Khulasat Al Qaid: The Emirati Family Book Explained

A British woman married to an Emirati needs to register her child’s dual nationality with the UK embassy. The embassy asks for the “family register.” Her husband brings home a document entirely in Arabic — the Khulasat Al Qaid. The embassy cannot read it. The husband says every Emirati family has one. Nobody explains what it actually is or how to get it translated for a foreign authority.

The Khulasat Al Qaid (خلاصة القيد) is the UAE national family register. It is the master civil status document for Emirati citizens. Every birth, marriage, divorce, death, and citizenship event for the family is recorded in this single document.

Non-Emiratis do not have one. They encounter it only when their life intersects with an Emirati family — through marriage, children, inheritance, or property.

What the Document Contains

The Khulasat Al Qaid is maintained by the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP). It records:

• The family patriarch — the head of the family line, with full name and national ID number
• Spouse or spouses — with marriage dates and any divorce records
• All children — with full names, birth dates, gender, and civil status (single, married, deceased)
• Deaths — with dates and cause if recorded
• Citizenship status — each person’s nationality status, including naturalisation dates
• The family number (raqم القيد) — the unique identifier in the ICP system

The document is entirely in Arabic. There is no standard English version. Older documents may include handwritten entries from decades past, using calligraphic styles that differ from modern printed Arabic.

For inheritance cases, the Khulasat Al Qaid is the document courts rely on to identify every legal heir. Sharia inheritance law allocates specific fractions to each relative. The family register lists them all.

When Non-Emiratis Need It Translated

Marriage to an Emirati Citizen

A foreign spouse married to an Emirati citizen needs the Khulasat Al Qaid translated when:

• Applying for a residence visa sponsored by the Emirati spouse
• Registering the marriage with their home-country embassy
• Applying for family benefits or social support through government channels
• Proving the marriage exists for child custody or property purposes

The foreign embassy will not accept the Arabic original. They need an MOJ-certified English translation along with the Arabic document. Some embassies also require MOFA UAE attestation on the translation.

Children with One Emirati Parent

When a child has one Emirati parent, the citizenship document chain involves the Khulasat Al Qaid at several stages:

• Registering the child’s UAE citizenship
• Registering the child’s second nationality at the other parent’s embassy
• School enrollment where the school needs to verify the child’s civil status
• Travel document applications where the embassy needs family relationship proof

The Khulasat Al Qaid proves the child belongs to the Emirati family line. The birth certificate proves the child was born. The two documents together establish both identity and family membership.

Inheritance and Estate Cases

UAE inheritance law — both Sharia and DIFC — requires identification of all legal heirs before any estate distribution. The Khulasat Al Qaid is the definitive list. Courts use it to verify:

• Who is alive and who is deceased
• Marriage status of each family member
• Number and identity of children
• Whether any heir has been added or removed through legal proceedings

A foreign court handling a UAE-related estate needs the Khulasat Al Qaid translated to understand the family structure. The translation must be precise about relationship terms — Arabic kinship vocabulary is more specific than English (paternal uncle vs maternal uncle, for example).

Property Disputes

In property disputes where Emirati ownership must be established, the Khulasat Al Qaid proves family membership and therefore inheritance rights. If a deceased Emirati owned property and the heirs are disputed, the family register is the controlling document.

The Dubai Land Department and Abu Dhabi equivalent use the Khulasat Al Qaid to verify heir identity before transferring property titles. If one heir lives abroad, that heir’s legal representative needs a translated copy to understand the family structure and the heir’s position.

How to Obtain the Document

Only the Emirati citizen or their authorised representative can request the Khulasat Al Qaid from ICP. The process involves:

1. Visit an ICP office or use the ICP mobile app
2. Request an updated copy of the Khulasat Al Qaid
3. Provide the family number (raqm al-qaid) and the citizen’s Emirates ID
4. Receive the document — usually printed the same day

A non-Emirati spouse cannot request it independently. If the Emirati spouse is unavailable (abroad, deceased, or unwilling), the non-Emirati needs a power of attorney specifically authorising them to request family documents from ICP.

In contentious cases — divorce, custody disputes, contested inheritance — obtaining the document may require a court order directing ICP to release the Khulasat Al Qaid to the requesting party’s legal representative.

Translation Challenges

Handwritten Entries

Older Khulasat Al Qaid documents include entries made by hand over decades. The handwriting may use regional calligraphic styles, abbreviations, or ink that has faded. An MOJ-licensed translator with experience in historical Arabic documents can read these entries. A general translator or a typing centre may not.

Kinship Terminology

Arabic kinship terms are more granular than English equivalents. The translation must distinguish between:

• عم (paternal uncle) and خال (maternal uncle)
• عمة (paternal aunt) and خالة (maternal aunt)
• ابن العم (paternal cousin) and ابن الخال (maternal cousin)

In inheritance cases, these distinctions affect which fraction of the estate each heir receives. A translation that renders both عم and خال as “uncle” loses critical legal information.

Name Consistency

The names in the Khulasat Al Qaid are in Arabic. The translation must match these names exactly as they appear on each person’s passport and Emirates ID. If the register says “محمد” and the passport says “Mohammed,” the translation must note the correspondence — the same name matching discipline that applies to visa applications applies here.

Using the Translation Abroad

If the translated Khulasat Al Qaid is for use outside the UAE:

1. Get the MOJ-certified Arabic-to-English translation
2. Have the translation attested by MOFA UAE
3. Have it legalised by the UAE embassy in the destination country (or the destination country’s embassy in the UAE)
4. Submit both the Arabic original and the attested translation to the receiving authority

The receiving authority may ask what the document is, since no equivalent exists in most countries. The translation should include a brief translator’s note explaining that the Khulasat Al Qaid is the UAE national family register maintained by the federal government.

Contact Channels

For MOJ-certified translation of Khulasat Al Qaid and related family documents:

• WhatsApp: +971 50 862 0217
• iMessage: +971 50 862 0217
• Email: info@onlinetranslation.ae
• Phone: +971 50 862 0217
• Walk-in: Palm Jumeirah Mall, Dubai

Send a photo of the document. We handle modern and historical formats, handwritten entries, and complex family structures. MOJ-certified Arabic-to-English translation is typically completed the same day.