Now allowed to drive car for more than 9 hours in 24 hours

If you’re an expat in Kuwait who drives for work across the Gulf, drives trucks or taxis in the UAE, or just likes long road trips to Dubai or Abu Dhabi, there’s a new rule you’ll want to know about.

The UAE has announced it will ban driving for more than 9 hours in any 24-hour period. The rule is set to start in 2027.

That’s really all we know so far. No UAE authority has been named in the announcement, and there’s no detail yet on exactly who the rule applies to, what the penalties will be, or how it will be enforced. Still, it’s worth breaking down what this could mean once it does take effect.

So who is likely to be affected?

Rules like this usually target professional drivers first, people who spend long hours behind the wheel for work, such as truck drivers, delivery drivers and long-distance haulage drivers. Driver fatigue is a known cause of road accidents across the Gulf, so a cap on daily driving hours would fit with wider road safety efforts in the region.

In Kuwait, this would matter most to expats who drive commercial vehicles between Kuwait and the UAE, or companies that run cross-border freight and logistics routes through Saudi Arabia into the UAE. If you work in this industry, or your company runs delivery or transport contracts that cross into the UAE, this is one to watch over the next year.

For most expats in Kuwait, though, the direct effect will be limited. This is a UAE rule, not a Kuwaiti one, and right now it hasn’t been confirmed whether it applies to private drivers, tourists or people on short visits, or only to commercial and professional drivers.

What about expats who just drive to the UAE for holidays?

Plenty of people living in Kuwait drive across the Gulf for weekend trips or holidays, sometimes covering long distances in a single day to save on flights or hotel costs. If the 9-hour limit turns out to apply broadly, it could change how people plan these road trips, perhaps meaning an overnight stop instead of trying to reach Dubai or Abu Dhabi in one long drive.

But we can’t say this for certain yet. Nothing in the announcement says whether tourists or private drivers are included. Until the UAE gives more detail, it’s safer to assume the rule is aimed at commercial and professional driving, since that’s where daily driving hour limits are most common worldwide.

What’s not confirmed yet

There’s a lot still missing from this announcement, and readers should know that clearly before assuming too much:

• Which UAE ministry or authority is behind the rule.
• Whether it applies to all drivers or only commercial and professional drivers.
• What counts as a