This species appears to be known from a small number of mostly old records. R.A. Western collected the species in 1982 from Umm an-Nar between the old and new Abu Dhabi airports (<a href=""http://data.rbge.org.uk/herb/E00140039"">RBGE Herbarium</a>), and again in 1982 from an adjacent site: a small island close to the new airport (<a href=""http://data.rbge.org.uk/herb/E00140044"">RGBE Herbarium</a>). The continued presence of the species in this area requires confirmation due to the extensive development that has occurred since the species was collected. Jongbloed et al. (2003) mention the species without localities, simply stating that it occurs along the Arabian Gulf coast. The global range of this species is through the Arabian Peninsula to Iran and Pakistan (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019). Farsetia heliophila is also known to occur in the Musandam in Oman.

In the UAE, this species was recorded by M. Jongbloed from the base of Jebel Hafeet (Jongbloed et al. 2003). The distribution is uncertain as a result of confusion with other members of the genus, particularly Fagonia indica (MEW 2010). The global distribution of the species is from Egypt in the west to Pakistan in the east and to Kenya and Somalia in the south (Beier 2005). This is one of the most widespread species in Oman (S. Ghazanfar pers. comm. 2019).

It is found within montane regions, ranging from low altitudes up to c. 1200 m (Feulner 2011, Patzelt 2015). A distinctive and common species at Jebel Hafeet (Stuart and Stuart 1998), this plant is also widespread within the Hajar Mountains and can be found in the Olive Highlands (Jongbloed et al. 2003, Feulner 2014). This species is native to Iran and the Arabian peninsula (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

Within the UAE it is known from a single low altitude locality within the Ru'us al-Jibal (Feulner 2011). Globally, this species is native to Africa, the Arabian Peninsula and through to Pakistan according to Plants of the Wold online (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019). However, there appears to be some uncertainty; Randall (2017) considers it a weed, dispersed by humans and livestock, that is native to Africa, whilst Pahlevani (2017) considers it native to Asia (Saudi Arabia and Yemen only) and Africa.

Within the UAE, it is widespread throughout the Hajar Mountains (Jongbloed et al. 2003). Globally, this species ranges from Kenya to northeast Africa and the Arabian Peninsula (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

Within the UAE, this species is recorded from the foothills of the Hajar Mountains, however, detailed distribution information was not given by Jongbloed et al. (2003). Sharjah Seedbank & Herbarium hold records from scattered localities through the Hajar Mountains; Wadi Al Bih, Safsaf area, Al Manama, Kedra, Dibba-Khor Fakkan, Al Bithnah, and Hatta. It was not recorded from the Ru'us al-Jibal by Feulner (2011) or from Wadi Wurayah National Park by Feulner (2016). Globally, the native range of this species extends from Egypt to the Arabian Peninsula (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

In the UAE, this plant species is recorded in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain (Jongbloed et al. 2003), with an additional record from near Khor Fakkan on the east coast. The species is abundant in lawns in Abu Dhabi urban area (G. Brown pers. comm. 2019), however these individuals may well have been introduced or escapees. In the world, it is native to Tropical & Subtropical Old World, but it has been very widely introduced to the Americas and to Australasia (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2018).

In the UAE, the species is common on gravel plains and wadi terraces of the western slopes of the Hajar Mountains (Feulner 2016). There are records of this species in Abu Dhabi Emirate (Brown and Sakkir 2004), and from the buffer zone of Wadi Wurayah National Park (park HQ area, and from disused wadi fields at low elevations in the Ru'us al-Jibal; Feulner 2016), although it is uncertain if the Ru'us al-Jibal localities mentioned by Feulner (2011) are within the UAE. Although it is a weed of cultivated crops and is likely to be more widespread than the available records suggest, the UAE native plant working group considered it to be native to the country. The native range of this species is the tropical and subtropical Old World, across almost all of Africa, east through the Arabian Peninsula to southeast Asia; very widely introduced to the Americas and to parts of Europe (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2018).

Within the UAE it has been recorded from Wadi Hayl in Fujairah Emirate (Jongbloed et al. 2003). The record mentioned from the Ru'us al-Jibal (Feulner 2011) is from within Oman. Globally, this species is native to Macaronesia and the Sahara to India (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

Within the UAE, Dyerophytum indicum is widespread throughout the Hajar Mountains and the Ru'us al-Jibal. It has also recently been recorded from the vicinity of Jebel Hafeet (Sakkir and Brown 2014). Globally, this species is native to the Arabian Peninsula and India (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).