The sand seas of the Emirates are one of the few places where a sport side-by-side is used exactly as it was designed to be: long climbs, high crests, speed on open sand. Can-Am is a brand of the Canadian company BRP, and our Canadian stock includes several dozen Can-Am side-by-sides, among them the Maverick R and Maverick X3. Below is what to find out before you buy: where the rules allow you to ride, what importing costs, which documents registration requires, and which versions suit the dunes best.
Where people ride buggies in the UAE
The country's best-known dune is Tel Moreeb in the Liwa area (Al Dhafra, Emirate of Abu Dhabi). It rises more than 300 metres with a 50° slope, and every year in December–January it hosts the Moreeb Hill Climb, a competition for four-wheel drives, quad bikes and dirt bikes (Visit Abu Dhabi). The Liwa International Festival takes place nearby: the 2026 edition ran from 12 December 2025 to 3 January 2026 (Abu Dhabi Media Office). Dates for the 2026/27 season had not been announced at the time of publication — if you are buying for the festival, we build the shipping schedule once they are out.
What Dubai's rules say
Dubai applies Regulation No. 4 of 2008 on the use and licensing of recreational motorbikes and quad bikes (Dubai Regulation No. 4 of 2008). It describes such machines as motor vehicles with two or more wheels that are not designed as automobiles and are licensed for use on all terrain except paved roads. They may be ridden only in unpaved areas designated by the RTA; paved roads and pavements, residential areas, inland and coastal areas are off limits.
Whether a particular side-by-side falls under this definition, or whether the RTA will register it in a separate off-road category, has not been officially clarified. That is why we settle this question with the RTA for your model before shipping, not after the vehicle reaches port. The practical conclusion is the same either way: a Maverick is a machine for sand and designated areas, not for city streets, and it is trailered to where you ride.
Which Maverick to choose for sand
For the dunes it makes sense to look at versions with a wide chassis, long-travel suspension and power in reserve. From our stock:
- Maverick R X and Maverick R X rs 2026 — Rotax 999T turbo with 240 hp and a 7-speed Rotax DCT. The R X listing shows about 64 cm of suspension travel; the X rs has FOX 3.0 RC2 shocks. In our catalogue the R X is tagged "sport dunes".
- Maverick X3 RS Turbo RR — Rotax ACE 900 Turbo RR with 200 hp and a wide 72-inch chassis; the listing says "high-speed desert sport". The top version of this line, the X3 X rs Turbo RR, has FOX 2.5/3.0 RC2 shocks and about 22 inches of travel.
- Maverick R MAX X and X3 MAX — four-seat versions if a group is heading into the desert.
The narrow X3 DS with its 64-inch chassis and the 50-inch Maverick Trail are designed for technical forest trails; for open sand we usually suggest the wide RS versions and the R line. If you need a working side-by-side for a farm or a site, look at the Defender Limited HD10 — according to its listing it has a closed cab and air conditioning. A breakdown of the Maverick platforms is in our Can-Am Maverick guide, and the full range is in the buggies and SxS section.
What you will pay on import
The general UAE import rules are the same for cars and powersports and are covered in detail in our article on clearing a car from Canada into the UAE. For buggies one point matters: the UAE tariff has no separate line for ATVs, UTVs or buggies, so a side-by-side is classified under the general headings of chapter 87. The code for a specific model — 8703 or, for utility versions with a cargo bed, 8704 — is confirmed with the broker at clearance. It does not change the amount: every 8703 and 8704 line in the Dubai Customs tariff carries a 5% duty rate.
| Payment | Rate 2026 | Source |
|---|---|---|
| HS code | Chapter 87: 8703 or 8704 (no separate line for buggies); 12-digit codes for imports from third countries since August 2026 | Dubai Customs, HS Code Master, Dubai Customs, 12-digit HS |
| Customs duty | 5% of CIF value (goods + freight + insurance) | u.ae — Customs duty |
| VAT | 5% on CIF + duty + customs fees | Decree-Law 8/2017, Art. 3, 35 |
| Excise | None — vehicles are not on the list of excise goods | u.ae — Excise tax |
| Recycling / eco fee | Not listed among import charges | u.ae — Customs duty |
| Fees | Dubai Customs processing charges — 2026 amounts confirmed at calculation; RTA registration in the "Off-road or mechanical equipment" category (private light vehicle) — AED 600 + AED 20 | Dubai Customs Customer Guide, RTA |
In practice: if the CIF value of the vehicle is taken as 100 units, duty is 5, the VAT base is 105 plus customs fees, and VAT is from 5.25. That is about 10.25% of CIF in total, plus customs and RTA fees. Note that the value for duty is set by customs inspectors, not just by the invoice (Dubai Customs).
Registration documents: VCC and Gulf Specifications
Once released by customs, the vehicle receives a Vehicle Clearance Certificate (VCC): without it an imported vehicle cannot be registered with the traffic authorities (Dubai Customs). The second key document is confirmation of compliance with Gulf Specifications from the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology (MoIAT). The RTA requires it at registration if compliance is not shown on the Customs Card (RTA). A North American spec vehicle usually does not show such compliance on that card, so we plan for the MoIAT document for a Canadian Maverick from the start.
On RTA fees: the registration tariff has an "Off-road or mechanical equipment" category — AED 600 for a private light vehicle plus the AED 20 Knowledge and Innovation fee. Whether a specific Maverick goes into this category or under the quad bike regime of Regulation No. 4 is something we confirm with the RTA for your model. If the vehicle will be registered in Abu Dhabi or Sharjah, we confirm the procedure for that emirate separately.
Shipping: RoRo from Halifax to Jebel Ali
A side-by-side is self-propelled, so besides a container it can travel RoRo. Atlantic Container Line runs a RoRo service for self-propelled and towable cargo from Halifax to Jebel Ali: 43 days in transit, monthly sailings, transshipment in Antwerp and a through bill of lading; to Abu Dhabi the same line takes 60 days (ACL, Middle East services). Container transit times vary by line and are confirmed at booking. If you need the Maverick for the Moreeb Hill Climb season in December–January, we plan shipment around the monthly sailing interval.
Why Canada and what we check
We ship only from the Canadian market: new machines and clean used ones, with no auction wrecks or rebuilt vehicles. For a sport buggy this is essential — on a used unit we check the history and condition before payment; more in our piece on VIN and history checks. UAE requirements on the age of imported used vehicles are confirmed for the specific machine before purchase; the 2026 model-year Mavericks in our stock are new.
A full estimate before you buy
We do not publish vehicle prices: they depend on version, trim and the exchange rate. Instead we calculate the full estimate — CIF, duty, VAT, customs and RTA fees, the MoIAT document — before the vehicle is bought. You can get a rough idea of the charges in the calculator and request a specific Maverick through the order form.
Rates are given as of October 2026 and may change. The final calculation is made on the clearance date.