CAB Engagement Guidance

General|April 11, 2025

Greetings from the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA),

Following the announcement of the approved Conformity Assessment Bodies (CABs), we strongly advise you to engage with one of these CABs to ensure readiness for compliance with the Trust services licensing framework, in anticipation of the licensing process commencement. The following points and considerations are provided for your guidance.

Key Regulatory references:

 

Supporting Guidelines:

 

CAB selection:

  • Confirm that the CAB is formally approved by TDRA under Resolution No. 52 of 2023. Refer to the list of approved CABs.
  • Ensure the CAB is authorized to assess the specific type of services your organization intends to offer (qualified and/or non-qualified).

 

Licensing Fees

  • The Trust Services licensing fees are outlined in Cabinet Decision No. 51 of 2024 on Fees for Trust Services and Qualified Trust Services.
  • The "New Application for Trust Services or Qualified Trust Service License" is a one-time application fee that allows applicants to request multiple Trust Services or Qualified Trust Services in a single application.
  • Each Approved Trust Service or Qualified Trust Service included in the application will have its own separate license fee.
  • The total license fee will be the sum of all the individual fees for the approved Trust Services or Qualified Trust Services listed in the application.

 

Example

An applicant submits a New Application for Trust Services or Qualified Trust Service License and includes the following services:

  • License for Creation of E-Signature and an Advanced E-Signature - AED 12,000
  • License for Issuance of Advanced E-Signature (Authentication) Certificate - AED 12,000
  • License for Qualified Electronic Time Stamp Creation Service - AED 15,000

 

Fee Breakdown:

  • Application Fee: AED 10,000 (one-time fee for the application).
  • License Fees Per Trust Service:
  • E-Signature Creation License: AED 12,000
  • Advanced E-Signature Certificate License: AED 12,000
  • Time Stamp Creation Service License: AED 15,000

 

Total Fee Calculation:

  • AED 10,000 (application fee) + AED 12,000 + AED 12,000 + AED 15,000 = AED 49,000
    The final license fee will be the sum of all service fees, in addition to the application fee:

 

Final Cost:

  • The applicant will need to pay AED 49,000 for the application and licenses.

 

Licensing applications procedure

  • The application procedure for licensing will be announced and further clarified shortly. In the interim, please note that the following documents will be required as part of your application submission.

 

General Application documents:

  • The memorandum and Articles of Association, Trade license or equivalent issued from the competent local authorities for the business activity (based on the type of the company) in UAE.
  • A Statement of Business Activities (including activities not relating to the trust services being applied for, if applicable).  
  • A Company Ownership Structure Chart
  • Organizational Chart
  • A Conformity Assessment Report (CAR) of a term not exceeding a month, conformant to Article 3 of Resolution No. 52 (2023) on the rules and conditions regulating the work of conformity assessment bodies.
  • Audited Financial Statements for the previous two (2) years, proving the availability of financial resources equivalent to five million (5,000,000) Dirhams.
  • Evidences regarding the economic resources and/or appropriate liability insurance (at least AED five [5] Millions per year)
  • accredited conformity assessment (certification) scheme (s) document
  • A copy of the VAT registration

 

For each Trust Service

  • Conformity Assessment Report (CAR), conformant to Article 3 of [Resolution No. 54 (2023) on the rules and conditions regulating the work of  conformity assessment bodies]
  • Certification Policy(ies)
  • Certification Practices Statement(s)
  • TS Detailed architecture (e.g. PKI hierarchy)
  • Copy of Subscriber Agreement
  • Termination plan of this QTS
  • Documentation related to the assessment of risks
  • Security and personal data breach notification plan
  • List of Standards for which compliance is claimed for this QTS
  • List of Standards for which compliance has been assessed by the audit for this QTS.
  • Samples of certificates generated by this QTS
  • (When relevant) List of QSCD and their certification related information
  • (When relevant) List of trustworthy devices used for key protection, and their certification related information
  • Any Other Supporting Documents

 

For further information, we encourage you to visit our official website at https://www.trustservices.gov.ae/ . We also recommend monitoring the site regularly for official announcements and updates related to the implementation of the Trust Services framework.

For any inquiries or further clarification, please do not hesitate to contact us.

We appreciate your continued support and look forward to your active participation.

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