10 Things You Need To Know About The New NMC Influencer Licensing Laws

Confused about the new NMC influencer licensing laws and regulations, soon to be implemented in the UAE?

You are not alone.

Last week at ITP Live’s Influencer Marketing Summit media and entertainment lawyer Fiona Robertson, a Senior Associate at Al Tamimi & Company, provided the audience with clarification about the new laws and licensing.

The overall takeaway is that the laws were not put into place to stop influencer marketing. Rather, the NMC is aiming to bring in a sense of transparency, legitimacy and well-being for everyone, who chooses to use social media to consume content.

We’ve rounded up everything you need to know from Robertson’s presentation below…

10 Things You Need To Know About NMC Influencer Licensing Laws

1. The law applies to UAE residences and influencers operating in the UAE.

2. The law applies to all social influencers who use their social media channels to promote and/or sell products.

3. It is the responsibility of the owner of the account to provide the license (i.e. not a third party) for their social influencing activities.

4. This includes “…any paid or unpaid form of presentation and/or promotion of ideas, goods, or services by electronic means, or network applications.” This includes items, services and experiences an influencer may obtain for free from brands (i.e. “gifts”). 

5. Influencers will need to clarify content that is sponsored and/or paid vs. editorial content on their social channels. This means putting #ad or #sponsored somewhere within the posts, that their audience can easily view (i.e. no hiding it in the comments).

6. There is a lot of regulation surrounding healthcare and wellness products. Influencers taking on sponsored or paid brand deals in regards to detox teas, skincare, etc. need to be extremely careful about the claims they make in their posts.

7. Influencers will have until the end of June 2018 to obtain the license.

8. The cost of the license is 15, 000 AED and is valid for 12 months.

9. How does the NMC plan to police influencers? They’ll most likely respond to complaints made against a particular individual. Influencers who are breaking the law will likely be “called out” by other influencers or individuals affected by their actions. 

10. Regulators have told Robertson that “they will be watching” influencers going forward. Social media influencers, you have been warned!

What are your thoughts on the new NMC influencer license? Let us know in the comments below…