UAEFinanceGuide.com (“UAE Finance Guide”, “we”, “us”, “our”) provides independent guides and comparisons about personal finance for expatriates in the United Arab Emirates. We respect your privacy and are committed to protecting your personal data.

This Privacy Policy explains what we collect, how we use it, who we share it with, your rights, and how you can contact us.

If you do not agree with this Policy, please discontinue use of our website.

1) Who we are & how to contact us

Controller: UAE Finance Guide
Email: [email protected]
Address: Dubai, United Arab Emirates (publication operated online)

For privacy requests (access, deletion, etc.), see Section 11.

2) Scope

This Policy applies to your use of:

our website pages, tools and calculators;
our email newsletter and contact forms;
advertising/affiliate links and comparison widgets embedded on our site.

It does not apply to third-party websites or financial providers you visit via our links; their policies govern their handling of your data.

3) What data we collect

We collect only what we need to operate our site, provide content, measure performance, and (with consent where required) show ads and track affiliate referrals.

a) Data you provide directly

Contact details (e.g., email) when you subscribe to our newsletter or contact us.
Feedback or messages you send us.

b) Data collected automatically

Device and usage data (IP address, browser, pages viewed, referrer, timestamps).
Cookie identifiers and similar technologies (see Section 9).

c) Advertising & affiliate data

Ad event data and cookie IDs for ad delivery, measurement, frequency capping, and (where you consent) personalization.
Affiliate click IDs and parameters, so networks can attribute a referral if you sign up with a third-party provider.

d) Sensitive data
We do not intentionally collect special category data (e.g., health, biometrics) or store financial account numbers. If you apply for products with a bank/insurer, you submit data directly to them.

4) Why we process your data (purposes)

Provide and improve our content, tools, and user experience.
Respond to messages and send the newsletter you requested.
Detect, prevent, and address fraud/abuse and ensure site security.
Run analytics and performance measurement.
Serve ads and measure their performance; where legally required, show non-personalized ads until you consent to personalization.
Track affiliate referrals, so partners know a visit came from our site (we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you).

5) Legal bases we rely on

Our legal bases depend on your location and the activity:

Consent: email newsletter; cookies that are not strictly necessary; personalized advertising and ad measurement in the EEA/UK/CH; some analytics depending on your settings.
Legitimate interests: site security, fraud prevention, essential analytics, internal reporting, and showing non-personalized ads where allowed.
Contract/Pre-contractual steps: providing content/services you request (e.g., sending the newsletter you signed up for).
Compliance with law: honoring user rights requests and legal obligations under the UAE PDPL and, where applicable, the GDPR.

6) Cookies and similar technologies

We use first-party and third-party cookies, pixels, local storage, and similar technologies to:

make the site work (e.g., preferences, load balancing);
understand audience and product interest (analytics);
deliver and measure advertising and (with consent where required) personalize ads. You can control these via our cookie banner/settings and your browser settings. In the EEA/UK/CH, we request consent in line with Google’s EU User Consent Policy; if you decline, we serve non-personalized ads where available.

How Google uses data from partner sites is explained in Google’s documentation.

7) Analytics, advertising & affiliate partners

Analytics: We use analytics to understand aggregate usage and improve content.
Advertising (e.g., Google AdSense/Google Ad Manager): these services may set cookies and receive information to deliver, measure, and improve ads; in some regions we ask for consent first per Google’s policy.
Affiliate networks & financial providers: when you click an affiliate link, a cookie or tracking parameter may record that referral. If you continue to sign up with the third-party provider, they will process your data under their privacy policy (we do not receive your application details unless the partner shares aggregated conversion stats).

8) Disclosures of your data

We share personal data only with:

Service providers (processors): hosting/CDN, analytics, email delivery, consent management, security/anti-fraud—bound by contracts to protect your data.
Advertising & affiliate partners: to deliver and measure ads or attribute referrals (see Section 7).
Authorities or legal advisors: where required to comply with law, enforce our rights, or protect users.

We do not sell personal data.

9) International transfers

Our service providers may process data in the UAE and other countries. When transferring personal data internationally, we apply safeguards consistent with the UAE Personal Data Protection Law (PDPL) and, for EEA/UK visitors, GDPR international transfer mechanisms (e.g., Standard Contractual Clauses) where applicable.

10) Data retention

We keep personal data only as long as necessary for the purposes described above:

Newsletter data: until you unsubscribe (and for a short period to comply with suppression requirements).
Analytics and advertising identifiers: per tool configuration and legal requirements.
Logs/security records: for a limited period to detect and investigate incidents.

We periodically review and delete or anonymize data that is no longer needed.

11) Your privacy rights

UAE (PDPL) rights

Under the UAE PDPL, you may have rights to access, rectify, erase, restrict/stop processing, and data portability (in certain cases). You may also object to processing and withdraw consent where processing is based on consent. To exercise these rights, contact us at [email protected].

EEA/UK (GDPR) rights (if you are in the EEA/UK)

You may have the rights to be informed, access, rectify, erase, restrict processing, data portability, object, and not be subject solely to automated decisions, plus the right to withdraw consent at any time (this does not affect prior lawful processing). You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your data protection authority.

We will respond to verified requests as required by applicable law.

12) Children’s privacy

Our site is intended for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal data from individuals under 18. If you believe a child has provided personal data, please contact us to delete it.

13) Security

We use reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect personal data (e.g., HTTPS, access controls, vendor due diligence). No method is 100% secure; please use strong, unique passwords for any services you use and be cautious with links and downloads.

14) Third-party links

Our content links to third-party sites (e.g., banks, insurers, comparison tools). We are not responsible for their privacy practices. Review their privacy policies before submitting personal data.

15) Financial content & no advisory relationship

Information on our site is educational only and not financial, investment, tax, or legal advice. If you apply for products via third parties, you provide information directly to them under their terms and privacy notices.

16) Managing your choices

Emails: use the “unsubscribe” link in any newsletter or email us at [email protected].
Cookies/Ads: use our cookie banner/settings. In your Google account, you can also adjust ad personalization controls; Google explains how it uses information from partner sites.

17) Changes to this Policy

We may update this Policy from time to time. Significant changes will be highlighted on this page with a new “Last updated” date. Continued use of the site after changes means you accept the updated Policy.