If your clinic, dental practice, hospital or diagnostic centre will use an X-ray unit, a CBCT scanner, or any other source of ionising radiation, you need approval from the Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR) before you use it. In Dubai, it also affects your opening date: DHA requires FANR registration before it activates a facility licence that includes radiology equipment. This guide explains who needs FANR approval, the difference between a licence and a registration certificate, what you need to apply and what FANR expects once you’re approved.
What is FANR approval?
FANR is the UAE’s regulator for nuclear safety, nuclear security and radiation protection. FANR states that all users of radioactive material and sources of ionising radiation in the UAE must hold a FANR licence. Applications go through FANR’s e-licensing portal.
For clinics and hospitals in Dubai, DHA requires FANR registration before it activates a facility licence that includes radiology equipment. So FANR isn’t a step you can leave until after the fit-out: plan it from the layout stage.
Licence or registration certificate: which do you need?
FANR has two routes for regulated materials and items:
- A licence for regulated activities that need full regulatory control.
- A registration certificate for regulated activities that don’t warrant full regulatory control. This route is governed by FANR’s Regulation 29 on registration.
Which one applies depends on your equipment and how you use it. Both are applied for through the same e-licensing portal, so confirm the route for your specific equipment with FANR before you submit.
What you need to apply
For a registration certificate, FANR’s service page lists:
- Technical information about the regulated materials or equipment
- The radiation source manufacturer’s certificates
- A return agreement for disused radioactive material, where it applies
- For private companies: your trade licence, proof of Chamber of Commerce registration, and the responsible person’s passport and visa
- For your Radiation Protection Officer (RPO): a designation letter, a CV, and a radiation safety training certificate or a commitment to complete the training within three months
Appointing your RPO early is one of the simplest ways to avoid delays. Every application needs one.
Steps to obtain FANR approval
- Confirm your equipment and route. List every X-ray, CBCT or other radiation-emitting device you plan to install, and confirm whether it needs a licence or a registration certificate.
- Plan shielding with your layout. Your shielding design is part of the protection and safety programme FANR reviews, so build it into the engineering layout before walls close.
- Appoint a Radiation Protection Officer. Prepare the designation letter, CV and training certificate (or training commitment).
- Register on FANR’s e-licensing portal and activate your account.
- Submit your application and documents, including your protection and safety programme.
- Receive your licence or registration certificate, then share it with DHA as part of your facility’s activation.
Dental X-ray clinics: what FANR’s protection and safety programme covers
FANR’s advice for dental X-ray facilities says your protection and safety programme becomes part of your licence once FANR accepts it, and you must comply with every commitment in it. It covers:
- Your equipment inventory, staff numbers, floor plans and patient workload
- A management structure with defined radiation safety duties and qualified staff
- Occupational protection: a worker dose constraint of 3 mSv a year is regarded as reasonable, and staff must be out of the room or at a shielded console during exposures
- Individual monitoring of staff doses, with six-monthly reporting to FANR
- Patient protection: a senior dentist responsible for patient exposures, equipment calibration, and patient records kept for at least five years
- Public protection: a dose constraint of 0.1 mSv a year, with your shielding designs specified
- Equipment inspection, calibration and maintenance, with an inventory submitted to FANR twice a year
- Written operating procedures in your workers’ languages, staff training records, and incident reporting procedures
You must also give FANR 30 days’ advance notice of any significant change, such as new equipment or a layout change.
Setting up a dental or aesthetic clinic? Read where FANR approval fits into the clinic setup process.
After approval: renewals and changes
- FANR licences are renewed through the same e-licensing portal, so track your expiry date.
- Adding a new X-ray unit or changing your layout is a significant change: tell FANR 30 days before.
- Keep your RPO appointment, staff training records and dose monitoring up to date, because these form part of your licence commitments.
Learn how DHA activates your facility: How to Activate Your DHA Licence
How OnTime Healthcare helps
OnTime Healthcare coordinates FANR approval alongside DHA facility licensing and interior fit-out, so your X-ray room is designed, documented and approved before the DHA inspection is booked. Speak with our licensing team before you order radiology equipment.
FAQs
Who needs FANR approval?
Anyone in the UAE who uses radioactive material or sources of ionising radiation, including clinics, dental practices and hospitals with X-ray or CBCT equipment.
Do I need FANR approval before DHA activates my clinic?
Yes, if your facility includes radiology equipment. DHA requires FANR registration before it activates the facility licence.
Can I apply for FANR approval online?
Yes. Licences and registration certificates are applied for through FANR’s e-licensing portal.
What is a Radiation Protection Officer?
The person you designate to oversee radiation safety at your facility. FANR asks for their designation letter, CV and a radiation safety training certificate, or a commitment to complete the training within three months.
How long does FANR approval take?
It depends on your equipment, your route (licence or registration) and how complete your application is. Start it at the layout stage so it’s ready before your DHA inspection.
Do I need to renew my FANR licence?
Yes. FANR licences are renewed through the e-licensing portal, and significant changes must be notified to FANR 30 days in advance.
Official sources: FANR – Licences & Regulatory Approval; FANR – Issue Registration Certificate service; FANR – Protection and Safety Programme Advice: Dental X-Ray; DHA facility licensing requirements.
