Dubai Customs processed 21.15 million customs declarations in the first half of 2026, according to figures released by the authority, with 98 per cent handled automatically and without manual intervention.
The H1 figure compares to 47.01 million declarations processed across all of 2025, suggesting broadly similar volumes are on track for the full year. Service requests reached 67,174, up 15.1 per cent from 58,349 in the same period last year.
Air cargo accounted for the largest share of declarations by port type, at around 18.92 million, or 89.4 per cent of the total. The authority attributed the concentration to growth in air cargo trade, e-commerce, and express shipments.
Land ports contributed 1.62 million declarations (7.7 per cent), sea ports more than 485,000 (2.3 per cent), with the remainder spread across coastal ports, passengers, and mail.
New registrations indicate a broader base of participants: 7,871 companies joined the Dubai Customs registry since the start of 2026, while 9,365 declarants filed their first declarations in the period, alongside 271 customs brokers making their debut filings.
The authority’s top 10 clients, drawn from express delivery, trading, logistics, and aviation, collectively processed around 4.1 million declarations, or 19.4 per cent of the total. Dubai Customs said the leading client’s six-month declaration volume exceeded its entire 2025 tally by 24 per cent.
Gold bars led the commodity rankings for both imports and exports, followed by smartphones, jewellery, diamonds, and laptops. Cars featured among leading imports; aircraft spare parts among leading exports.
“The value of customs efficiency is reflected in its impact on business competitiveness and the reliability of trade flows. We work to ensure that traders in Dubai find clear procedures, connected services, and a system able to keep pace with their needs, supporting their ability to plan, manage their operations, and reach markets with confidence,” Dr. Abdulla Busenad, Director General of Dubai Customs said in a statement.
“Enabling trusted trade is a responsibility that combines accelerating the flow of legitimate trade with strengthening our ability to anticipate and address risks with precision. Accordingly, we continue to harness technology, data, and artificial intelligence to develop our services and direct our control capabilities efficiently, protecting society and the economy and reinforcing Dubai’s credibility as a gateway to global trade.”
The Authorized Economic Operator programme currently has 142 enrolled companies, which together account for 40% of total customs transactions and receive expedited clearance in exchange for verified compliance records.
Busenad said the customs operation is aligned with the Dubai Economic Agenda D33, framing infrastructure improvements in clearance automation and analytics as contributions to the emirate’s broader competitiveness targets.
