Keyper news & insights

A security deposit in Dubai is usually 5% of annual rent for an unfurnished home. Furnished homes usually ask for 10% instead. Most tenants get every dirham back once they move out. Some do not, and the money sits with a landlord who will not explain why.

Dubai law is clear about who owns this money and when it must be returned. Article 20 of Law No. 26 of 2007 says your landlord must refund the deposit once your tenancy ends. The only deductions allowed are for real damage or unpaid bills, never normal wear and tear. Here is how to protect your deposit and get it back in full.

If you sign a lease in Dubai, you register it through Ejari. If you sign one in Abu Dhabi, you register it through Tawtheeq. Both systems turn a private rental agreement into an official record. Get the wrong one, and your paperwork can stall for weeks.

Ejari sits with the Dubai Land Department, under a law from 2007. Tawtheeq sits with Abu Dhabi's TAMM platform, running since 2011. Neither certificate works outside its own emirate. This guide compares what each system covers, what it costs and when the rules genuinely differ.

A rental viewing in Dubai usually lasts twenty minutes. That is not much time to judge a home you might live in for a year. Most tenants focus on the kitchen and the view, then sign without testing the taps or air conditioning. Problems that were there before move-in often become the tenant's bill at move-out.

This guide covers the whole process, in order. What to check before you book a viewing. What to inspect inside the unit, and what to confirm before you sign. It also covers the paperwork after signing, since Ejari and DEWA depend on the contract being right.

A landlord in Dubai stops answering messages about a broken air conditioner. A tenant pays rent late three months running. A security deposit never comes back after move-out. These are the disputes that end up at the Rental Disputes Centre, Dubai's court for landlord and tenant conflicts.

The RDC sits under the Dubai Land Department. It was built to settle rental cases faster than a regular civil court. It has its own judges, its own fees, and its own rules for evidence. Anyone renting or letting property in Dubai should understand how it works, even if they never plan to use it.

A landlord cannot ask a tenant to leave for renovation work on a whim. Dubai's tenancy law, set out in Law No. 26 of 2007 and its 2008 amendment, is strict on this. The work must be major, and it must be impossible to finish with someone living there. A text message or an email will not meet the legal notice requirement.

The notice must follow a strict legal path, backed by a certified technical report. This guide walks landlords through that path, from the paperwork to the final handover. It covers what the law requires, how to serve the notice, and what happens afterwards. Getting each stage right protects the landlord and gives the tenant a fair process.

Most landlords in the UAE pay no tax on their rental income. If you own a flat or villa in your own name, the rent you collect is yours to keep. The UAE does not charge personal income tax. So rent from a personally owned home stays untaxed, whether you live in the UAE or abroad.

That changes once a company owns the property, or renting starts to look like a business. UAE Corporate Tax, introduced in 2023, can apply to larger or licensed rental operations. This guide walks through who is taxed, who is not, and where VAT and other rules still come in.

Yes, you can rent out a shared ownership property in Dubai. The law allows co-owners to lease a jointly owned unit to a tenant. There are a few clear rules to follow first. This applies whether you own an apartment with a business partner, a sibling or as part of an inherited estate.

The main law behind this is Dubai Law No. (6) of 2019 Concerning Ownership of Jointly Owned Real Property. Article 16 sets out how co-owners can lease their shared property. Before you sign a tenancy contract, every owner on the title deed usually needs to agree. Skipping this step can cause problems later, from stalled Ejari registration to disputes between owners.

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Your lease ends next month, and your agent sends a message. It asks for a renewal fee of AED 2,000, or maybe 5% of your rent. Many tenants pay straight away. Few check whether their contract actually says they must.

The short answer is that you usually don't have to pay. Agents earn commission when they help sign a new tenancy, not when the same landlord extends the same lease. This guide covers what the law says, what each emirate charges and how to renew on your own.

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A tenancy contract in Abu Dhabi is a written rental agreement that must be registered on Tawtheeq. Law No. 20 of 2006 sets the rules for most homes and shops in the emirate. Once the contract is registered, the tenant can connect water and electricity and rely on it in a dispute.

This guide explains what every contract should include and how registration works. It also covers fees, renewal, cancellation and notice periods. You will find the rent freeze that started on 2 June 2026 here too. Tenants and landlords can both use it as a checklist before they sign.

A tenant hands back your flat with a cracked tile, a burnt worktop and a big hole in the wall. The repair quote lands on your desk, and the security deposit may not cover it. Dubai law gives landlords clear options, but only for damage beyond normal use.

Disputes go to the Rental Disputes Centre (RDC), which sits under the Dubai Land Department. The usual path: document the damage, talk to the tenant, deduct from the deposit, then claim the rest. Serious cases can lead to eviction. This guide explains each step in plain words.

A property management contract is the agreement between a property owner and a licensed management company. In Dubai, the company registers this contract with the Dubai Land Department (DLD) through the Ejari system. The service is free and takes about 10 minutes online.

This step matters more than most owners expect. An active management contract can decide who is allowed to register tenancy contracts for a property. Skip it, and a simple tenancy renewal can get stuck. This guide covers who can apply, what to upload and how to register or renew, step by step.

Dubai property has its own vocabulary. Words like Oqood, Musataha and Form F show up in contracts, listings and agent messages, often with no explanation. Sign a document without understanding them, and a small mistake can cost you thousands of dirhams.

This glossary covers the terms buyers, sellers, investors and tenants meet most often. They come from official DLD and RERA processes and everyday market practice. Each one gets a short definition, a real figure where possible and a note on why it matters.

A rental valuation in Dubai is an official estimate of what one property should rent for. The Dubai Land Department (DLD) issues it as a Rental Valuation Certificate. Tenants, owners and their legal representatives can all apply. Unlike a market average, it looks at your specific unit.

The rules changed recently. You now need a copy of a judgment or judicial order that directs the valuation. That makes the certificate a tool for formal disputes, not casual rent talks. For a normal renewal, the free RERA Rental Index is the better first stop.

You signed the contract. The keys are close. Now comes the part most tenants underestimate: the paperwork and setup between signing and actually living there. Skip a step, and you could face a delayed DEWA connection or a disputed deposit later on.

This checklist walks through every stage in order. It starts with the documents you need before you sign and ends with the inspection on move-in day. Follow it, and you will land in your new home with Ejari registered and your utilities already connected.

Landlords, tenants, authorised representatives, and licensed property management companies can register Ejari in Dubai. Ejari is an official system for registering tenancy contracts, run by the Real Estate Regulatory Agency (RERA) under the Dubai Land Department. Without it, your tenancy contract has no legal standing.

Most tenants assume only the landlord can register Ejari. That's not true in practice. Here, we're answering one specific question: who is actually allowed to do it, and what does each party need to bring?