Guide — Interpol & Cross-Border
An Interpol Red Notice is not an international arrest warrant. It is a request to police worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest you pending extradition — and it can be challenged, and removed. If you have just discovered one, or fear one exists, call +971 50 858 3520 before you travel.
A Red Notice is issued by Interpol's General Secretariat at the request of a member country's National Central Bureau. It asks police forces in Interpol's other member countries to locate and provisionally arrest the person named, pending extradition or similar lawful action. Three things it is not: it is not an international arrest warrant, it is not a determination of guilt, and it does not oblige any country to arrest — each member state decides what legal effect to give a notice under its own law.
Beware also the Red Notice's quieter sibling: the diffusion — a request circulated directly by one country's bureau to others, with less vetting by Interpol before it spreads. Diffusions are often the more dangerous instrument precisely because they receive less scrutiny; the challenge mechanisms below apply to them too.
Rarely by letter. The common discoveries: a stop at a border; a visa refusal that makes no sense; a bank suddenly closing accounts. Only a minority of Red Notices are published on Interpol's public website, so a clear public search is not clearance. The reliable route is an access request to the CCF — the Commission for the Control of Interpol's Files — asking what data Interpol holds on you, prepared so that it does not prejudice the challenge that may follow.
Interpol's own rules are the weapon. Its Constitution forbids the organisation from intervening in matters of a political, military, religious or racial character (Article 3) and requires that cooperation respect human rights (Article 2). Its Rules on the Processing of Data demand, among other things, a sufficient judicial basis and accurate data. And its policy excludes what is, in substance, a private or commercial dispute wearing criminal clothing — a pattern we see repeatedly in this region, where a business fallout becomes a fraud allegation becomes a notice. Recognised refugee status adds a further layer of protection where the requesting state is the country of feared persecution.
Deletion requests go to the CCF's Requests Chamber. Admissibility takes roughly a month; once a request is admissible, the Chamber must normally decide within nine months (extensions are possible in exceptional cases — in 2024, about 70% of requests met the nine-month mark). The practical lesson: this is a one-shot, paper-heavy procedure. A complete, evidenced, legally precise application filed once beats a thin application supplemented later. Where real urgency exists, interim measures can be sought alongside.
The UAE is an Interpol member, and a person flagged by a notice or diffusion can be detained on entry or in-country while the requesting state submits a formal extradition request. Extradition is then governed by Federal Law No. 39 of 2006 on International Judicial Cooperation in Criminal Matters (as amended in 2023). The conditions and safeguards matter: dual criminality and a minimum-penalty threshold (broadly, an offence punishable by at least one year's imprisonment, or six months remaining on a sentence — Article 7), and mandatory refusal where the offence is political or military in character, where the request is persecution by another name, or where torture, inhuman treatment or a grossly disproportionate penalty awaits (Article 9). The UAE courts decide, and the person is entitled to representation throughout.
The correct strategy is almost always two-track: contest the extradition in the UAE courts while attacking the notice itself at the CCF — coordinated, because evidence and admissions in one forum echo in the other. Our founding team's law-enforcement background means we understand how these requests are assembled — and therefore where they are weakest. If you are detained now, our guide to the first 48 hours after arrest in Dubai applies with equal force.
Notice, diffusion, or the fear of one? Call +971 50 858 3520. Confidential, 24/7, partner-led from the first call.
No. A Red Notice is a request by Interpol, at the instance of a member country, for police worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition or similar lawful action. It is not a finding of guilt, and each member country decides for itself what legal effect to give it.
Only a minority of Red Notices are published on Interpol's public website, so a clear search there proves little. The reliable routes are an access request to the Commission for the Control of Interpol's Files (CCF) asking what data Interpol holds about you, and inquiries through experienced counsel. Border incidents, unexplained visa refusals, and sudden bank de-risking are common first signs.
The main grounds: the notice offends Article 3 of Interpol's Constitution (matters of a political, military, religious or racial character); it is incompatible with Article 2 (respect for human rights); it breaches Interpol's Rules on the Processing of Data — for example an insufficient judicial basis; or it is in substance a private or commercial dispute dressed up as a criminal case, which Interpol's rules do not permit. Recognised refugee status is also protective where the notice comes from the country of feared persecution.
After the CCF's Requests Chamber declares a deletion request admissible (roughly a month), it must normally decide within nine months, though extensions are possible in exceptional cases — in 2024 about 70% of requests were decided within that period. A well-prepared application, filed once with complete evidence, is faster than an iterative one.
It is high-risk. Whether you are arrested at a border depends on each country’s law and practice, and connections through third countries multiply exposure. Before any travel, take advice: in some cases the right move is to resolve the notice first; in others, travel can be planned around jurisdictions once your status is confirmed.
You can be provisionally detained while the requesting state submits a formal extradition request. Extradition is then governed by Federal Law No. 39 of 2006 on International Judicial Cooperation in Criminal Matters (as amended): the UAE courts examine whether the legal conditions are met, with the person entitled to legal representation throughout. Defence on the extradition and challenge to the underlying notice can — and should — run in parallel.
Yes. Under Article 9 of Federal Law No. 39 of 2006, extradition must be refused for offences of a political or military character (terrorism, war crimes and genocide are not treated as political), and where the request aims to persecute the person for their race, religion, nationality or political opinions, or exposes them to torture, inhuman treatment or a grossly disproportionate penalty. Article 7 also requires dual criminality and a minimum sentence threshold — broadly, an offence punishable by at least one year, or six months left to serve on a conviction.
This guide is general information, current at the date above. It is not legal advice on your situation, and reading it does not create a lawyer–client relationship — see our website terms. For advice on your case, call us.
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