President of the United Arab Emirates

The President of the United Arab Emirates, or the Raʾīs (Arabic: رَئِـيْـس‎), is the head of state of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The President and Vice-President are elected every five years by the Federal Supreme Council. Though the UAE Prime Minister is formally appointed by the President, every UAE Vice-President simultaneously serves as Prime Minister. Usually, a sheikh from the Emirate of Abu Dhabi holds the presidency, and a sheikh from the Emirate of Dubai the vice-presidency and premiership.

President of the United Arab Emirates
Incumbent Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan since 3 November 2004
Style	His Highness His Excellency (diplomatic)
Member of	Federal Supreme Council
Residence	Qasr Al Watan
Seat	Abu Dhabi
Appointer	Federal Supreme Council (de jure) Hereditary Succession (de facto)
Term length	5 years, no term limit (de jure) Life tenure (de facto)
Constituting instrument	Constitution of the United Arab Emirates
Inaugural holder	Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan
Formation	2 December 1971
Deputy	Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum (de jure) Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (de facto)
Website	Official website

United Arab Emirates
This article is part of a series on the politics and government of the United Arab Emirates
Member State of the Arab League
Constitution Human rights
Federal Supreme Council President Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan Prime Minister Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Current members
Federal National Council Speaker: Saqr Ghobash
Elections Recent elections Parliamentary: 2006 2011 2015 2019
Foreign relations Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Minister: Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan Diplomatic missions of / in the UAE Nationality law Passport Visa requirements Visa policy Expatriates in the UAE
Related topics National symbols Flag Emblem Anthem Emirates Rulers Military History
United Arab Emirates portal Other countries

Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan was the UAE's founding father and widely credited with unifying the seven emirates into one country. He was the UAE's first president, from the UAE's founding until his death on 2 November 2004. On the following day the Federal Supreme Council elected his son, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to the post.[1] The President is also the Commander-in-Chief of the UAE Armed Forces.

The current President is Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who became president on 3 November 2004, following the death of his father, Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.