Almost all countries in the world are suffering from Money Laundering (ML) activities in their jurisdictions. The establishment of a Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) in countries is therefore a crucial and most effective international requirement to fight ML. It constitutes the backbone for the Anti-Money
Laundering (AML) system at both the national and international level. The unit is the only national entity specialised in dealing with Suspicious Transactions Reports (STRs) on ML. The thesis critically analyses the role of
the UAE FIU in the STRs regime, especially its functions and powers in dealing with STRs and the STRs requirements imposed upon the reporting entities. The UAE FIU model is also compared with the UK FIU model. In addition, the thesis investigates whether the current UAE FIU model complies with the relevant international recommendations developed by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in relation to the establishment of the unit, as well as its powers and functions. The research argues that the current functions and powers of the UAE FIU model do not comply with the international requirements, whilst the functions and powers of the UK
FIU model do not just comply with the international requirements, but are even superior to them. Yet, the adoption of the entire UK FIU model may be di
fficult for the UAE, especially in light of the special nature of its circumstances and police system.The research provides practical recommendations to formulate a new/amended strategy for the future work of the UAE FIU as the only national agency specialised in dealing with STRs. Further, it assists
the policy makers, in the UAE, to re-align the strategies of the UAE FIU in a way
which does not conflict with the country's circumstances and legal system, provided that adopting a number of legislative and regulatory amendments in order to ensure the success of the proposed FIU model.