subjects” (DHA SOP, 8-10).
Consent form (and assent form for minors)	See the essentials below. Bilingual where the regulator requires it.	DoH: drafts “in both Arabic and English languages, and both should have same text” (DoH, 3.5.3.2.4). ZU provides a student template (ZU).
Instruments	Every questionnaire, interview guide or data collection form, in final wording.	ZU: “All survey tools, questionnaires or interview templates” (ZU); DoH lists questionnaires and interview scripts (3.5.6.3).
Data management section	What you collect, coding, storage, access, retention, and any transfer abroad.	DoH requires secure collection, storage and access (DoH, 3.3.1.1.11). Not every form calls this a “data management plan”.
Recruitment materials	Emails, posters, social media posts and scripts, plus any compensation.	NCBE: “Methods used for inviting human subjects, including advertisements” (Art. 10.17). DSREC reviews “Materials to recruit subjects and proposed compensation” (DHA SOP, 8-13).
Permissions and gatekeeper letters	Written access from each site, school or organisation, and any other institution’s ethics approval.	ADEK for Abu Dhabi schools, ZU’s survey distribution form, and prior approvals from co-investigators’ institutions (ZU).
CVs and training certificates	Only where your committee’s source asks for them.	ZU: investigators’ CVs (ZU). DoH: “CVs and GCPs certificates of the research team” (DoH page); GCP certificates older than 3 years “will not be accepted” (DoH, 3.3.2.2.1), and students and advisors need GCP (3.3.4.2). NCBE: “Proof of passing a valid research ethics course” (Art. 10.17).
Conflict of interest and funding	Funders, and any interest you hold.	DoH, 3.5.3.2 (DoH); NCBE, Art. 10.16 (NCBE).
Timeline	Project dates and the data collection window.	MOHAP’s form asks for project and fieldwork dates (MOHAP form); NCBE asks for a “Time schedule of research” (Art. 10.15).

For DoH, supporting documents must be in English or have an authenticated English translation (DoH, 3.5.3.2.14). The consent form is the exception: it must exist in both Arabic and English.

Data protection basics

Show the committee that you collect only what you need and that identifiable data cannot leak.

Minimise. Drop fields your questions do not use, such as names or exact birth dates.
Code and separate. Replace identities with codes, keep the key file apart, and name who can access each.
Know where your survey tool stores data. Cloud platforms may hold responses outside the UAE.
Transfers abroad. In Abu Dhabi, data processed outside the UAE sends a study to ADHRTC (DoH page); in global studies, identifying health information must be removed (DoH, 3.3.1.1.11.3.4).
Retention. DSREC’s SOP sets minimum retention of 6 years for non-clinical and 15 years for clinical research data (DHA SOP, 8-10). Ask what period your protocol should state.

UAE Personal Data Protection Law. Federal Decree-Law No. 45 of 2021 came into force on 2 January 2022 (u.ae). Its scope article excludes health personal data that has its own legislation regulating its protection and processing, and free-zone entities with their own data protection legislation (Art. 2). For health data, the government portal points to Federal Law No. 2 of 2019 on ICT in health fields (u.ae). Confirm which law applies with your ethics office; this is not legal advice.

Common reasons applications come back

Recurring, fixable issues drawn from good practice and the sources above, not statistics.

Reason	What it looks like, and the source
Missing documents	An instrument, recruitment email or permission letter is not attached. DoH withdraws incomplete files not resubmitted in time (DoH, 3.5.4.4); NCBE deems an application rejected after 90 days without a response (Art. 10.17).
Wrong form or route	A form that excludes your project type, such as MOHAP’s 2014 form for student projects (MOHAP form), or a hospital study sent only to the university.
Missing sign-off	No supervisor or programme director approval, which DoH requires for students (DoH, 3.5.6.4).
Documents do not match	The protocol says 200 participants, the consent form 150; the form promises anonymity but the survey asks for a name.
Consent form problems	Technical wording, no withdrawal statement or committee contact, or Arabic and English texts that differ.
Self-declared exemption	“Exempt” claimed without enough detail for the committee to decide (DoH, 3.6.2.3).
Pressure on participants	Recruiting your own students, staff or patients without explaining how refusal is protected.
Vague data handling	No storage location, access list, retention period or transfer plan.
Expired or missing training	A GCP certificate older than 3 years for DoH (DoH, 3.3.2.2.1), or no ethics course where NCBE rules apply.

Returned is not rejected. DoH decisions include conditional approval (DoH, 3.5.5.4), and ZU sends “recommendations for revisions and resubmission” (ZU). Answer each point in a response letter and mark the changes.

Planning your timeline

Put ethics review on the critical path: no data collection or pilot starts until every approval is in writing. Work backwards from your data collection deadline and allow for at least one round of revisions.

Meeting cycles. DSREC normally meets every 6–8 weeks “except July and August” (DHA SOP, 8-9-2). ZU sends a written response within a week of its meeting (ZU). Check your committee’s deadlines.
DoH steps. Validity notice within 5 working days of receipt, forwarding to the next DoH IRB meeting within 10, and the letter within 28 working days after all requests are satisfied; approval usually runs 365 days (DoH, 3.5.4–3.5.5).
MOHAP. Start “at least two months after the date of submission” (MOHAP form).
Multiple approvals “can be quite time consuming” (ZU).
After approval, changes generally need approval before use (NCBE, Art. 10.24).

How Labeeb can help, and where we stop

You write the application; the committee decides. Labeeb reviews the application you have drafted against your committee’s published requirements, flags gaps and mismatches between documents, and explains what to fix. We do not write or submit it, and we do not guarantee approval.

Chat with Labeeb All academic support services

Frequently asked questions

What documents go in a research ethics application?

Usually a signed application form, protocol, information sheet and consent form, every instrument, recruitment materials, site permissions and a data handling section. Some committees also ask for CVs, training certificates and a conflict of interest form. Your committee’s own checklist is the final word.

Does my consent form need to be in Arabic?

For biomedical research under the Abu Dhabi DoH standard, yes: consent form drafts must be in Arabic and English with the same text. Elsewhere, give participants the form in a language they understand, and check your committee’s rule.

Can I run a pilot study before ethics approval?

No. Zayed University states that clearance should be sought before any research work, including pilot studies and focus groups. Treat a pilot with participants as research that needs approval.

My study involves two institutions. Do I need two approvals?

Often, yes. Approval from one institution does not automatically clear you at another. In Saudi Arabia, the principal investigator’s local committee approves first, then collaborators’ committees. Ask your ethics office about the order.

Can Labeeb write my ethics application or guarantee approval?

No. You write the application and the committee decides. Labeeb reviews the application you have drafted against your committee’s published requirements and explains what to fix. We do not write or submit it, and we do not guarantee approval.

How to cite this page (APA 7)

Labeeb Writing & Designs. (2026, September 29). Research ethics application checklist for UAE & GCC theses (2026): Which committee, what to submit, and why applications come back. https://labeeb.ae/research-ethics-application-checklist-uae/

Sources

Last checked: 29 September 2026. Each source is the committee’s, regulator’s or government’s own document. Section numbers are given in the text so you can check the wording yourself.

Zayed University. Ethical clearance for research (page dated 04/13/2023). https://www.zu.ac.ae/main/en/research/for_researchers/research_integrity/ethical_clearance
United Arab Emirates University. Graduate Studies Policy GP-03: The PhD Programs (effective 12 August 2018), §14. https://www.uaeu.ac.ae/en/about/policies/pdf/graduateprograms/3_the_phd_programs-en.pdf
American University of Sharjah. Graduate Catalog 2025–2026. https://www.aus.edu/sites/default/files/gr_ctlg_2526_web_1.pdf
Department of Health – Abu Dhabi. Standard for Biomedical Research, DoH/SD/HLSS/SBR/V1/2026 (published March 2026, effective September 2026). https://www.doh.gov.ae/-/media/F4177368A779496F818876C5E38F21CD.ashx
Department of Health – Abu Dhabi. Research (ADHRTC streams and submission requirements). https://www.doh.gov.ae/en/research/landing-page
NYU Abu Dhabi. Research Ethics Committee (REC). https://nyuad.nyu.edu/en/research/facilities-and-support/human-research-protection-program/research-ethics-committee–rec–.html
Dubai Health Authority. Structure and Function of Dubai Scientific Research Ethics Committee, SOP DHA/DG/MERD/SOP/001 (issued 10/09/2019, revision date 10/10/2022). https://dha.gov.ae/uploads/122021/a3513f84-c5ed-411a-96dc-946b6c1e0af1.pdf
Ministry of Health and Prevention. Research Ethics Review Form (2014 circulars). https://mohap.gov.ae/en/w/research-ethics-review-form
Ministry of Health and Prevention. Support and coordination of health research. https://www.mohap.gov.ae/en/w/support-and-coordination-of-health-research
National Committee of BioEthics (Saudi Arabia). Implementing Regulations of the Law of Ethics of Research on Living Creatures, Version 3, 2025 (copy hosted by KAUST Research Compliance). https://researchcompliance.kaust.edu.sa/IACUC/guidelines/Implementing%20Regulations%20of%20the%20Law%20of%20Ethics%20of%20Research%20on%20Living%20Creatures_%20Version%203_2025.pdf
The Official Portal of the UAE Government. Data protection laws (updated 4 December 2025). https://u.ae/en/about-the-uae/digital-uae/data/data-protection-laws
Federal Decree-Law No. 45 of 2021 regarding the Protection of Personal Data (Arabic text, linked from the UAE Government portal), Articles 1–2. https://assets.u.ae/api/public/content/954629a06cc64fd887771ce3273d6154?v=21d88839

Want a second pair of eyes on your drafted application? Chat with Labeeb.

Chat with Labeeb