Is the African Grey Parrot Legal in the UAE? (2026)

African Greys are legal to own as pets in the UAE. Owning one requires the right paperwork, and producing that paperwork is the seller’s responsibility, not yours. A licensed UAE seller hands you the bird, the certificate transferred into your name, the closed leg-band already on the bird since hatching, and a recent avian-vet health certificate. You walk out the door legally compliant. You do not need to file anything with MOCCAE in your own name for a normal pet purchase.

The two acceptable documents are the CITES Release Certificate (issued by MOCCAE when a bird is legally imported after the 2017 uplisting) and the Certificate of Ownership (issued by MOCCAE for UAE-bred birds or for birds legally imported before 2017). Either is acceptable; both are name-transferable. Alongside the certificate, the bird must carry a closed stainless-steel leg-band applied at 14-21 days of age, stamped with the breeder’s code. If any of those three elements, certificate, name transfer, closed band, is missing, the transaction is not compliant.

Both the Congo African Grey (Psittacus erithacus) and the Timneh African Grey (Psittacus timneh) were uplisted from Appendix II to Appendix I at CITES CoP17 (Johannesburg, 2016), with the new listing taking effect from 2 January 2017. The uplisting reflected an estimated 50-79% population decline in West and Central Africa over three generations, driven by wild capture for the international pet trade and habitat loss.

Appendix I restricts commercial international trade in wild specimens. It does not ban the species as pets. Captive-bred birds produced at CITES-registered breeding facilities can still be traded internationally under a stricter permit regime, both an export permit from the country of origin and an import permit from the destination country are required for each transaction. The UAE has multiple licensed importers who maintain that paperwork chain.

In practical terms for a UAE buyer: African Greys can still be legally bought and sold here, but every transaction generates a MOCCAE paper trail and every bird must trace back to a documented captive-bred origin. Wild capture for the commercial pet trade has been illegal at the global treaty level since the start of 2017.

African Greys are not listed on the Federal Law 22/2016 banned dangerous-animals list. That law targets big cats, primates, large constrictor and venomous snakes, crocodilians, and certain other exotic mammals, animals capable of causing serious harm to humans. Pet parrots fall outside its scope entirely.

African Greys are regulated under Federal Law 11/2002, which implements CITES at the UAE federal level. The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE) is the designated CITES Management Authority for the UAE and administers the Release Certificate and Certificate of Ownership system. Animal welfare standards for housing, feeding, and care are set by Federal Law 16/2007 and apply to every pet bird regardless of species.

For the full federal-law backdrop including the complete banned-species list, the MOCCAE registration process for importers and breeders, and the penalty schedule for non-compliance, see our UAE exotic bird laws guide. This page concentrates on the species-specific picture for African Greys.

Treat this as a checklist for the actual sale. A licensed UAE seller will produce every item below without being asked twice. Anything missing is a reason to pause the transaction.

• CITES Release Certificate

  Issued by MOCCAE when an African Grey is legally imported into the UAE after 2017. Confirms the bird’s captive-bred origin and grants the holder lawful possession.

• Certificate of Ownership

  Issued by MOCCAE for African Greys bred inside the UAE, or for birds legally imported before the 2017 Appendix-I uplisting. Functionally equivalent to the Release Certificate for resale and ongoing ownership.

• Certificate transferred into your name on the day of sale

  Either document must be signed over to the new owner at point of sale, with your Emirates ID details recorded. An unsigned or seller-name-only certificate is incomplete paperwork.

• Closed stainless-steel leg-band

  Stamped with the breeder’s code and the bird’s hatch year. Applied at 14-21 days of age, before the foot is too large for the ring to slip over. An open band or missing band on an Appendix-I bird is a serious red flag.

• Breeder hatch record

  Date hatched, parents’ identifiers, and breeding facility. Lets you trace the bird’s provenance independently of the certificate.

• Recent avian-vet certificate (within 30 days)

  Includes physical exam plus PCR tests for psittacine beak and feather disease (PBFD) and avian polyomavirus (APV). A Chlamydia psittaci screen is recommended.

• Sale receipt with the seller’s UAE trade license number

  Establishes the chain of ownership and is essential evidence if MOCCAE, a vet, a boarding facility, or a future buyer ever needs to confirm the bird’s legal history.

Keep every document together in a labelled folder. You will want it if you ever change vets, board the bird, move home, resell, or relocate out of the UAE.

Both the Congo (Psittacus erithacus) and the Timneh (Psittacus timneh) are CITES Appendix I, both uplisted at the same CoP17 decision in 2016. From a UAE ownership perspective they are legally identical: identical certificate types, identical closed-band requirement, identical MOCCAE process.

They differ as birds, not as legal subjects. Congos are larger (around 400-490g), with light-grey plumage and a bright scarlet tail; they are the more common African Grey in the UAE market and sit slightly higher in price. Timnehs are smaller (around 275-375g), with darker charcoal plumage and a distinctive maroon (not red) tail; they are sometimes described as marginally less prone to feather-plucking and slightly steadier in temperament, though individual variation outweighs the subspecies generalisation.

One practical caution: do not confuse a Timneh with a juvenile Congo. Both can look greyer and smaller than an adult Congo at a glance. The tell is the tail, a Timneh’s tail is dark maroon throughout life, while even a young Congo’s tail is red, though it can be slightly duller in the first months. Ask the seller to confirm the subspecies on the certificate and on the breeder’s hatch record.

The headline answer to this page is yes, but yes inside a clear set of boundaries. Each of the following is a violation of either CITES, Federal Law 11/2002, or both.

• Wild-caught African Greys

  Any post-2017 wild capture is prohibited at the CITES treaty level. Birds occasionally surface through grey channels, unmarked imports, mislabelled customs declarations. Walk away.

• Birds without a closed leg-band on an Appendix-I species

  A closed band can only be applied to a hatchling. A missing or open (split, crimped) band on an African Grey signals either a wild-caught bird or one that bypassed legal import.

• Sales via Dubizzle, Instagram, or WhatsApp groups without CITES documentation

  Private resellers operate outside the MOCCAE paper trail. Even a genuinely captive-bred bird becomes legally unverifiable once it changes hands without certificate transfer.

• Importing your own bird into the UAE without a personal MOCCAE permit

  You need a personal CITES import permit issued by MOCCAE before the bird boards a plane. Customs will detain undeclared CITES-listed birds at the port of entry.

• Breeding African Greys for sale without a registered breeding permit

  Casual home breeding of an Appendix-I species for resale requires MOCCAE breeder registration. Keeping a bonded pair as pets is fine; selling their offspring is not.

• Selling or rehoming a bird without transferring the certificate

  Ownership transfer must follow the bird. Handing over an African Grey on Dubizzle for AED 3,000 cash without paperwork makes both seller and buyer non-compliant.

To report suspected illegal wildlife trade in African Greys or any other CITES species, contact MOCCAE directly through moccae.gov.ae or your local police.

The regulatory risk is real but, in practice, modest for a quiet pet owner sitting at home with one bird: MOCCAE rarely conducts door-to-door inspections of private apartments. The bigger risks are practical and financial, and they tend to surface at exactly the moments you least want them to.

What goes wrong:

• · Seizure risk if the bird is discovered through a complaint, a vet report, or a relocation inspection, confiscated birds are not returned.
• · Fines under Federal Law 11/2002 for trading or possessing CITES-listed species without permits.
• · Inability to legally resell or rehome the bird, no licensed shop or registered buyer will take it on.
• · Refusal of service from many avian vets and almost all boarding facilities, which require certificate sighting at intake.
• · Inability to export the bird when you relocate, MOCCAE will not issue an export permit for a bird without an underlying certificate.
• · Loss of the bird’s full market value, an undocumented African Grey is effectively worth zero on resale, because no legitimate buyer can take title.

The financial argument alone usually settles it. A documented Congo bought today for AED 7,500 retains most of that value if you ever need to rehome. The same bird without paperwork is unsellable at any price to anyone who knows what to ask for.

Two situations put a personal MOCCAE permit on you rather than the seller: you are moving to the UAE with an African Grey you already own, or you are buying a bird directly from an overseas breeder rather than a UAE retailer. Both follow the same outline.

What you need:

• · A personal CITES import permit from MOCCAE, applied for through the digital services portal before the bird travels.
• · A matching CITES export permit from the country of origin’s management authority.
• · An attested veterinary health certificate from a licensed vet in the origin country.
• · An IATA Live Animals Regulations-compliant travel crate.
• · A 6-10 week lead time, sometimes longer if the origin-country export permit is delayed.

For most people relocating to the UAE, buying a UAE-bred African Grey here once you arrive is considerably less stressful for the bird than long-haul air freight. But if the bird is already part of your household, the import route exists and is well-trodden. The MOCCAE digital services portal is the starting point.

When you leave the UAE with your African Grey, the paper chain runs in the other direction. You apply for a personal CITES export permit from MOCCAE, and your destination country must issue a matching import permit before the bird arrives. Both must be in place before the bird boards a plane.

Typical lead time is 6-10 weeks. Most major destination countries, the EU, the UK, the US, Australia, Canada, require additional health testing on arrival, and several enforce quarantine periods that can range from a few days to several months depending on the species and the country’s current disease-surveillance posture. The avian-influenza and Newcastle-disease control regimes change periodically, so always verify with the destination country’s national veterinary authority 6 months ahead of relocation.

Your closed leg-band and the original Certificate of Ownership (or Release Certificate) are essential evidence at every step. A bird without these documents is, in practical terms, not exportable. This is another reason, beyond the UAE-side considerations, to insist on full paperwork at point of purchase even if you have no immediate plans to leave.

Memorise these. Ask them in person, watch how the seller answers, and walk if any answer is hedged.

1. 1Can I see the CITES Release Certificate or Certificate of Ownership, and will you transfer it into my name today?
2. 2Where was this bird hatched, and what is the breeder’s leg-band code on the closed ring?
3. 3What is your UAE trade license number, and can I see the document?
4. 4When was the bird last seen by an avian vet, and may I have a copy of the certificate including PCR results?
5. 5If something goes wrong in the first 30 days, what happens, who do I call, and what is your written health guarantee?

For the full buyer’s checklist, covering trade-license verification, the hand-raised vs parent-raised test, the avian-vet PCR panel, and the lifetime-support question, see our 5-step parrot-buying guide for Dubai.

11. Frequently asked questions

• UAE Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE), CITES services
• CITES Secretariat, official species database (Psittacus erithacus)
• UAE Government Portal, Federal Law 11 of 2002 (CITES implementation)
• UAE Government Portal, Federal Law 22 of 2016 (dangerous animals)
• CITES CoP17, Appendix I uplisting of Psittacus erithacus (effective 2 January 2017)

13. Related pages

• UAE exotic bird laws, the federal-law hub: banned species, penalty schedule, MOCCAE registration.
• Cost of owning an African Grey in the UAE, full lifetime cost breakdown in AED.
• How to buy a parrot in Dubai, the 5-step buyer’s checklist.
• First 30 days with a new parrot, the settling-in plan once you’ve bought.
• Available African Greys, current stock with full paperwork.
• Bird boarding in Dubai, paperwork required at intake.
• Avian vet partners, the clinics we use for pre-sale checks and lifetime referrals.