Desk research against primary sources. Figures are traced to the issuing UAE authority and linked on the page.
Registering with the DCAA through the Dubai Drone app confirms who owns the drone; it does not confirm where you are allowed to fly it, and those two questions are checked separately. Because most of central Dubai sits inside restricted airspace by default, the practical question for any specific flight is whether that particular zone has been opened up, not whether your paperwork with the DCAA is in order.
Fines for unauthorised flights scale within the AED 10,000–50,000+ range depending on where and how the drone was flown, and proximity to airports, government buildings or Palm Jumeirah pushes a case toward the higher end rather than the lower one. Foreign visitors face the same registration and zone rules as residents — arriving with a drone and flying it the same day, before registering through the Dubai Drone app, is the most common way people end up in that fine range.
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