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Mélanie Perez

Mélanie Perez is an associate in Covington’s competition team. She advises on all aspects of EU competition law, including merger control, cartels, antitrust and regulatory investigations and enforcement. Mélanie also has extensive experience in multi-jurisdictional merger control, foreign direct investments, antitrust and cartel investigations.

She assists clients across a broad range of sectors, and has a particular focus on the technology sector. With her deep knowledge of EU competition law, Mélanie is dedicated to providing strategic advice to clients and achieving their goals in a rapidly evolving regulatory landscape.

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What’s changing, and why is it important?

In July 2026, the Ministry of Economy & Tourism of the United Arab Emirates (the “Ministry” and “UAE”) published its Guidelines on Relevant Market Definition (the “Guidelines”), providing a detailed look into the Ministry’s framework for market definition assessment. The Ministry considers market definition to be a “fundamental pillar” to the competitive assessment across all competition enforcement contexts and a “crucial stage” in competition enforcement.

The issuance of the Guidelines marks a further important step in the implementation of the UAE’s competition law regime. It follows the introduction of revised merger control thresholds in 2025 and the adoption in April 2026 of implementing regulations for the 2023 Federal Competition Law (see our previous blog on these reforms).

The Guidelines are particularly important for the UAE’s merger control regime, where filing obligations are dependent on parties meeting revenue and/or market share thresholds in the “relevant market” in the UAE. The introduction of the Guidelines provides a crucial tool to merging parties and advisers for determining when transactions may require mandatory notification to the Ministry. More substantively, the Guidelines will provide an important source to help merging parties prepare the “economic report” on the competitive effects of a merger required by the UAE merger notification rules. Beyond merger control, the Guidelines will also provide an important tool for self-assessment of behavioural competition law compliance.

Continue Reading UAE Antitrust Regime Marks an Important Step with the Introduction of Market Definition Guidelines

On 30 April, the UAE adopted Cabinet Decision No. (59) of 2026 (“the 2026 Executive Regulations”), setting out the executive regulations for Federal Decree-Law No. (36) of 2023 on the Regulation of Competition. The 2026 Executive Regulations replace the previous implementing regulations adopted in 2014 under the former UAE competition law. They are expected to enter into force on 30 July 2026.

Taken together, the adoption of Federal Decree-Law 36 on Regulating Competition of 2023, Cabinet Resolution No. (3) of 2025 establishing the new filing thresholds, and the subsequent adoption of the 2026 Executive Regulations complete a long-anticipated overhaul of the UAE merger control framework. These measures mark a decisive shift towards a fully operational and modern merger control regime. The 2026 Executive Regulations significantly streamline the notification process, introduce enhanced timing certainty, and create a clear pathway for third parties to engage with the Competition Department of the Ministry of Economy & Tourism (“Competition Department”) to influence the outcome of merger reviews.

More broadly, the 2026 Executive Regulations introduce important changes to various aspects of UAE’s competition law framework, including measures relating to behavioural competition enforcement and procedures. In combination with other recent competition policy and enforcement actions, the 2026 Executive Regulations signal the UAE’s ambition to bring its competition and merger control framework in line with international best practice.

This article focuses on the main revisions to the UAE merger control framework, before briefly outlining the wider changes introduced to the UAE’s behavioural competition regime by the 2026 Executive Regulations.

Continue Reading The UAE’s New Merger Control Framework: What the 2026 Executive Regulations Mean for Dealmakers